If you use an Android phone regularly, you’ve likely noticed that apps sometimes keep running in the background even when you’re not using them. While some apps need to run in the background for updates and notifications, many apps can be closed to save battery life, improve performance, and free up system resources. If you’re wondering how to quickly close apps on your Android device, this guide will walk you through the steps.

Why You Might Want to Close Apps

Before we dive into how to close apps, it’s important to understand why you might want to do it:

• Battery Conservation: Apps that are running in the background consume your phone’s battery. By closing unnecessary apps, you can extend your phone’s battery life.
• Improve Performance: Some apps can slow down your device by using up memory and processing power. Closing apps helps improve overall speed and responsiveness.
• Free Up Storage: Apps running in the background can take up storage space. By closing them, you can free up space for other essential tasks.
• Prevent Data Use: Some apps continue to use mobile data or Wi-Fi in the background. Closing apps helps reduce unwanted data consumption.

How to Quickly Close Apps on Android

There are several ways to close apps on Android, depending on the version of Android you’re using and the specific features of your phone. Below are a few methods to help you manage and close apps efficiently.

1. Using the Recent Apps Screen

The easiest way to close apps is to use the Recent Apps screen. This screen shows you all the apps that are currently open or running in the background.

• Step 1: Open the Recent Apps screen by tapping the square icon at the bottom of your phone’s screen (or swipe up and hold if your device uses gesture navigation).
• Step 2: Scroll through the list of apps to find the ones you want to close.
• Step 3: Swipe left or right on an app to close it. On some phones, you may need to tap the X icon or the “Close All” button to remove multiple apps at once.

This method will quickly close apps that are no longer needed, stopping them from running in the background.

2. Force Stopping Apps in Settings

If an app is not responding or you need to prevent it from using resources, you can force stop the app through the phone’s Settings.

• Step 1: Open the Settings app.
• Step 2: Tap on Apps or Applications (this may vary based on your Android version).
• Step 3: Select the app you want to close.
• Step 4: Tap Force Stop to close the app completely. This will stop all processes related to the app until you open it again.

Use this method if you want to completely stop an app from running in the background.

3. Using the Phone’s Battery or Data Settings

Some Android phones allow you to manage background apps more effectively by limiting their activity in the Battery or Data Usage settings. This prevents apps from running in the background without completely closing them.

• Step 1: Open the Settings app.
• Step 2: Tap on Battery or Battery Optimization.
• Step 3: Choose Battery Usage and select the app you want to restrict.
• Step 4: Tap Optimize or toggle off the background data option to limit the app’s activity.

This method doesn’t close the app but helps limit its background operations, saving resources.

4. Use Android’s Built-In App Manager (Developer Options)

For more advanced users, Android has a Developer Options feature that lets you limit background processes and prevent apps from running in the background. To enable this feature:

• Step 1: Go to Settings and tap About Phone.
• Step 2: Tap on Build Number seven times to enable Developer Options.
• Step 3: Go back to Settings and tap Developer Options.
• Step 4: Scroll down to the Limit Background Processes option and select the number of processes you want running in the background.

This can significantly reduce the number of apps running in the background but may affect app performance.

When to Let Apps Run in the Background

While it’s helpful to close apps to conserve battery and free up memory, some apps are designed to run in the background for important reasons, such as:

• Messaging apps for real-time notifications.
• Weather apps for providing updates.
• Health apps for tracking activity in the background.

It’s important to only close apps that you know you don’t need running continuously.

Conclusion

Closing apps on your Android device can help extend battery life, improve performance, and free up resources. Whether you use the Recent Apps screen, force stop apps through settings, or manage background activity through advanced options, each method offers a quick way to close unwanted apps. While you don’t need to close apps all the time, managing background processes can be especially helpful when your phone starts slowing down or you’re running low on battery. Keep your device running smoothly by regularly checking which apps are active and closing those that you no longer need.