1. TikTok
TikTok is a fascinating app, as it started as a platform for sharing short-form, entertaining videos, and turned into a platform where you can watch just about anything. However, because of that, it can be a battery suck.
"It's not just the video playback, after all, there's also the autoplay loop, constant prefetching of data, and aggressive recalibration of its algorithm in the background," explains Bokser. "On top of that, it aggressively grabs memory and bandwidth even when you close the app, so it can beam you back into the feed more quickly. Factor in a full 30 minutes on TikTok and a 10-15% drop in charge is totally possible, especially on high brightness and with spotty network conditions."
2. YouTube
Similar to TikTok, it's very impressive to see how YouTube has evolved as a website and application. You can end up spending hours on YouTube at a time, with all of the content they have available, which can put strain on your battery.
"Video playback alone requires your screen to be on full brightness, and it also keeps your CPU and GPU, as well as network components, constantly engaged as you stream," says Bokser. "The biggest battery hog, though, is what happens in the background. YouTube's picture-in-picture feature actually keeps media decoding tasks active even after you've closed the app. If you leave it on for any length of time, it can easily drain 10% of your charge per hour."
3. Spotify
There are so many Android users who are super reliant on Spotify for all of their music needs. While it may seem pretty straightforward, there is a lot going on behind the scenes with the music streaming app that takes a toll on your battery.
"It's not when you're actually streaming, of course, but when it's running in the background downloading playlists and scanning your library and maintaining connections to keep things in sync," notes Bokser. "Offline mode is a big help, but by default, it can be a battery drain thanks to all of those tasks going on in the background. If you leave it running in the background for a couple of hours while doing other things, you could easily lose 8-10% without even noticing it."