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Android 8.1 lets you disable those pesky “App is running in the background” notifications
June 01, 2025
For the past several years, Google has been trying to improve battery life on Android devices. It instituted new features likeDozeandnew restrictionson what can run in the background. But, beyond what it could do to the system and the apps running on it, Google made an effort to keep users more informed, too. Starting inAndroid Oreo, a notification would pop up letting you knowan app was running in the background. This happened with popular apps likeLastPassandFacebook Messenger, and no matter how many times you swiped, it wasn’t going away.
Google has recently shown a willingness to compromise with its users. First, we saw it update theGoogle app betaand give usersmore control over the look and feelof the search bar widget. Now, we’re getting a compromise over the annoying persistent notifications about apps sucking your battery dry. The notification will still pop up in Android 8.1 and it now says “Apps using battery”. You still can’t swipe it away, but you can long press and switch the toggle to hide the notification for that particular app.
Google is actually allowing you to turn off these notifications altogether, too. Here are the steps you need to take to completely kill the notification:
Something to keep in mind is that we’re talking about beta software.Android 8.1is a called a developer preview because its intended for developers to get a head start on updating their apps before the new version of Android is released to the public. We’ve seen several instances of Googleincluding popular featuresonly to have them pulled before a public release happens. Enjoy these options now, but don’t count on them being around forever.
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