iPad Battery Draining Fast – How To Fix It

Last Updated on September 7, 2023 by Ernests Embutnieks

Naturally, your iPad gets slower with time. The apps you are using daily are being updated, and over time, they require more processing power and other resources from the iPad, which makes your iPad’s battery drain faster.

Some common causes include running power-intensive apps, having many background processes running, outdated software, excessive screen brightness, or a faulty battery.

Don’t worry. I’ve got you covered! In this guide, I’ll help you find the root problem and show how you can fix it. But I have to tell you – not all problems are so easy to fix.

iPad Battery Draining Fast – 17 Possible Ways To Fix It

Let’s go through all the solutions you can apply today and make your iPad battery last a bit longer.

Reset Your iPad 

The most obvious thing you can try: turn it off and on again.

• At the same time, press and hold the Home and On/Off buttons.
• Continue to hold them down for a few seconds, and the screen will switch off.
• The Apple logo appears on the screen. At that moment, you’re free to leave.

If you have a recent iPad and it lacks a Home button, you must hold the Top and one of the Volume buttons simultaneously. Hold them in place until the display turns off. After you see the Apple logo, you can let go of the buttons.

After rebooting your iPad, you can check to see if the fast battery drain issue continues to bother you.

Update Your iPad

Software flaws might be to blame for your iPad’s battery’s unusual draining. You may not have updated iOS in a long time. You’re probably aware if you’re using an older iOS version. You’ve probably been getting update notifications lately.

There are two ways to get the most recent firmware. One of the fixes is simpler.

Method One:

• Go to Settings
• Select General, then tap Software Update.
• If there are any firmware files available, tap Install.

After installing the most recent firmware, your iPad will restart.

Turn on Low Power Mode

Low Power Mode is your best friend when it comes to conserving battery life. To enable it, follow these steps:

• Open Settings and tap on “Battery.”
• Toggle on the switch next to “Low Power Mode.”

This feature reduces power consumption by disabling certain background activities, giving you more battery time.

Software Glitch

If you’re a beta-tester for Apple, the new version might be the problem why your battery is draining faster. If you’re a beta-tester and noticed a sudden battery drain after the update, the only fix is to reset your iPad completely. Which is annoying, I know.

Check Battery Usage

It’s essential to identify the power-hungry apps that are draining your battery. Follow these steps:

• Go to Settings and tap on “Battery.”
• You’ll see a list of apps and the percentage of battery they’ve consumed.
• If you find any apps you rarely use or ones that are consuming an excessive amount of power, consider uninstalling them.

Disable Background App Refresh

Some apps constantly refresh in the background to provide you with up-to-date information. However, this feature can drain your battery. To turn it off:

• Go to Settings, then General, and tap on “Background App Refresh.”
• Disable the toggle switches for apps that don’t require constant updates.

Reduce The Screen Brightness

A bright screen can be a major battery drainer. Try these steps to reduce screen brightness:

• Open Settings and tap on “Display & Brightness.”
• Drag the brightness slider to a lower level that’s comfortable for you.
• You can also enable Dark Mode under Appearance, which not only saves battery but also reduces eye strain in low-light conditions.

I also highly recommend setting up True Tone, Auto-brightness, and night shifts. This will automatically adjust your screen’s brightness and save your battery, it will also reduce exposure to blue light before bedtime, which will lead to better sleep quality and better battery life for your iPad. Win, win.

Limit Apps Accessing Location Services

Location service is a fantastic utility that keeps track of where you are at any desired time. The many apps that use location data will offer a brilliant functionality that operates in accordance with the location. Unfortunately, the function is also a battery hog and may quickly drain the battery if not utilized properly.

So, again, the best choice will be to allow location service permissions to only the apps that you need. The steps to take are as follows:

• Go to Settings>Privacy>Location Services.
• Manually choose which apps should have access to your location data.
• Alternatively, you can simply enable Airplane Mode, which disables Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and cellular features all at once.

Stop Sharing Analytics

When you originally set up your iPad, you had the choice of sharing use statistics with Apple or app developers in order to help them improve their products. This data transfer is completely anonymous and occurs in the background.

However, if your iPad battery continues dying unexpectedly, it may be time to stop sharing that data in order to save power. The steps to take are as follows:

• Go to Settings > Privacy 
• Then, Analytics and improvements towards the bottom. 
• Disable the Share iPad Analytics option.

