Google Play to flag apps that drain your phone’s battery starting in 2026

Google Play

If your phone battery often runs out faster than it should, Google wants to change that. The company has announced a new rule that will go into effect on March 1, 2026, where apps that secretly drain too much power could be flagged right on the Google Play Store. That means users may soon see warnings before downloading or updating battery-hungry apps.

The new system is part of Google’s effort to make Android phones last longer on a single charge. It’s powered by something called the “excessive partial wake locks” metric — a technical term for when an app keeps your phone awake in the background, even when the screen is off. This might sound harmless, but when too many apps do it, your battery pays the price.

Google first started testing this feature earlier this year, working closely with Samsung to understand how apps affect real-world battery life. After months of testing and feedback, the company says the feature is now ready to roll out to all Android developers through Android Vitals, its app performance monitoring tool.

Here’s what will happen behind the scenes: if an app keeps a device awake for more than two hours in a day during at least 5% of user sessions, Google will consider it “excessive.” Developers will be notified to fix the problem, but if they ignore it, there will be consequences.

From 2026, apps that fail to meet Google’s quality bar could lose visibility on the Play Store — meaning they might not appear in recommendations or featured sections. Some may even come with a warning label that tells users the app could drain their battery faster than usual.

Google says this is just the beginning of a larger plan to make Android devices more efficient. The new battery rule joins other core Play Store metrics like app crash rate and performance stability.

In short, this update is good news for users and a wake-up call for developers. If an app eats too much battery, Google Play will make sure you know before you hit “Install.”