Google is rolling out stricter rules to tackle Android apps that secretly drain your phone’s battery. Starting March 2026, the Google Play Store will begin flagging apps that misuse “wake locks” , a feature that keeps your device awake even when the screen is turned off. Apps found guilty of excessive power consumption may face penalties, including reduced visibility in Play Store rankings and warning labels highlighting their impact on battery life.
Google’s New Policy Targets Battery-Draining Apps
As revealed on the Android Developers Blog, the updated policy is a joint effort between Google and Samsung, aimed at creating consistent power efficiency standards across Android devices. The focus is on apps that misuse wake locks necessary for functions like music playback or file downloads but often abused, leading to significant and unnecessary battery drain.
Google’s policy builds upon its existing core technical quality metrics, which already track app crashes, freezes, and performance issues. Now, battery performance will officially become a major factor in determining an app’s overall quality rating on the Play Store.
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How the Battery Policy Works
Under the new guidelines, if an app keeps a wake lock active for over two cumulative hours within 24 hours without a valid reason, it will be flagged for poor performance. An app could also lose ranking visibility if more than 5% of its user sessions within a 28-day period show excessive battery usage.
When this happens, developers will receive alerts through their Android Vitals dashboard, prompting them to optimise power usage. At the same time, users may start seeing warning labels on the app’s Play Store listing, alerting them that the app is known to drain battery faster than normal.
Why This Update Matters
The new policy aims to make app performance more transparent for users while pushing developers to build power-efficient apps. The move mirrors what Google already does for Wear OS smartwatches, where apps are flagged if they consume more than 4.44% of the device’s battery per hour during active use. This same level of monitoring will now extend to Android phones, offering better insight into how apps affect battery health.
By tightening control over battery usage, Google hopes to deliver a longer-lasting and more reliable Android experience, empowering users to make smarter decisions about the apps they download.
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