How to Save and Reduce RAM Usage in Google Chrome

One of the problems that brings Google Chrome users the most head on is the consumption of RAM. The Google browser has always been characterized by “eating” the RAM without limits or restrictions, consuming up to several gigabytes of memory, depending on the extensions and websites that we have open. Despite Google’s attempts to reduce RAM usage in Chrome , the browser is still consuming too much. However, with some tips and tricks we are going to save a significant amount of memory so that our PC works better.

What makes the browser consume more RAM

It is true that the browser itself does not consume precisely little memory. However, depending on how we configure it and the use we make of it, the use of RAM can be triggered easily. And if we have a computer with little RAM, this can be a very serious problem.

Save and Reduce RAM Usage in Google Chrome

Based on an updated Google Chrome, the RAM used by the browser can be triggered mainly for three reasons:

  • Number of tabs open . When we open many tabs in our browser, they are loaded in RAM memory, and therefore they are taking up space in it. The more tabs we open, the more memory the browser will consume.
  • Number of open windows . We can open a Chrome window, and within it all the tabs we want, or open several browser windows. A window takes up more RAM than a tab, so if we open multiple windows the memory usage will skyrocket.
  • Installed extensions . We cannot deny that the use of extensions in browsers is a very useful feature. However, it is one of the causes that cause RAM consumption to skyrocket. Extensions are loaded into memory when we open the browser, and they also store a large amount of resources within it over time. Therefore, the more extensions we have installed, and the longer we have been using the browser, the more memory it will be consuming.

Consumo RAM Chrome W10

Luckily, if we use our browser with common sense, we will be able to reduce the use of RAM.

Tips to save RAM when using Chrome

The first of the tips, and at the end is the most effective, is to be careful with the pages that we have open at all times. It is very comfortable to navigate with tabs, but this can make us, without realizing it, accumulating dozens of open websites, websites that we surely do not need. But there they are. Therefore, the first advice to reduce the use of RAM is to close all the tabs that we do not need , leaving only the ones that we are working with. Thus, in addition to better ordering the browser, we can free up a significant amount of RAM.

Another important tip when it comes to saving memory in Chrome is to use few extensions . As we have already said, extensions are very useful, but also dangerous for performance. The fewer extensions we have, the better. We should also install only trusted extensions, with many positive scores. If not, we may end up installing a malicious extension that is being used by our hardware to carry out its own tasks (such as mining cryptocurrencies), which consumes the use of resources.

It can also help us reduce RAM usage by scanning our PC for malware. Beyond looking for viruses on the PC, we can use an anti-malware, such as AdwCleaner, to detect any possible malicious software that may be interfering with the correct operation of the PC. And, in addition, it will also allow us to reset the proxy settings, winsock, TCP / IP, firewall and the Hosts file.

Adwcleaner programas

Of course, we must make sure that we are always using the latest version of Google Chrome . Each update, in addition to correcting errors and vulnerabilities, usually brings optimizations and improvements, so having the browser up to date will help us consume less.

Finally, if Google Chrome continues to consume a lot of RAM, then we can try two more options. The first of them is to create a new user within the browser that allows us to start from scratch, and the second is to completely uninstall Chrome and reinstall the latest version. Or, incidentally, try a new web browser, such as Edge or Firefox.

Configure Chrome to use less RAM

In addition to the tips above, there are some settings that allow us to make the browser consume much less memory while using it, even without having to install other extensions.

Hardware acceleration

The first of these settings is to enable hardware acceleration . This feature allows you to delegate certain tasks to the computer’s GPU instead of loading them onto the CPU. By doing so, in addition to running much faster, Chrome will consume less RAM by not having to load the information into it in order to send it to the CPU.

To activate this feature, we write the following in the address bar and activate the switch that appears highlighted.

chrome://settings/?search=aceleracion+por+hardware

Aceleración por hardware Chrome

We can check the status of this acceleration by typing “chrome: // gpu /” in the address bar. The entries that appear as “Hardware accelerated” will be the ones that are using this hardware acceleration and, therefore, less CPU and RAM will be used when navigating with them.

Site Isolation

Another function that makes the browser consume a lot of RAM memory is Site Isolation . This function allows us to isolate the websites we visit so that they cannot access the resources of the PC. It is a browser security measure, which is activated by default, but that makes each web we load consume more memory.

We can disable it (although we do not recommend it) from the advanced browser settings. We simply have to access the URL that we leave you below, and mark the “Disable site isolation” option as “Enabled”.

chrome://flags/#site-isolation-trial-opt-out

We restart the browser and this feature will already be disabled. Although we will be giving up a good security measure.

Clear cookies and cache

Another recommendation that can make our browser work faster and in a more optimized way is to periodically erase cookies, cache and temporary files from it. By deleting this data, all the information that has been generated while using the browser will be erased and, in addition to freeing up space on the hard disk, we will make Chrome consume less RAM.

To do this, we must write the following in the browser’s address bar, and enter the “Clear browsing data” section:

chrome://settings/?search=borrar+datos+de+navegacion

Here we will see two sections. The first of them, basic, allows us to delete the most common temporary files of the browser, that is, the history, cookies and cache. The second of them, the advanced configuration, allows us to choose much better the data that we want to delete. And we can even leave the browser as new.

Borrar caché datos Chrome

We select all the elements that we want to delete from the browser, and then we will choose in the “time interval” how long we want to delete them. It is best to choose “Always” to delete all the data that has been generated in it.

We click on ” Delete data ” and that’s it. Chrome will automatically erase all this data from the browser and, from that moment, we will be able to start browsing the Internet better.

RAM saving extensions

If we haven’t had enough with the previous tips, we can also resort to the use of extensions designed to help us reduce the use of RAM in Chrome. These extensions are primarily based on managing open tabs, and therefore can be used in conjunction with the tips above to improve browser performance.

OneTab

This is one of the most popular Chrome RAM reducing extensions. This allows us to group all the tabs we have open into one, thus turning dozens of tabs into just a list of all of them. Tabs will be removed from memory and, therefore, we can free up to 95% of memory thanks to this extension.

Developer: one-tab.com
Price: Free


The Great Suspender

This is another popular memory-saving extension when using the Google browser. Thanks to it we will be able to reduce the use of RAM in Chrome by suspending the tabs that we have not used for a long time so that their information is freed from memory. You can delete the entire page, or save a screenshot of it that allows us to see a thumbnail of the state of the web before it is suspended. When we select the tab in question, it will reload automatically.

Price: Free


Bookmark my Tabs

This extension allows us to easily create groups of tabs so that, by pressing a button, we can group all of them within one. In this way, we will be able to have all the websites we want within a single tab, saving the memory that it would take to have them all open at the same time.

Developer: dashburst.com
Price: Free


Group Your Tabs

Similar to the previous one, this extension allows us to create custom groups of the tabs we want, either by own selection, by domain, by search results or by other parameters. The selected tabs will be grouped as links within a tab, avoiding having the pages loaded in memory and making the browser consume less and work better.

Developer: potapov.vitaliy
Price: Free