User level: Level 1 (83 points)Following the installation of MacOS 27 Golden Gate, my wife’s 2022 M1 MB Air battery starts to drain really fast at the same time every afternoon (around 3:30pm EDT). The computer runs too hot to keep on her lap while this happens. Any ideas what is causing this?
The Activity Monitor shows that Safari is using a significant amount of CPU power, but it does not seem to be high enough to explain the battery drain that we are seeing.
Posted on Oct 6, 2026 2:03 PM
User level: Level 10 (123,805 points)Oct 7, 2026 1:57 PM in response to tresinnoctem
The fact that the Mac starts getting hot and the battery begins draining rapidly at roughly the same time every afternoon—around 3:30 PM, is an important clue, especially since this started after installing macOS 27.
Safari showing significant CPU usage is worth noting, but that alone doesn't tell us what is causing the battery drain.
When the problem starts, I would first look at System Settings >> Battery >>Last 24 Hours.
The graph records the battery level in 15-minute intervals, so it should help confirm exactly when the drain begins and how quickly the battery level is falling. (Apple: Change Battery settings on Mac)
At the same time, open Activity Monitor >> View All Processes >> Energy.
Look at Energy Impact, 12 hr Power, and Preventing Sleep, and note which processes are using the most energy.
In particular, see whether Safari remains near the top or whether another process becomes active when the problem starts. (Apple: View energy consumption in Activity Monitor)
Because this is a 2022 MacBook Air, I would also check the battery's Condition, Maximum Capacity, and cycle count.
The first two are under System Settings >> Battery >> Battery Health, while the cycle count is under System Information >> Power. Apple rates the M2 MacBook Air battery for up to 1,000 cycles. (Apple: Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops)
It's also worth checking System Settings >> General >> Storage and recording the total drive capacity and how much free space remains.
That does not establish a connection to the battery problem, but it is useful information when assessing the Mac's overall condition.
I' would also look at System Settings >> General >> Login Items & Extensions, particularly Allow in the Background.
Pay attention to third-party software such as commercial VPNs, security software, backup or synchronization applications, and system utilities.
Since the problem appeared after installing macOS 27, check with the developers that these applications and any associated system extensions are compatible with the installed macOS version. (Apple: Open Login Items settings)
The fact that it happens at about 3:30 PM every day is worth investigating separately.
Look for anything that routinely happens around that time, such as a backup, synchronization activity, scheduled software task, or other automated process.
The goal is not to assume that one of these is responsible, but to see whether something changes at the same time the battery drain begins. Not
When the problem occurs, also note whether the Mac is running on battery or connected to power, what applications are being used, and where the Mac is sitting.
Apple recommends using a Mac laptop on a stable surface that provides adequate ventilation. (Apple: Keep your Mac laptop within acceptable operating temperatures)
Two useful comparison tests are Safe Mode and a temporary second user account.
Start the Mac in Safe Mode and see whether the same heat and battery drain occur around 3:30 PM. Safe Mode can help determine whether software that loads during startup is involved.
Then create a temporary second user account and test the Mac during the same period. If the behaviour changes in the second account, that would make the existing user environment worth investigating.
If the problem continues, run Apple Diagnostics to check for possible hardware issues.
If you can reproduce the problem while using Activity Monitor, you can also generate an Activity Monitor System Diagnostics report, which may be useful if Apple Support needs to investigate the problem. (Apple: Activity Monitor User Guide)
Finally, EtreCheck can be used strictly as an additional diagnostic tool.
Its report can provide useful information about installed software, background processes, and system configuration, but it should be treated as information to investigate rather than a diagnosis.
Taken together, these checks should tell us much more about what is happening: exactly when the drain starts, what is consuming the energy, the condition of the battery, available storage, what third-party software is running, whether the behavior changes in Safe Mode or another account, and whether there is any indication of a hardware problem.
User level: Level 9 (72,871 points)Oct 6, 2026 2:20 PM in response to tresinnoctem
Runaway processes and incompatible extentions/apps are common reasons for Macs to run hot / drain the battery. Low storage space can make it worse.
It is possible there are processes running in the background that are using significant resources. Check Activity Monitor, CPU tab (sort by % CPU) and Memory tab (sort by Memory) to see what's running hard. You mentioned checking this already, but make sure that View menu > All Processes is selected, so you are seeing everything.
Activity Monitor User Guide for Mac - Apple Support
Confirm that you have sufficient free space on your internal storage. The absolute minimum is ~30-40 GB free space, and as a rule of thumb you should aim to have 15-20% of your total internal storage as free space. You can check the amount of free space you have on your Mac in a variety of ways:
Note that on version of macOS prior to Golden Gate, the ‘available’ space reported with the first two methods above was greater than the ‘free’ space reported by the second two methods. Apple corrected that confusion with Golden Gate, and as shown in the above screenshot, the available/free space is consistent across the different methods. For more details, see this User Tip.
Some steps to take to safely free up space:
Free up storage space on Mac - Apple Support
Optimize storage space on your Mac - Apple Support
How to free up ‘System Data’ and other st… - Apple Community
If nothing in the above reveals an obvious culprit, then appropriate troubleshooting steps are Safe Mode and creating a new user account to test.
See if the problem is present when you boot in safe mode. That process performs some system cleanup and clears caches, and also disables 3rd party extensions that may cause problems.
Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support
If that does not correct the issue, test in a new user account. A newly-created user account will have all settings at default, and if the issue does not occur in that new account then it provides guidance on what may need to be changed to correct the issue.
Add a user or group on Mac - Apple Support
Once the testing is complete, the new account can easily be deleted.
Delete a user or group on Mac – Apple Support
If you have 3rd party ‘protection’ software installed, that may be the problem. That includes:
Such 3rd party system ‘helpers’, ‘cleaners’ and ‘protectors’ do more harm than good. In fact, such products are completely unnecessary for macOS and the only ‘good’ (if you want to call it that) they do is to put money in the developers’ pockets. Cleaners and protectors cause compatibility issues, often after macOS updates. Commercial VPNs claim to hide your browsing activity from websites, and while that may be true those VPN providers just sell your browsing data to others. For the user, all of these types of software offer only harm…and if that is limited to harm to your bank account, then count yourself lucky. If you have installed such software, follow the developer’s instructions to completely uninstall it (note that some developers fail to provide instructions and their software installs can be pervasive, meaning the only way to truly remove it is to erase your Mac, reinstall macOS then restore your user files from a backup).
It might help to download and run EtreCheck, written by a long-time forum member. The free version is fine. Post the full report using the Additional Text button. No personal information is revealed.
User level: Level 9 (78,350 points)Oct 7, 2026 7:16 PM in response to tresinnoctem
tresinnoctem wrote:
Following the installation of MacOS 27 Golden Gate, my wife’s 2022 M1 MB Air battery starts to drain really fast at the same time every afternoon (around 3:30pm EDT). The computer runs too hot to keep on her lap while this happens. Any ideas what is causing this?
What is different at this time?
Are different apps being used? Different websites being accessed?
Sounds like you may have a scheduled task at that time. Maybe an app is checking for an update, or an app is scanning your system, or maybe cloud file syncing, etc. Maybe a backup is in progress?
User level: Level 1 (83 points)Oct 8, 2026 8:18 AM in response to tresinnoctem
Update: The Safe Boot seems to have fixed the problem. Thank you!
User level: Level 1 (83 points)Oct 7, 2026 8:23 AM in response to neuroanatomist
Thanks for a helpful and comprehensive response. The memory seems to be OK, so I have tried the Safe Boot method, and we’ll see if the problem shows up later today.
Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256371561