Stretch the battery with Low Power Mode
Energy Mode trades a little performance for battery life, separately on battery and on the power adapter.
Works on: macOS Ventura 13 and later · checked on macOS Golden Gate 27
Published: · Source: Apple
Go to System Settings → Battery — Energy on desktop Macs — and find Energy Mode. There are two menus, On battery and On power adapter, and each can be set to Low Power Mode, Automatic or, on the models that support it, High Power Mode.
Low Power Mode reduces energy use to make the battery last longer. Setting it only for On battery is the sensible default for a laptop you carry around: full performance at the desk, longer battery away from it.
Since macOS Sequoia 15.1 it does two more things: it reduces fan noise on Macs that have fans, and it lets a Mac that is always left on use less power. The same update added the energy modes to Control Centre, for switching quickly when you are about to spend a day away from a plug.
If you do not see Energy Mode in those settings, your Mac does not offer it.
Related tips
Look after the battery of a Mac that lives plugged in
Optimised charging and a charge limit stop a permanently connected laptop from sitting at 100% all day.
Decide when the screen turns itself off
Separate timers for battery and mains, so the Mac neither locks while you read nor stays lit all afternoon.
Dark mode, accent colour and tinted icons
Appearance settings go well past light and dark: accent colours, icon styles and even the colour of folders.