How to Reduce Internet data usage in Windows 10

Ever wondered where’s your data vanishing post the upgrade to Windows 10? Well, if you are held up in an area with limited modem speed you are bound to face such issues. If you have noticed that Windows 10 loves to feast on data, in no time would you see them disappearing strangely. Even though we can set the connection to “Metered” the data still fast diminished without any clue.

Wondering what’s leading to this heavy internet usage? Want to find out what’s causing your data to disappear? Today we will not only guide you through how to set your connection as “Metered” under the settings, but will also show you how to reduce Windows 10 internet data usage.



Tips to Save your Data Consumption on Windows 10 OS

Set Restrict Background data as Always

1. Press Windows key + I key together from your keyboard.

2. Now, click on Network & Internet

3. Now, Click on Data usage from the left menu.

4. Now, select Always as an option in Restrict Background data.

 

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Disable Auto update in Microsoft store

1. Open Microsoft Store.

2. Click on three dots on top right and click on settings.

 

Settings Store Min

 

3. Turn off Update Apps automatically.

 

Update Apps Disable Min

Select “Metered” as your Data Connection

 

Changing your data connection to “Metered” under the Settings is one of the most basic steps in order to send a signal to the Windows 10 that will restrict massive updates and self-regulating app downloads. In order to change the setting to “Metered” you need to do this: –

1 – Go to Settings

2 – Now, Click on Network & Internet

3 – Now, Click on Wifi in Left menu

4  – Now, Click on your connected Wifi Network on the right side.

 

Wifi Network

 

5 – Finally , Toggle on the option saying Set as Metered Connection.

Set Metered Wifi

 

Note that if you are on an ethernet connection, click on ethernet from the left menu and then click on ethernet icon in the right.

 

Ethernet Save Data Min

 

Switch Off Background Apps

Windows 10 allows some of the background apps to function by default which in turn consumes a lot of data. The notable culprit here is the “Mail” application that depletes the majority of data. In such cases, it is rather safe to switch off of these offenders or apps in order to save yourself some data.

Go to “Settings”, click on “Privacy” and now locate “Background apps”. Switch off the “Background apps” options and then scroll through and switch off any other apps that you think you do not require and are finishing your data.

Turn Off Background Apps Windows 10

Read: How to Disable Background apps

Limit Windows 10 Update share on Bandwidth

1 – Go to settings

2 – Click on Update & Security

3 – Click on Delivery optimization from the left Menu.

4. In the right side , scroll down and click on Advanced options.

 

Delivery Optmization Min

 

5 – Now, check all the options and drag the slider to minimum value.

 

Limit Download Upload Windows 10

Set Data Limit to save Internet data

This setting will notify you about internet data threshold which you set and indirectly helps you to manage and save data.

1. Press Windows key + I key together to open settings.

2. Click on Network & Internet.

3. Click on Data usage from the left menu.

4. Now, in the right section, click on set data limit.

Data Limit Min

 

5. Now, set monthly or daily data limit as per your wish and put a data threshold and click on save.

Set Data Limit Min

Disable Onedrive

One Drive is one of the other background apps in the Windows 10 that depletes your data in no time. It is indeed one of the most crucial apps in the Windows 10 OS disabling which can be a radical step, however, not many of us need it running in the background at all times. Yes, the One Drive does help you sync your files which makes life simpler, but that can be even done in the next cyber café. This may take a while for you; however, it will save you some substantial data over the period.

Read: How to uninstall OneDrive

In order to deactivate the One Drive, right clicking on the “Task Bar” will open up a list. Select “Task Manager” from the list and click on it or alternatively use your keyboard shortcuts, such as, CTRL + SHIFT + ESC all at once.

Under this you will see a series of tabs and the one that you need to click on is the “Startup” tab.

This will further open up a list and here you need to scroll down and select “Microsoft OneDrive”. Now deactivate this option to stop “One Drive” from automatically syncing the files in the background.

Disable Startup Onedrive

You should also disable other drives, like the Google Drive or the Dropbox in order to save data.

Deactivate Live Tiles

Opting to keep the “Live Tiles” option “On” will keep the News application running in the background which will constantly keep you updated with the latest Feeds. Facebook, Twitter, Mail or Weather are certain apps that are interconnected with the Feed and will keep retrieving the News automatically. In case if you are not interested in the Feeds you can deactivate it the “Live Tiles” and opt out of it. Right click on the option “Tile” and select the option that says “Turn live tile off” and you are done!

turn-live-tiles-off-win-10

 

Turn off Auto update of offline Maps in windows 10

Just go to Settings -> Apps > Offline Maps . Turn off the option Automatically Update Maps.

Disable Auto Update Maps

Pause Windows 10 Updates

You can pause windows 10 updates for up to 1 month and it can save you a considerable amount of data. Now, note that , after that, windows 10 will download all the remaining updates. This tip is useful for those persons , who are running short on fixed data for this month and want to save the data in current month.



1. Press Windows key + I together to open settings.

2. Scroll down in the right section and click on advanced options.

 

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3. Select  a later date to pause updates up to that date.

 

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For Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise users

Yes! You also have this convenient feature in Windows 10 which allows you to actually delay/defer the Windows Updates. So if your PC is running an OS which is either Windows 10 Pro or Windows 10 Enterprise, you will find an option in the settings section of the Windows Update that will let you delay/defer the procedure of new features download for quite a few months. This definitely makes a huge impact as any update to the new features can be significantly big.

And what’s more, delaying the Windows Update will not disturb either the download process or the installation procedure of the security updates! Also, it will not affect the downloading of the features forever, but only for a limited period.

Go to the “Setting” option, click open the “Update and Security”, now select “Windows Update” and then click “Advanced Options”. Toggle towards the bottom and click on the check box next to the option that says “Defer Upgrades”. However, remember that by turning this on will also defer “Microsoft Updates”.

 

Please note that you need not apply all the options that we mentioned here and you should rather apply the ideas based on the type of connection that runs on your OS. However, when applied tactfully these ideas will help you control the data consumption by Windows 10 in a much better fashion, thereby helping you save a good amount of data.

Deactivate PC Synchronization Function

Read: How to deactivate Windows 10 Sync Function

Even though you may admire the PC sync function being the Windows 10 trademark feature, the fact is that it eats up a considerable portion of your data. So you really do not want it to run at the background unless required, hence, it’s a better idea to keep it switched off till the time you need to sync files. In order to switch the PC sync off you need to find the “Settings” option, go to “Accounts”, and find the option that says “Sync your settings” and now just slide it to “OFF”.

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