Apple's Battery Health Management Feature Cannot Be Disabled on Apple Silicon Macs

Apple's battery health management feature cannot be disabled on Apple Silicon Macs, as there is no toggle switch for this in System Preferences on these machines.

apple battery health management big sur

Battery health management cannot be disabled on Apple Silicon-based Macs

Introduced in macOS Catalina version 10.15.5, the battery health management system is designed to improve the lifespan of a Mac notebook's battery by reducing the rate at which it chemically ages. The feature achieves this by monitoring the battery's temperature history and its charging patterns, and temporarily reducing the battery's maximum charging capacity as necessary, according to Apple.

The feature can still be disabled on Intel-based Macs, but Apple warns this may reduce the battery's lifespan. On macOS Big Sur, navigate to System Preferences > Battery > Battery > Battery Health… and uncheck "Manage battery longevity." On macOS Catalina, the checkbox is located in System Preferences > Energy Saver > Battery Health…

apple battery health management big sur intel

Battery health management can be disabled on Intel-based Macs

As further confirmation, Apple has shared a new support document about battery health management on Apple Silicon Macs, and unlike the version of the document for Intel-based Macs, there is no section on turning off the feature.

Related Forum: macOS Big Sur

Popular Stories

2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

iPhones Could Cost Up to $2,300 in the U.S. Due to Tariffs, Analyst Says

Friday April 4, 2025 9:30 am PDT by
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced that steep tariffs will be applied to imports from many countries, starting April 9. The tariffs could have a significant impact on Apple, as the company assembles the majority of iPhones in China, and products imported to the U.S. from China will be subject to a 54% tariff. iPhone prices could increase by up to 43% in the U.S. due to the...
iOS 19 Mock WWDC25 Feature

iOS 19 Expected to Run on These iPhones

Monday March 31, 2025 5:28 pm PDT by
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past. The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
watchOS 11 Thumb 2 1

Apple Releases watchOS 11.4 With Sleep Alarm Update

Tuesday April 1, 2025 10:34 am PDT by
Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2. watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software,...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro: New 48MP Telephoto Lens May Change How Zoom Works

Thursday April 3, 2025 5:11 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly planning a major upgrade to the Telephoto camera in the iPhone 17 Pro, and while it may seem like a step back on paper, the change could actually improve real-world usability, if one leaker's claims are anything to go by. According to Majin Bu, the iPhone 17 Pro will feature a new Telephoto lens with a 48MP sensor, up from the current 12MP sensor found in the iPhone 16...
iOS 18

Apple Seeds First Beta of iOS 18.5 to Developers

Wednesday April 2, 2025 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming just two days after Apple released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5 can be downloaded from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. We don't yet know what Apple is introducing in the iOS 18.5...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iphone 16 pro colors 1

Is Now the Time to Upgrade Apple Devices Before Tariffs Lead to Price Increases?

Friday April 4, 2025 3:41 pm PDT by
If you have an older Apple device that you've been considering upgrading, you're probably wondering how the newly announced tariffs might impact prices going forward, and whether it's worth buying now before there's a price hike. Given analyst and economist responses to the tariffs, market panic, and Trump's stance on the current financial chaos, the answer is that making a purchase...

Top Rated Comments

tgwaste Avatar
57 months ago
Is this talking about "Optimized Battery Charging"? Im able to disable that on my M1 Macair.
Click battery icon in menu bar -> battery preferences.



Attachment Image
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
acidblood Avatar
57 months ago
People don't get it. The complaint is not because one would want to disable the feature. It's because one should be free to decide whether to disable the feature or not.

It's your computer. You paid very, very handsomely for it. You're supposed to be able to do what you want to it.

Well, I guess lots of people here would be just delighted to be at the other end of a Darth Vader-style "I am altering the deal, pray I don't alter it any further" speech.

PS: I use the AlDente app, and I manage my battery infinitely better than any crappy machine-learning-AI mumbo-jumbo would ever be able to. So, I do disable it. I wouldn't recommend this to 99.99% of other Apple users, though.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Digital Skunk Avatar
57 months ago
Given how many time I've had to send a fat, swollen laptop in for repair, maybe this is a good thing.

A lot of people still use laptops as desktops or always have them plugged in, so .....*shrug*

I do know that the more I've used my laptops on the go for a lot of heavy lifting the more likely my battery starts to get fat.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SigurTom Avatar
57 months ago
Someone will think a lawsuit is a good idea.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
acidblood Avatar
57 months ago

Because they all think they are better hardware/software engineers than any that work at Apple. I wish there was a program that allowed these people to build their own laptops with a live streaming feed so we could watch them blow up within the first 72 hours. Assuming, that is, they can keep them running for more than 15 minutes.

Or maybe a reality show where they each get their own personal UNIVAC to keep running to win a prize while losers get shot out of a cannon into the Sun. It’s a win/win either way and would be funny as hell.
You have no idea what you’re talking about. I, unlike you, do — I’m an electrical engineer, I’ve designed Li-Ion battery-powered products, and I’ve read dozens of actual scientific papers, on peer-reviewed high-impact journals, about battery lifespan.

The Apple feature tries to predict when you’re going to need 100% battery charge, and time the charges that way. To maximize battery lifespan, the main thing it can do is keep it at a lower charge (e.g. 60% seems to be an ideal value) for as long as possible. Batteries degrade much much much faster when near 100% state of charge than when at 60% or even 80%.

I, unlike Apple, actually know when I’m going to need 100% charge. In my case, the answer is: never — OK, maybe once or twice a year, but this year I’ve yet to purposefully charge it beyond 60% (using the AlDente app to control the state of charge).

So, Apple may have the best and brightest engineers of the world. Maybe they can do the very best, state of the art machine-learning mumbo-jumbo (actually, from my experience it’s crap — optimized battery charging doesn’t work for me in the iPhone at all — but let’s pretend for a moment that it’s not crap). Unfortunately one thing that’s beyond Apple is predicting the future: i.e. when will you need 100% charge, so you can start charging it exactly X minutes before so the moment you unplug it, it’s at 100%. Since it can’t do that, those that care enough about managing their battery will always be able to do better. It’s simply impossible to argue with that.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jerryk Avatar
57 months ago
Given the battery life of these systems, it is probably less of an issue.

But, knowing these forums I expect there will be complaining that they are only getting 18 hours instead of 20.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)