Pop-up notifications from messengers, social networks, email services, and other apps deliver constant updates — but they also noticeably reduce how long a smartphone can run on a single charge. Anton Averyanov, CEO of the ST IT group of companies and an expert in the TechNet NTI market, explained in an interview with RT how strongly push notifications affect the battery life of modern smartphones.

How much battery notifications actually consume

Averyanov says that push notifications account for 15–30% of a smartphone’s daily battery consumption when using a device with an average-capacity battery of 4,500–5,000 mAh. This is a significant amount: if a phone without frequent notifications can deliver about 7–8 hours of screen time, active push alerts can reduce that by one to two hours, sometimes even more.

He noted that this figure has increased significantly compared with 2020–2022, largely because the average number of active applications has grown and background activity has intensified.

The more apps that have permission to send notifications and run in the background, the more often the phone “wakes up,” activates the display, vibrates, and processes incoming alerts — all of which consume energy.

Why modern operating systems cannot fully solve the problem

Both Android and iOS have significantly improved power management in recent years. Their systems now:

  • group notifications into bundles
  • limit background activity for apps
  • introduce optimized charging and sleep modes

However, even with these mechanisms, notifications remain one of the major sources of battery drain.

The most energy-intensive notifications typically come from:

  • messaging apps such as Telegram, WhatsApp, and Viber, especially when channels and large group chats are enabled
  • social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and VK, which constantly send recommendations
  • email clients and news aggregators

Each notification triggers several processes simultaneously: the screen turns on (or the Always-On Display activates), vibration or sound alerts are played, data is processed, and the device synchronizes with remote servers. Together, these actions create a noticeable drain on the battery.

How to significantly reduce the impact of notifications

Experts recommend several simple but effective measures:

  • disable notifications from apps you rarely use
  • enable notification grouping and silent mode for nonessential chats
  • use Do Not Disturb with exceptions (for example, calls from selected contacts)
  • on Android, enable Adaptive Battery and restrict background activity
  • on iOS, activate Focus modes and Low Power Mode

Technology journalist and editor-in-chief of Runet Vladimir Zykov has also pointed out that restarting a smartphone regularly — about once a week — can help. According to him, a reboot clears RAM and stops background processes that often remain stuck because of notification-related activity.

When notifications are still worth keeping

Completely disabling push notifications is not always practical. Alerts from banking apps, important contacts in messaging services, or delivery services can save both time and stress. The key is to configure notifications carefully so that only truly important apps are allowed to wake the device.

In brief

Push notifications consume 15–30% of a smartphone’s daily battery charge, making them one of the main factors affecting battery life. Their impact has grown since 2020–2022 due to the increasing number of active apps and background processes. While Android and iOS limit background activity, they cannot eliminate the issue entirely. The most effective way to save battery is to disable unnecessary notifications, enable grouping and power-saving modes, and occasionally restart the device to clear lingering background processes.