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Microsoft says Windows 11 multitasking is up to 40% faster on 8GB PCs
Microsoft is updating Windows 11 to improve performance on PCs with 8GB of RAM, saying multitasking is now up to 40 per cent faster in its lab tests. The changes matter because they aim to keep more data readily available in memory, reducing delays when people switch between apps or return to open tabs.
Microsoft says compression lets Windows keep up to 2GB more active data in memory instead of moving it to slower storage, while changes across Windows, Edge and Microsoft 365 reduce committed memory use by up to 900MB. Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook save 360MB combined; widgets wait until opened on 8GB PCs, saving about 200MB, and inactive Edge tabs sleep after 15 minutes. Further memory and hardware-reservation improvements are planned.
In short
- Windows 11 multitasking is up to 40 per cent faster in Microsoft tests.
- Compression keeps up to 2GB more active data in memory.
- Widgets and sleeping Edge tabs help reduce memory use.
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The case for
Microsoft’s changes could make everyday multitasking smoother on 8GB PCs, a common memory tier, by keeping more data in faster memory and reducing what apps and Windows reserve. If the reported gains hold up beyond lab tests, users may be able to keep more apps and tabs open without upgrading hardware, extending the useful life of existing computers.
The case against
The headline figure comes from Microsoft’s own lab tests and describes a best-case improvement, so it may not reflect typical results across different PCs, workloads or app versions. Memory savings also depend on trade-offs such as delaying widgets and putting inactive tabs to sleep, and they do not increase a computer’s physical RAM; users with heavier workloads may still see little benefit.
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Originally published by The Verge as “Windows 11 is now ‘up to 40 percent faster’ on PCs with 8GB of RAM”.