Don't waste your RAM in Windows 11! - Windows Central
December 19, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Don't waste your RAM in Windows 11! Practical ways to use less memory and keep your PC responsive
If RAM is getting expensive or your PC feels sluggish, you can free up memory in Windows 11 with a few quick tweaks—no risky hacks required.
Quick wins
- Review startup apps: Settings > Apps > Startup. Disable anything you don’t need launching with Windows.
- Close background apps: Quit apps that sit in the system tray (near the clock) and turn off their auto-start inside each app’s settings.
- Use Efficiency mode: In Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc), right‑click heavy processes and select Efficiency mode to reduce their RAM and CPU impact.
- Tame your browser: Turn on Sleeping Tabs (Microsoft Edge) or Memory Saver (Chrome), reduce the number of open tabs, and remove extensions you don’t use.
- Uninstall bloat and extras: Settings > Apps > Installed apps to remove unused software. Also check Settings > Apps > Optional features for items you don’t need.
Deeper optimizations
- Limit background activity per app: In Settings > Apps > Installed apps, open an app’s Advanced options (where available) and set Background apps permissions to Never.
- Reduce visual effects: Search “Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows,” then choose Adjust for best performance or customize animations and effects.
- Disable nonessential taskbar items: Right‑click the taskbar > Taskbar settings to turn off Widgets, Chat, or other features you don’t use.
- Keep Windows and drivers updated: Performance and memory management often improve with OS and driver updates.
- Scan for malware: Threats can consume RAM. Run a full scan with Windows Security or your trusted antivirus.
When to consider a hardware upgrade
If you routinely exceed available memory (heavy multitasking, large creative apps, or VMs), adding more RAM will deliver the biggest improvement. Until then, the steps above will help Windows 11 use less of what you have.