Every time I use my Windows laptop without a charger, it feels like a constant tug-of-war between performance and battery life. Switch to battery-saving mode, and everything feels sluggish; switch to performance mode, and the battery plummets before you know it.
Over a decade of using Windows laptops, it became clear to me that the real sweet spot is never choosing one extreme. That’s why I started experimenting with different settings and configurations inside Windows settings, including its power plans, to get the best of both worlds without compromise.
Windows power plan basics
If you want to change how Windows behaves when your laptop is plugged in or unplugged, the first item you must pick is the power plan. Whether the laptop saves as much battery as possible, or delivers maximum power, depends on the power plan (plus the overall Windows settings you’ve set).
The Windows power plan menu has three preset modes out of the box: Balanced, High Performance, and Battery Saver. Like most people, I used to assume that the Balanced plan was the best choice while unplugged.
How to change the default Windows Power mode
Open the power plan menu by performing the following:
- Open Settings with Win + I.
- Open System settings from the left pane.
- Navigate to Power & battery.
- Select the Power menu.
Within this menu, select one of the three default options given in the Plugged in and On battery settings. If you can’t change either of these options, or if they’re grayed out, press Win + A to open the quick settings pane. If Energy Saver is enabled, disable it and try again.
Tweaking the power plans actually makes a difference, whether the laptop is plugged in or unplugged. That’s why when I’m away from power outlets, I always use the Balanced or Battery Saver power plan, as they conserve battery and let me use my laptop all day.
How to tweak Windows power plans from the Control Panel
Go beyond the default to truly balance battery and performance
If you want to go beyond these basic power menu options, resort to the Control Panel. It lets you adjust power plans more granularly and strike the perfect balance between battery life and performance. To get started:
- Open the Control Panel from the Start menu by searching for its name.
- Change the View by item at the top-right to Small icons if needed, then navigate to Power Options.
- Click Change plan settings next to the plan you want to adjust.
- Now, select Change advanced power settings.
- Use the Plus buttons to expand each option and the power plan to your liking. We’ll walk through some of the most important options below.
I discovered that the Balanced plan throttles the CPU to only 5% on battery power. This looked efficient at first glance, but in reality, it made my laptop feel sluggish even with just four tabs open in the browser. And this was the worst with the Battery Saver plan.
The default plans are either too conservative or too aggressive—not optimized for modern-day usage. But the good news is that you can customize Windows settings and create your own power plan with granular-level control.
The best Windows settings for balanced battery and performance
The parameters that let you enjoy a happy medium
After experimenting with different power plans and settings, I found a sweet spot for performance-to-battery-life ratio when using a Windows laptop unplugged.
Processor power management
Under Processor power management in the above power plan menu, the Minimum processor state controls the lowest performance level your CPU will operate at. The lower this is, the fewer resources your system will use when idle, which saves battery.
On battery, I keep it between 15% and 20%, instead of the default 5%. This seemingly small increase has a noticeable impact on my laptop’s responsiveness during everyday tasks, such as browsing or streaming video.
When plugged in, I keep it at 50%, but you can set it wherever you like.
Raising this minimum will increase the power your CPU uses, since it won’t go below that value even when idling, so be careful how high you set it.
Just as the minimum processor state is important, the maximum processor state is equally so. This is where most people go wrong by keeping it at 100%. On battery power, I recommend keeping the maximum processor state between 90 and 95%.
You might think that this drops your laptop’s peak power while unplugged. But in reality, you are maintaining 90% of your peak performance while saving a significant chunk of battery. You can keep the maximum processor state at 100% while plugged in without a worry. And if you like, you can even tweak Windows to display the processor state in the Power menu for easy monitoring and adjustment.
Manage your display settings
Displays are the largest battery consumers in any laptop. The screen can account for up to 40% of total battery consumption while unplugged. Managing a few display settings can reduce this usage, giving big battery life wins—and, in a few cases, even improving performance.
For starters, disable automatic brightness under Settings > System > Display if your laptop supports it. This causes the display brightness to fluctuate even with slight changes in ambient light, often leaving it unnecessarily bright. Once you’ve set the brightness control to manual, set the display brightness at 45% to 50%. At first, this sounds dim. But in indoor environments, our eyes adapt quickly without discomfort.
Another factor is display refresh rate. Modern displays support higher refresh rates, which consume more power than a standard 60Hz display since they update more frequently. When you’re on battery power, switch to 60Hz (under Settings > System > Display > Advanced display > Choose a refresh rate).
This single change can save 15% to 20% of your battery while also reducing the GPU’s impact, compared to running at 120Hz or 144Hz. When plugged in, use your maximum refresh rate for smooth scrolling and a premium feel. If your laptop supports dynamic refresh rate, that’s ideal because it automatically adjusts between 48Hz and 120Hz based on what you’re doing.
Sleep and Hibernate settings
Sleep settings (under Sleep in the plan menu) determine how quickly your laptop goes to sleep or enters hibernation when left idle. The default sleep settings are around 10 to 15 minutes when the laptop is unplugged.
I recommend setting the sleep and hibernation times to 3–5 minutes. Yes, this is a bit aggressive, but that’s how it is supposed to be. On battery power, your laptop should go to sleep as soon as it becomes idle to conserve battery life.
Instead of shutting down, consider hibernating your laptop. This lets you pick up where you left off, while still enjoying the benefits of shutting it down without fully turning it off. Additionally, hibernating can save you a few extra percentage points of battery life by eliminating the processing power needed for a full boot.
Balance the battery and performance for the laptop experience
These settings aim to strike the best balance between battery life and performance on your Windows laptop. While they won’t give you the best battery life or the maximum performance that Windows’ power-saving or best performance profiles do, it will get you through the day without compromising the experience or much of the performance.