Memory Saver in Chrome: Turn It On or Off

Memory Saver is a Chrome feature that frees up RAM by putting inactive tabs to sleep, which can make your browser faster and your computer run smoother. This guide shows you how to enable or disable it on desktop (Windows, Mac, Linux, ChromeOS) and Android, with exact menu names and steps for current versions of Chrome.

What You’ll Need

A computer or Android phone with Google Chrome installed (any recent version).
If you use Chrome with a work or school account, the setting may be locked by your administrator — in that case, the toggle won’t appear or will be grayed out.

Step-by-Step

On Desktop (Windows, Mac, Linux, ChromeOS)

Open Chrome and look at the top-right corner. Click the three vertical dots (⋮) to open the main menu.
In the dropdown menu, click Settings. This opens a new tab.
In the left sidebar of the Settings tab, click Performance. If you don’t see it, your Chrome version may be older — look for Advanced and then Performance, or search for “Memory Saver” in the search bar at the top of Settings.
In the Performance section, you’ll see a toggle labeled Memory Saver. Click the toggle to turn it on (blue) or off (gray).
Optional: If Memory Saver is on, you can click Memory Saver text (not the toggle) to expand options. Here you can choose to keep specific sites always active by clicking Add next to “Always keep these sites active.” Type the site’s URL (e.g., example.com) and click Add.
Close the Settings tab. The change applies immediately — no restart needed.

On Android

Open the Chrome app on your phone or tablet.
Tap the three vertical dots (⋮) in the top-right corner (or bottom-right on some devices).
Tap Settings from the menu.
Scroll down and tap Memory Saver. (In some versions it’s under “Basics” or “Performance.”)
Tap the toggle to turn Memory Saver on or off. You can also choose to turn it off when your battery is low by tapping the option below the toggle.
Press back to exit — the change saves automatically.

Quick Toggle (Desktop Only)

If you just want to temporarily turn Memory Saver off for a single session, you don’t need Settings. Click the three dots → More tools → Performance. A small popup appears with the Memory Saver toggle right there. This does the same thing as the Settings toggle.

Common Mistakes

Looking in the wrong menu: Some people look under “Privacy and security” or “System” — it’s under Performance in Settings.
Confusing Memory Saver with Energy Saver: Energy Saver is a separate feature that limits background activity and visual effects to save battery. They appear side by side in the Performance settings. Make sure you’re toggling the right one.
Expecting immediate tab reloads: When you turn Memory Saver on, already-open tabs don’t all sleep at once. Chrome wakes them gradually based on inactivity. If you want to test it, leave a tab open for a while, then come back — it will reload.
Not checking if the site is in your “always active” list: If a tab keeps staying awake when you expect it to sleep, you may have added that domain to the exceptions list earlier. Remove it there.
Using an outdated Chrome version: Memory Saver was introduced in Chrome 108 (late 2022). If you can’t find the setting at all, update Chrome via the three dots → Help → About Google Chrome.

Tips

Keep important tabs awake: If you have a draft email, a video call, or a form you’re filling out, add that site to the “Always keep these sites active” list. This prevents the tab from reloading and losing your unsaved input.
Watch for the reload icon: When a tab has been put to sleep by Memory Saver, the tab’s favicon (the small icon) may look slightly faded or grayed out. When you click it, the page reloads from scratch. That’s normal.
Use it with many tabs: Memory Saver helps most when you have 20+ tabs open. If you rarely exceed 5 tabs, you won’t notice much difference.
Combine with manual tab grouping: Group related tabs (right-click a tab → “Add tab to group”) so you can quickly find and reopen them after they sleep.
For a one-time boost: If your computer is slow right now, you don’t need to wait for Memory Saver. You can manually discard a tab by right-clicking it and choosing “Discard” (not available on all platforms).

Troubleshooting

The toggle is grayed out or missing

Reason: Your Chrome is managed by a school or employer, or the feature is disabled by policy.
Fix: Check if you’re signed in with a work/school account. Try switching to a personal Google account or a guest profile. If it’s still grayed out, it’s a policy restriction — you can’t override it. Use a different browser or ask your administrator.

Memory Saver is on, but tabs never sleep

Reason: Chrome only sleeps tabs that are inactive for a while and not playing audio/video, not sharing your screen, or not pinned.
Fix: Wait at least a few minutes. Also check that the tab isn’t pinned (right-click the tab → “Unpin”). If the site is in your “always active” list, remove it.

Tabs keep reloading even though Memory Saver is off

Reason: This is likely not Memory Saver — Chrome also reloads tabs when it’s low on system memory, or when you have “Continue where you left off” enabled and the browser restarted.
Fix: Check that the toggle is truly off. Then try closing other programs that use RAM. If the problem persists, go to Settings → “On startup” and make sure “Open the New Tab page” is selected, then restart Chrome.

Turning off Memory Saver doesn’t speed up my computer

Reason: Memory Saver isn’t the only thing using RAM. Extensions, background apps, and many open tabs still consume memory.
Fix: Disable unused extensions (Settings → Extensions), and use Chrome’s built-in task manager (Shift+Esc on desktop) to see which tabs or extensions use the most memory, then close them.

After updating Chrome, the setting disappeared

Reason: Chrome sometimes moves or renames settings between versions.
Fix: In Settings, use the search bar at the top and type “Memory Saver.” If nothing appears, go to the three dots → Help → About Google Chrome to check you’re on the latest version, then look under Settings → Performance again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Memory Saver close my tabs?

No. It puts them to sleep, which means they stay in the tab bar but stop using memory. When you click on one, it reloads the page. Your open tabs are never closed automatically by this feature.

Will I lose data in forms or games if a tab sleeps?

Yes, if the page reloads, any unsaved input (like text in a form) is lost. That’s why you should add important sites to the “Always keep these sites active” list. Games that don’t save progress to the server will also reset.

Does Memory Saver work in Incognito mode?

Yes, the setting applies to all windows, including Incognito. However, in Incognito, the “always active” list is not available — you can’t exempt sites in private browsing.

How much memory does Memory Saver actually save?

It depends on how many tabs you have and what they contain. Chrome reports that it can reduce memory usage by up to 30% on average for heavy tab users. The exact number varies — heavy pages like video players save more than simple text pages.

Can I turn Memory Saver on for just one window?

No. The setting is global — it applies to all Chrome windows and profiles on that device. You can, however, exempt individual sites from sleeping.

Why do my tabs reload even when Memory Saver is off?

Chrome may still discard tabs if your system runs critically low on RAM. This is a separate emergency mechanism. To reduce it, close other apps or add more RAM to your computer. Also, check that you don’t have the “Continue where you left off” startup option, which can cause reloads after a crash.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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