How to Turn Off Background Apps on LG G5

This guide shows you how to close and disable background apps on the LG G5, which can improve battery life, free up memory, and stop apps from running when you don’t need them. You’ll learn the built-in methods for closing individual apps, clearing all recent apps, and preventing apps from auto-starting. No special tools or apps are required—everything is done through the phone’s settings and recent apps screen.

What You’ll Need

• Your LG G5 with Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) or later
• Your phone unlocked and on the home screen
• Basic knowledge of tapping and swiping on the touchscreen

Step-by-Step

Method 1: Close a Single Background App (Quickest Way)

1. Press the Square/Recent Apps button at the bottom of the screen (the one to the right of the Home button). This opens a carousel of all recently used and currently running apps.
2. Swipe left or right through the app cards until you find the app you want to close.
3. Swipe that app card upward (toward the top of the screen) to dismiss it. The app is now closed and removed from the recent list.
4. Repeat for any other apps you want to close.

Method 2: Close All Background Apps at Once

1. Press the Square/Recent Apps button to open the recent apps screen.
2. Look for the trash can icon or the “Clear all” text at the bottom of the screen (it may appear as a small button with a trash symbol).
3. Tap that icon. All apps in the recent list will be closed simultaneously.

Method 3: Force Stop a Stubborn App (For Apps That Keep Restarting)

1. Open Settings (the gear icon in the app drawer or notification shade).
2. Scroll down and tap General tab, then select Apps (or “Application Manager” on some versions).
3. You’ll see a list of all installed apps. Tap the app you want to stop.
4. On the app’s info page, tap Force stop. A confirmation dialog may appear—tap OK.
5. The app will be terminated immediately and will not run until you open it again manually.

Method 4: Prevent Apps from Auto-Starting (Smart Settings)

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap General tab, then select Smart Settings (sometimes labeled “Smart Doctor” or “Battery & power saving”).
3. Look for an option called App power saving or Auto-start management.
4. Tap it, then you’ll see a list of apps that can auto-start. Toggle off the switch next to any app you don’t want running in the background.
5. For more granular control, tap an individual app and choose “Do not auto-start” or set it to “Optimize” so it only runs when you open it.

Method 5: Use the Battery Saver to Limit Background Activity

1. Go to Settings > Battery & power saving.
2. Tap Battery usage to see which apps consume the most power.
3. Tap on any app in that list, then select Battery optimization.
4. Choose Optimize to restrict its background activity, or Don’t optimize if you want it to run freely (not recommended for battery life).

Common Mistakes

• Swiping apps left/right instead of up: On the LG G5, you must swipe the app card upward to close it. Swiping sideways just scrolls through the cards.
• Confusing “recent apps” with “running apps”: The recent apps list shows apps you opened recently, but some may already be closed. To see what’s actually running, go to Settings > Apps > Running (or use the “Running services” option in Developer Options).
• Forcing stop on system apps: Some pre-installed system apps (like Settings, Phone, or Messaging) may cause problems if force-stopped. Only force stop apps you installed yourself or that you recognize as safe to close.
• Expecting force stop to be permanent: Force stop only works until the app is opened again or the phone restarts. It doesn’t disable the app permanently—use “Disable” in the app settings if you want to prevent it from ever launching (only available for some apps).
• Ignoring the “Clear all” button: Many users manually swipe each app when they could just tap the trash icon to close everything at once, saving time.

Tips

• Check battery usage regularly: Go to Settings > Battery & power saving > Battery usage to see which apps drain the most power. Apps that use more than 10% of your battery are prime candidates for background restriction.
• Use the “Smart Doctor” feature: The LG G5 has a built-in “Smart Doctor” tool (in Settings > General) that scans for performance issues and can automatically close background apps that are consuming too many resources.
• Restart your phone weekly: A simple reboot clears all background processes and gives your phone a fresh start. This is often more effective than manually closing apps.
• Be selective with auto-start management: Don’t disable auto-start for essential apps like your messaging app or email, or you might miss notifications until you open them manually.
• Use Developer Options for advanced control: If you enable Developer Options (Settings > About phone > tap “Software info” then “Build number” 7 times), you can access “Running services” to see exactly what’s running and stop individual processes.

Troubleshooting

Apps keep reappearing after you close them:

• Some apps are designed to restart themselves (like messaging or social media apps). Use Method 4 (auto-start management) to prevent them from launching automatically.
• Check if the app has a “sync” or “background data” setting inside the app itself. Turn those off to reduce its background activity.

You can’t find the “Force stop” button:

• Make sure you’re on the correct app info page. Go to Settings > Apps, tap the app, and the Force stop button should be at the top of the screen, near the “Uninstall” button.
• If the button is greyed out, the app is currently running as a system process. Restart your phone, then try again immediately after boot (before the app auto-starts).

Phone becomes slow even after closing apps:

• Close apps using the “Clear all” button, then restart the phone. This clears all cached processes.
• Check storage space: Settings > Storage. If less than 500 MB is free, delete unused apps or move photos/videos to an SD card.
• If the problem persists, consider a factory reset (backup your data first) as a last resort.

You accidentally force-stopped a system app and now something is broken:

• Restart the phone. Most system apps will restart automatically on boot.
• If the issue remains, go to Settings > Apps, find the affected app, and tap “Clear cache” (not “Clear data” unless you want to reset it completely).
• If nothing helps, a factory reset will restore all system apps to their default state.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will closing background apps save battery?
A: Yes, but the effect varies. Apps that use GPS, Bluetooth, or heavy data in the background will save more battery when closed. Light apps that just sit in memory use very little power, so the savings may be minimal.

Q: What’s the difference between “recent apps” and “running apps”?
A: Recent apps shows apps you opened, even if they’ve already been closed. Running apps are actually active in the background right now. You can see running apps under Settings > Apps > Running (or via Developer Options > Running services).

Q: Is it safe to force stop any app?
A: Generally yes for third-party apps. For system apps (like Phone, Contacts, or Settings), force stopping can cause temporary glitches. If you’re unsure, only force stop apps you installed yourself.

Q: Will apps lose my data when I close them?
A: No. Closing an app from the recent apps screen or force stopping it does not delete your data. The app’s saved data (login, settings, progress) is stored on the phone and remains intact. You’ll just have to reopen the app to use it again.

Q: How do I stop an app from auto-starting after I reboot my phone?
A: Use the Smart Settings > App power saving > Auto-start management feature (Method 4). Toggle off the switch for that app. Alternatively, you can disable the app entirely if it’s a pre-installed app that supports it.

Q: Why does my LG G5 still show apps running after I cleared them?
A: Some apps have background services that restart themselves, or the system may keep a few apps cached for faster reopening. This is normal behavior. To see what’s truly running, check Settings > Apps > Running, and force stop any you don’t need.

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