How to Automatically Enable Low Power Mode When Your iPhone Battery Drops Below 20%

Low Power Mode is one of the most critical survival features built into iOS. When activated, it drastically reduces your iPhone’s background activity, disables high refresh rates, and pauses email fetching to squeeze hours of extra life out of a dying battery. While your iPhone will manually prompt you to turn it on when you hit 20%, you can use the hidden Shortcuts app to automate the entire process, ensuring your phone violently defends its battery life without you ever having to press a button.

How to Create the Automation

The “Shortcuts” app is a powerful, visual programming tool pre-installed on every modern iPhone. You can use it to build “If This, Then That” logic statements.

1. Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone.
2. At the very bottom of the screen, tap the Automation tab.
3. Tap the blue + icon in the top right corner (or tap “Create Personal Automation” if the screen is empty).
4. Scroll down the long list of triggers until you find the battery icon and tap on Battery Level.
5. A slider will appear on the screen. Drag the slider until it reads exactly 20% (or 30%, if you prefer a larger safety net).
6. Below the slider, select the option labeled Falls Below 20%. Tap Next in the top right corner.

Adding the Action

You have now defined the “If” statement (If the battery falls below 20%). Now you must define the “Then” action (Then turn on Low Power Mode).

1. Tap the large Add Action button.
2. In the search bar at the top, type the word Low.
3. From the search results, tap on the script labeled Set Low Power Mode.
4. The screen will now display the complete logic statement: “Turn Low Power Mode On.” Tap Next.

The Final Crucial Step

Before you save the automation, look at the very bottom of the final confirmation screen. You will see a toggle switch labeled Ask Before Running.

You must turn this switch OFF. If you leave it on, the iPhone will send you a notification asking for permission to run the script, defeating the entire purpose of an “automation.” By turning it off, the script will run silently and instantaneously in the background the exact millisecond your battery hits 19%.