How to Disable Power Nap in macOS

Keep your apps from taking a nap

By
Tom Nelson
Tom Nelson
Writer

Tom Nelson is an engineer, programmer, network manager, and computer network and systems designer who has written for Other World Computing,and others. Tom is also president of Coyote Moon, Inc., a Macintosh and Windows consulting firm.

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Updated on December 8, 2021

What to Know

  • Turn Power Nap on: Go to Settings > Energy Saver > select Enable Power Nap under Battery or Power Adapter.
  • Turn Power Nap off: Go to Settings > Energy Saver > deselect Enable Power Nap under Battery or Power Adapter.
  • Power Nap was called App Nap in earlier versions of macOS.

This article explains how to disable Power Nap (formerly App Nap) in macOS 10.13 and later.

How to Disable or Enable Power Nap

Power Nap is a battery-saving feature available for select apps in macOS.

To turn Power Nap (App Nap) on, go to Settings > Energy Saver and select Enable Power Nap under the appropriate tab (Battery or Power Adapter).

To disable Power Nap, go to Settings > Energy Saver and deselect Enable Power Nap under the appropriate tab (Battery or Power Adapter).

macOS Energy Saver panel

How Power Nap Works

Power Nap saves power and battery life when turned on by suspending any app that isn't actively performing a task, such as installing an update, playing media, and downloading. It can be a helpful feature when your computer uses battery power and can't get to an outlet.

Why You Might Want to Disable App Nap

You might not want to keep Power Nap turned on because it could prevent less critical tasks from running in the background, such as system monitoring. It can also get in the way of multitasking if you're prone to switching between apps. Using Power Nap depends on your computer habits and preferences.

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