How To Pause or Sync OneDrive on a Metered Connection in Windows 11/10

Want to control OneDrive’s syncing behavior on metered connections? It’s pretty easy to do. By default, OneDrive pauses syncing to save data when you’re on a metered connection. However, you can easily force OneDrive to sync even on a metered connection if you need it to. For example, I rely on OneDrive to sync my work files to the cloud and across systems so they are safe and accessible. Because it doesn’t consume much data, I’ve chosen to enable OneDrive sync on metered connections.

Whether you want to pause or sync, OneDrive’s settings give you full control. In this quick and simple tutorial, I’ll show you the steps to pause or sync OneDrive on a metered connection. Let’s get started.

Good to know: How to enable metered connection on Windows 11 (on Windows 10)

Before You Begin

• Before continuing, make sure the OneDrive app is launched. If it isn’t already running, open the Start menu, search for “OneDrive,” and select “Open”.

Force OneDrive To Sync on Metered Connection

If you want OneDrive to sync in the background even when you enable the metered connection, follow the below steps:

1. Right-click on the OneDrive icon on the taskbar.
2. Click the gear icon on the top right corner.
3. Select “Settings” from the list of options.
4. Go to the “Sync and backup” tab.
5. Turn OFF the “Pause syncing when this device is on a metered network” toggle.
6. With that, OneDrive syncs even when your device is on a metered network.

Detailed Steps (With Screenshots)

First, right-click on the OneDrive icon on the taskbar. Next, click the gear icon on the top-right corner, and then select the “Settings” option. This will open OneDrive’s settings window.

In the OneDrive settings window, go to the “Sync and backup” tab on the sidebar. On the right panel, turn OFF the “Pause syncing when this device is on a metered network” toggle.

The change is saved automatically and removes the restriction. From now on, OneDrive will sync files even when you are on a metered connection.

Force Pause OneDrive Sync on Metered Connection

If you don’t OneDrive to sync files in the background while you are on a metered connection, follow the below steps to force pause it.

1. Right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar.
2. Select the “Settings” option.
3. Navigate to the “Sync and backup” tab on the sidebar.
4. In the Settings window, go to the “Settings” tab.
5. Turn ON the “Pause syncing when this device is on a metered network” toggle.
6. OneDrive automatically pauses whenever you ware on a metered connection.

Detailed Steps (With Screenshots)

First, open OneDrive settings. To do that, right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and select the “Settings” option on the top-right corner. If you don’t see the option, click the “Gear” icon to see it.

Go to the “Sync and backup” tab on the sidebar and turn ON the “Pause syncing when this device is on a metered network” toggle under the “Preferences” section.

That is it. With this change, OneDrive will automatically pause sync operations when you are on a metered connection. When that happens, you will see the notification “This PC is on a metered connection. OneDrive Sync is paused to prevent data charges” to indicate the same.

That is all. It is that simple to pause or sync OneDrive when on a metered connection. If you have any questions or need help, comment below. I’ll be happy to assist.

Update: This tutorial is updated to reflect the changes in the OneDrive app and its settings.