In recent updates to Windows 11, Microsoft introduced “Efficiency Mode” in the Task Manager. This feature automatically identifies background applications that are consuming too much CPU power and throttles them, lowering their priority to improve your battery life and lower thermal output.
While this is great for a laptop on an aeroplane, it can cause severe performance issues on desktop PCs. If Windows aggressively applies Efficiency Mode to a web browser downloading a large file, a background rendering task, or a specific game launcher, it will artificially slow down the process and cause stuttering. You can manually disable Efficiency Mode for individual applications.
How to Disable Efficiency Mode for an App
You can override the automatic throttling directly from the Windows Task Manager.
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc simultaneously on your keyboard to instantly open the Task Manager.
- Look at the main “Processes” tab.
- Scroll down the list and locate the application that is running slowly. (You will likely see a green leaf icon next to its name, indicating it is currently being throttled).
- Click on the application name to highlight it. (Note: If it has an arrow next to it, click the arrow to expand the group and select the main sub-process).
- Right-click on the highlighted application.
- From the context menu that appears, click on Efficiency mode to uncheck it.
- A warning prompt may appear asking if you are sure you want to turn it off. Click Turn off.
The green leaf icon will instantly disappear from the Task Manager. Windows 11 will restore the application to its normal CPU priority, allowing it to utilise as much system processing power as it requires to run smoothly without artificial throttling.