Limit App Notifications

Notifications are an unavoidable evil. While it is a great feature for staying up to date on current events or being informed of the newest developments, companies frequently send out alerts to ensure they remain relevant to you. Again, limiting notifications to only the most important apps is often the best solution. The steps to take are as follows:

• Go to Settings>Notifications.
• Choose an app for which you want to disable notifications.
• To stop getting notifications from that App, toggle the Allow Notifications option.

Auto-Lock Timing

Auto-Lock is a handy feature that automatically turns off your iPad’s screen after a specified time. Setting it to a shorter duration can save battery power:

• In Settings, go to Display & Brightness, then tap on “Auto-Lock.”

Choose a shorter time interval (around 5 minutes is recommended) before your iPad automatically locks.

Related: How Do I Keep My iPad From Going To Sleep?

Manage Connectivity

Disabling unnecessary wireless connections can help conserve battery life:

• Swipe down from the top-right corner of your iPad to access the Control Center.
• Toggle off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when you’re not using them.

Enabled Bluetooth does increase battery drain on your iPad

Switch From Cellular To Wi-Fi

If you have a WiFi+Cellular iPad model we do recommend switching to WiFi when it’s possible, because using cellular data decreases battery life 10% faster than using a WiFi network.

Limit Your Exposure To Extreme Heat Or Cold

Apple advises using your iPad in temperatures ranging from 0° C to 35° C. Anything above that can have an impact on the iPad’s overall performance, including the device’s battery life.

Delete Unnecessary Widgets

Widgets are fast and easy ways to access information about certain topics without having to launch an app. However, because a widget must continually refresh its data, it can drain your iPad battery just as quickly. To fix this, you must delete all or any of the widgets, especially if you are aware that you do not need them.

Factory Reset (Last Resort)

If none of the above steps work, you can consider a factory reset as a last resort. However, keep in mind that this will erase all your data, so be sure to back up your iPad beforehand. Here are the steps to factory reset your iPad:

Backup your iPad:

• Connect your iPad to Wi-Fi.
• Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud.
• Tap on iCloud Backup.
• Tap on Back Up Now and wait for the process to complete.

Initiate Factory Reset:

• Go to Settings.
• Tap on General.
• Scroll down to Reset.
• Select Erase All Content and Settings.

Confirm Reset:

• You’ll be prompted for your passcode. Enter it.
• A warning box will appear, with the option to Erase iPad in red. Tap this.
• You will be asked to enter your Apple ID and password. This is to remove the iPad from your linked Apple devices and turn off Find My iPad.

Wait for Reset to Complete:

• The Apple logo, along with a progress bar, will appear.
• Wait for the process to complete. It might take a few minutes.

Set up your iPad:

• After the reset, the iPad will restart, and you will see the welcome screen.
• Follow the instructions to set up your iPad as new, or restore it from the backup you created earlier.

Remember, a factory reset should be your last resort to fix iPad battery draining fast as it erases all information and settings on your device. Always make sure to back up your data before proceeding with a factory reset.

Contact Apple Support

Your iPad’s battery may be getting old. For a battery replacement, go to your nearest Apple shop. Alternatively, you may have dropped your tab and severely damaged it, or you may be suffering from water damage.

If you have adequate coverage, your local Apple Store should be able to solve whatever problem you’re having for free.

Which iPads Have The Best Battery Life?

If you have concluded that none of the solutions we provided don’t work and it’s time to upgrade, you might be wondering which of the latest iPads have the best battery life and the results are identical all of the iPads have the same battery life on average.

	Battery Life (WiFi)	Battery Life (LTE)
iPad Pro	~10 hours	~ 9 hours
iPad Air	~10 hours	~ 9 hours
iPad Mini	~10 hours	~ 9 hours
iPad	~10 hours	~ 9 hours

In our experience, all of the iPads have similar battery life; of course, it depends on how you use it. We tested the iPads by watching movies and browsing the web. But there is a difference when it comes to charging them. You can charge iPad Mini the fastest. From 0-100 in 1 Hour and 20 minutes. With a 30W charger, you can also charge iPad Air from 0 to 100 in less than 2 hours.

Conclusion

Technology ages. iPads do too. Companies keep updating their apps, you keep downloading new ones and all these new apps require more and more processing power sometimes, we call it what it is – your iPad is too old, and your battery might not be at fault, but it’s just time to upgrade.

A great solution to fast draining iPad is a fast charger, if it charges to 100% in under 2 hours, the fast-draining battery is not as annoying, but it’s a solution if you don’t want to update and none of the solutions worked.

We hope you can put these solutions into practice and improve the battery life of your iPad.

Find Out More: How Long It Takes To Charge Each iPad Model

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