How to make Safari less of a memory hog?

[Jeffois]

Boys and Ladies,

In looking at a possible new laptop, and trying to figure out how much RAM I *really* need, I came across what appears to be an interesting issue:

Same windows and tabs open in each, and Brave is using 3gb(!!) less RAM than Safari is.

I like both browsers. And I realize the simple answer might be, "So use Brave!"

But my question is this...Is there a way to put Safari on a RAM diet? Is there a setting, or a combination of settings that can make Safari less memory-hungry?

Thanks in advance.

-Jeff

 

[NoBoMac]

Cut down number of extensions. Set History to be cleared once a month.

Biggest thing, limit number of tabs/windows open. Each tab will be a sandboxed version of Safari, so, all the stuff that's in a barebones Safari install, plus the webpage contents, it adds up.

Upside, Safari less of a footprint vs. Firefox, Chrome. Same two tabs, ad blocker extensions in Safari, Firefox (Chrome has Google Drive extension that I think comes as a default):

Safari: 400MB
Firefox: 1GB
Chrome: 779MB

 

[chabig]

Also, don't worry about how much RAM apps use unless the machine seems to be having problems (which is unlikely).

 

[Jeffois]

Also, don't worry about how much RAM apps use unless the machine seems to be having problems (which is unlikely).

I generally don't, but I'm also trying to figure out if I can reasonably stick to 8gb of RAM in a new machine.
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Cut down number of extensions. Set History to be cleared once a month.

Biggest thing, limit number of tabs/windows open. Each tab will be a sandboxed version of Safari, so, all the stuff that's in a barebones Safari install, plus the webpage contents, it adds up.

Upside, Safari less of a footprint vs. Firefox, Chrome. Same two tabs, ad blocker extensions in Safari, Firefox (Chrome has Google Drive extension that I think comes as a default):

Safari: 400MB
Firefox: 1GB
Chrome: 779MB

Well, that's the thing. With the same number of tabs and windows open (the *exact* same web sites/pages), I saw that difference in RAM usage.

 

[NoBoMac]

With the same number of tabs and windows open (the *exact* same web sites/pages), I saw that difference in RAM usage.

I hear ya. But then we're back to the "just use Brave" point.

But like @chabig said, unless system crawling, don't worry. I'd be more concerned with other programs and their memory usage. I recently got a Macbook Pro with only 8GB, and no memory pressure. Before that, 6GB, again, no memory pressure.

For example, I use VirtualBox to run a Win10 VM on occasion, eats lots of RAM, but no memory alerts.

 

[Jeffois]

I hear ya. But then we're back to the "just use Brave" point.

But like @chabig said, unless system crawling, don't worry. I'd be more concerned with other programs and their memory usage. I recently got a Macbook Pro with only 8GB, and no memory pressure. Before that, 6GB, again, no memory pressure.

For example, I use VirtualBox to run a Win10 VM on occasion, eats lots of RAM, but no memory alerts.

That's really good news. I'm currently on a mid-2014 MBP, with 16gb. Only reason I have that much RAM is that my mid-2010 had been a lemon, and the Apple Store offered me a free replacement, and the one I have now had been released that week, with the 16gb as the stock configuration. I would have gone for a 13" machine then, but, you know, free is free...

Anyway, point is, if I can run things well on 8, no point in spending on the 16. I'm not a power user. I run the Office apps, email, Messages, Banktivity, etc...nothing intensive. I just tend to leave lots of apps and tabs open.