How To Make Chrome Use Less Ram?

Many of us are familiar with the scenario: a plethora of tabs open in our beloved Google Chrome, and suddenly our computer slows down to a crawl. What’s the culprit? High memory usage. But don’t fret, there are actionable ways to reduce Google Chrome’s memory usage and make it use less RAM. In this article, we will walk you through easy-to-follow steps to keep your Chrome experience smooth, speedy, and efficient.

Why Does Chrome Use So Much Memory?

Google Chrome, like other web browsers, is designed to provide an efficient browsing experience. To do so, it keeps separate processes for each tab and extension, providing better stability but also using a lot of RAM.

• Chrome splits up its task into different processes for tabs and extensions. This architecture enhances security and stability, but it means a lot of RAM gets used.
• Chrome also preloads pages for quicker browsing. While this enhances the speed of your browsing, it consumes more memory.

Keeping a Check on Chrome’s Memory Usage with Task Manager

To get started with reducing Chrome’s memory usage, the first step is to determine what’s running in Chrome and how much RAM it’s using.

• Open Chrome and click on the three vertical dots in the upper-right corner. From the drop-down menu, select “More Tools,” then “Task Manager.
• The Chrome Task Manager will show you all the tabs and extensions running and how much memory or RAM each is using. Here, you can close any unnecessary tabs or extensions to free up some RAM.

Curtailing Memory Usage by Managing Tabs

Chrome tabs can consume a significant amount of memory. A few smart strategies can help manage them more effectively, thereby reducing Chrome’s memory usage.

• If you’re the kind of person who keeps multiple tabs open, consider using the “Tab Groups” feature in Chrome. This feature allows you to group related tabs together, reducing the number of tabs open and, as a result, Chrome’s memory usage.
• An additional strategy is to use a tab suspension extension like “The Great Suspender.” This extension will “freeze” tabs that you aren’t using, reducing the memory usage of Chrome.

Keeping Extensions in Check

Each extension in Chrome runs in a separate RAM process, meaning a lot of extensions can mean a lot of RAM usage. Here’s how to keep extension usage under control.

• Go to “More Tools” then “Extensions” to see all your installed extensions. From here, you can disable or remove extensions that you don’t use often.
• To keep track of how much memory your extensions are using, you can use the built-in Task Manager we covered in an earlier section.

Regular Updates: An Essential Practice

Regularly updating Google Chrome is an easy way to ensure efficient memory usage. Updates often come with performance improvements that can help reduce Chrome’s memory usage.

• You can check for updates by clicking on the three vertical dots, then “Help,” then “About Google Chrome.” If there’s an update available, Chrome will automatically download and install it.

Resorting to the “Reset” or “Reinstall” Options

If you’re still experiencing high memory usage in Chrome, it might be worth resetting or reinstalling the browser.

• To reset Chrome, go to “Settings,” then “Advanced,” then “Reset and clean up.” This will restore Chrome to its default settings, which might solve any memory issues.
• If all else fails, you can uninstall and reinstall Chrome. Be aware, though, that this will delete your browsing data unless you’ve synced it with your Google account.

Understanding how to manage Google Chrome’s high memory usage can make a world of difference to your browsing experience. We hope these tips help you optimize Chrome’s memory usage and make it use less RAM. 

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