You've been closing apps wrong your whole life - and it's slowing everything down
A tech journalist explains that force-closing smartphone apps is unnecessary and can actually degrade battery life and performance. Modern mobile operating systems are designed to manage RAM efficiently, making manual app termination counterproductive.
Why it matters
This corrects a widespread user misconception that leads to inefficient device usage and potential battery drain.
By Brandon Miniman Published Aug 24, 2026, 2:30 PM EDT Brandon has been involved in tech journalism since the year 2000 and was part of the OG team of XDA and Pocketnow. He's currently a staff writer for MakeUseOf, covering mobile and consumer tech. Brandon likes to help people take full advantage of their technology. He lives outside of Philadelphia, PA, with his wife and three kids. When he's not writing, Brandon plays drums and enjoys listening to music. He's a graduate of the Villanova School of Business where he got a bachelors degree in finance.
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