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When you’ve finished working with PC and no longer need to use it, you have three options. You can choose Sleep or Hibernate mode, or you can shut it down completely. Each option is a trade-off between saving power, and therefore battery life, and convenience.
Sleep vs Hibernate vs Shut Down
Sleep mode is the most convenient, because it allows you to start working with your PC again from where you left off. However, it’s the least power efficient mode because although it uses much less power than when your PC is awake, it still uses some power to run background processes. How much power it uses depends on which background processes run while it’s asleep.
Hibernation mode is a ‘deeper’ sleep. It essentially saves the contents of RAM to disk and then shuts down, so it uses no power. However, it takes longer to wake up and get going again.
Shutting down your PC means that it uses no power. However, starting it up again can take several minutes, particularly if you have lots of autorun applications and there are updates waiting to be installed.
For laptop, sleep, hibernation modes or shut down are important as long as they impact the life cycle of battery. As to the PC users, it should be noted that power fluctuations may shorten the lifespan of its components, like motherboard. That's why it is important to know what's best for your PC.
How to enable the Hibernate option for your PC
On Windows 11, the Hibernate mode requires an extra switch. To make it visible among other Power options, use the following path:
- On the Taskbar, search for Control Panel
- Navigate to System & Security settings
- Find Power options on the right panel
- Now, click "Change what the power buttons do"
- At the bottom of the following menu, tick the ✅ box for Hibernate.
Well done. Now, you'll have an extra option for Hibernate in the Power menu.
When to use PC sleep mode
If you’ve finished working or using your PC for the moment but plan to come back later, say in an hour or so, putting your PC to sleep makes sense. The difference in power usage in the space of a couple of hours is minimal, but the convenience of being able to pick up where you left off is much greater.
You can put your PC to sleep by clicking the Start menu, and then the power button and choosing Sleep. Sleep mode is a good option when there is no risk of power outage, because unlike hibernation it doesn't save all your work as it is.
Tip: Before you put your PC to sleep, make sure you save any documents you’ve been working on. Don’t rely on autosave to keep them safe. If you are worried about losing your work, opt for the Hibernate mode.
When to use Hibernate mode
The main benefit of Hibernate mode is that it allows you to resume working exactly where you left off. So all the apps you were using will be open, and all the documents and windows that were open will be ready for you to continue. However, because it has to save the contents of RAM to disk in order to ‘remember’ what you were doing, it takes longer to shut down than either sleep or a regular shutdown. It also takes longer to start up again because it has to read all the data from the file.
If you’re working in lots of documents and want to get back up and running quickly when you return, but are likely to be away from your computer for more than an hour or two, Hibernation mode is a good compromise between sleep and full shutdown.
Tip: If you don’t use Hibernation mode and don’t plan to use it, it’s worth disabling it. The Hibernation file can take up lots of space on your hard drive and SSD, even if you never actually put your PC into Hibernation mode.
To disable Hibernation, use CleanMyPC. It makes it easy to disable the hibernation file at the click of a button. Launch CleanMyPC and click Hibernation in the sidebar, then press Disable. That all you need to do!
When to shut down your PC
Shutting down your PC closes all the apps that were open, clears the contents of RAM, and gets rid of temporary files that were created during the sessions – provided you shut down properly. If your PC shuts down suddenly, it may not delete temporary files. The main advantage of shutting down your PC is that it saves power, but it also ‘refreshes’ Windows by getting rid of those temporary files and it allows downloaded updates to be installed.
The disadvantage is that it takes more time to start up again than if you just put your PC to sleep and that you’ll have to re-open all the apps and documents you need to work on. Also, if you have lots of autorun programs, you’ll have to wait while they all get up and running before startup completes. Regardless, it’s a good idea to shut down your PC at least once a week. It will stop temporary files building up and make sure updates are installed.
As you can see, it’s important to choose the correct option between sleep, hibernation modes or complete shutdown when you finish working with your PC. Hibernation offers convenience, but not much else and can be even slower than shutting down completely. Sleep is useful for when you’ll only be away for an hour or two, but you should shut your PC down completely at least once every week or two.
Should I hibernate, sleep, or shut down my computer? Whether you are concerned about efficiency, your device’s health, or energy consumption, this is something most of us have wondered before. Perhaps you have even consulted with multiple professionals and received mixed feedback on what is best. While each of these power-down options appears to shut off your computer, they all work differently. Because of this, it is important to first define, what each of these power-down options mean.
- Shut down: This is the power-off state most of us are familiar with. When you shut down your computer, all your open programs close and the computer shuts down your operating system. This power-down option also uses an extremely small amount of power, making it a good choice for energy conservation. However, it is also frequently the least time efficient, as when you want to use your computer again, you will have to turn it on, go through the boot-up process, and wait for startup programs to load. Depending on your system, this can take only a few seconds, or last several minutes.
