August 25, 2026, 8:26 am | Read time: 2 minutes
Android 17 introduces new memory rules for apps to prevent them from using too much RAM. If an app occupies too much of the precious memory, it can slow down the entire smartphone. The change will first appear on Google’s own Pixel devices.
Android intervenes with high memory usage
Due to the ongoing RAM crisis, more smartphone manufacturers are likely to equip their devices with less memory. Google itself now installs only 12 gigabytes instead of 16 GB in the base versions of its Pixel 11 Pro series. Therefore, it’s all the more important that apps make optimal use of the available memory and don’t claim too much for themselves.
For this reason, Google had already introduced app memory limits with Android 17 for its own Pixel devices. As the company writes on the Android Developer Blog, several smartphone manufacturers will implement the new limits on devices with 4 GB to more than 16 GB of memory by 2027.
These are not predetermined restrictions. Instead, Android 17 calculates the memory budget for individual apps based on the RAM size of the respective device.
When an app reaches its limit, Android initially moves app content to compressed memory zRAM. While this prevents an immediate shutdown, compressing and decompressing puts a strain on the processor. If an app’s memory demand exceeds the zRAM limits, the operating system terminates the affected process.
Developers must check and reduce memory requirements
Android displays memory usage during operation. The values can be evaluated by process state and device class. This includes foreground apps, background processes, visible services, and cached processes.
Apps should be tested on different device classes. Android 17 provides developers with so-called ADB commands (Android Debug Bridge) that allow them to simulate memory constraints under various conditions.
Also of interest: Google significantly restricts popular Android feature
Google provides developers with a series of recommendations on how to reduce the RAM consumption of their apps to avoid reaching memory limits. There is a specific guide for optimizing consumption, especially for mobile games and complex multimedia apps.