How to prevent an app from running in the background in Windows 11

Some apps keep running in the background in Windows 11 to sync data, fetch updates, and deliver notifications. Unneeded background activity can consume CPU time, memory, network bandwidth, and battery—especially on laptops and tablets.

For apps that support it, Windows Settings provides per-app Background apps permissions controls that limit what an app can do when it is not actively open. The setting is applied per app through its Advanced options page and is most commonly available for Store and packaged apps.

Setting background permission to Never can delay syncing and suppress notifications until the app is opened again. Classic desktop apps may run helper processes through services, startup entries, or scheduled tasks and may not expose background permission controls in Settings.

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Steps to prevent an app from running in the background in Windows 11:

  1. Open Settings from the Start menu.
  2. Select Apps.
  3. Select Installed apps.
  4. Locate the target app in the list.

    Using the Search apps field speeds up locating apps in long lists.

  5. Open the app's three-dot menu.
  6. Select Advanced options.

    Missing Advanced options commonly indicates a classic desktop app without per-app background permission controls in Settings.

  7. Locate Background apps permissions on the app settings page.

    If Background apps permissions is missing, the app does not expose this control in Settings.

  8. Set Background apps permissions to Never.

    Notifications, syncing, and live updates for the app may stop until the app is opened.

    App functionality while open remains unchanged; the restriction applies to background activity.

  9. Repeat for other apps that do not need background activity.