- Sleep: In sleep mode, the computer enters a low-power state. The computer’s state is kept in memory, but other parts of the computer are shut down and won’t use any power. When you turn on the computer, it snaps back to life quickly—you won’t have to wait for it to boot up. Everything will be right where you left of, including running apps and open documents.
- Hibernate: Your computer saves its current state to your hard drive. When you boot up your computer, your computer’s state will be saved, including all opened programs and data, so you can quickly access any work you’ve stepped away from. It takes longer to resume from hibernate than sleep, but hibernate uses much less power than sleep.
Now that we have defined the different power-down states, it’s time to lay out which option is best based upon your situation.
- Shut down– This is the best choice if you will be infrequently using your computer or performing maintenance on it. Some examples of this are:
- If you’re using your computer on Monday and know you won’t need it again until Saturday.
- If you plan on traveling by plane but will not be using your device during travel.
- If you will be leaving your computer behind for a long period of time, such as a taking a vacation.
- Whenever you plan to remove power from your computer, such as taking out the battery.
- Sleep– This choice allows your computer to start up much faster, and you’re instantly back where you left off. Use sleep when you’re going to be away from your PC for just a little while, such as:
- When you leave for lunch of a meeting.
- Overnight if you plan on using your computer first thing in the morning.
- Hibernate– Hibernation is a good option when you know you won’t use your laptop for an extended period of time and you are unsure of when you’ll have the chance to charge it again. This is also a good option for desktop users concerned about power consumption as it doesn’t use as much as sleep mode.
- Overnight, if you plan on using your computer first thing in the morning.
- If you need to quickly access your work later but aren’t sure if or when you’ll have a charging outlet available to you.
You'll agree that your laptop is a device you can't do without, so it's essential to keep it running at its optimal level. That also includes how you power it down when not in use.
So should you let it remain in sleep mode, or is it better to shut it down altogether? Let's explore both these low-power states and find out what's best to use and when.
What Is Sleep Mode?
You're likely familiar with the sleep mode. It's when your laptop screen goes black and blank after a period of inactivity. But what happens in sleep mode?
It's a state when your PC uses very little power. Whatever is running on your PC at that time, like websites, applications, and open documents, are saved on the PC's short-term memory, RAM [Random Access Memory].
You can select after how much time your laptop should enter sleep mode from the Power & sleep settings on your PC.
In sleep mode, only your laptop's RAM draws battery while the processor, hard disk, and other components are powered down to save battery. Also, you don't have to worry that you'll lose your work because of your battery draining, because Windows or macOS automatically saves all your work and turns off the PC if the battery is too low.
To access sleep mode, just press the power button on your laptop, or close your laptop's lid.
To come out of sleep mode, press your laptop's power button. You might also be able to wake it by pressing any key on the keyboard, clicking the left or right mouse buttons on the touchpad, or opening the lid on your laptop.
What Happens When You Shut Down Your Laptop?
Shutting down your laptop completely powers it off. All programs, applications, and the operating system are closed, and all memory is cleared.
You're most likely to shut down your laptop when your work is done or at the end of the day. Or, unless you're forced to do so when you encounter a BSOD [Blue Screen of Death] error—in that case, it's best to long-press the power button for a few seconds to shut down your PC.
How Is Sleep Different From Shutdown?
There are two main differences between sleep and shutdown.
First is the bootup time. When you want your PC to come out of sleep, it will start up faster—it just takes a few seconds before you're back at your desktop. Since all work is saved to RAM, you can begin right where you left off.
To start a laptop that's shut down, it'll take a minute or more to boot up and even longer if you have a few apps configured to open when your PC starts up. Plus, you need to save all your work before shutdown, or you will lose it.
The second difference is power consumption. You might have heard that you save more money and energy if you turn off your computer each night. However, as per Energy Star, the reality is that you only save a watt or two by turning off a computer vs. placing it in sleep mode.
Sleep vs. Shutdown: What's Best for Your Laptop?
If you're working on and off on your laptop through the day, or if you step out for lunch, it's best to let it sleep. Putting your laptop in sleep mode overnight is also fine if you plan to start work first thing in the morning.
Having your laptop go to sleep is also better as some components like the LCD panel, battery, and hard drive have a limited life cycle. So allowing them to sleep when not in use will extend their life. Heat is also generated when your laptop is on, and heat is the enemy of all components.
Shutting down your laptop is better when you've finished your work and don't need the laptop for a longer duration, like over the weekend.
It's good to do, too, especially if you haven't shut it down for a few days. See, the longer your computer is on, the more programs, apps, and background processes will be running. With a shutdown, those things are reset, which is essential as constantly running programs tends to slow down your PC over time.
Most laptop owners know how a simple restart sometimes fixes an unresponsive app or an issue. A shutdown once or twice weekly will clear up your PC's RAM and free up memory and processing power.
Use Your Laptop With Care to Enjoy it for Years
Now you know what sleep and shutdown are and what happens to your laptop in either of these states. In short, you should use both options in different situations. So use your laptop with thought and care to enjoy years of hassle-free performance.