Windows Search indexing: memory and search trade-offs

A reported Windows 11 troubleshooting case found Windows Search Indexer using over 1GB of idle RAM on a system with 16GB of memory. Disabling the Windows Search service freed memory, but also slowed or disabled built-in search.

The trade-off

The author tried DISM and SFC checks and rebuilt the search index before disabling the service through services.msc. This is one reported case, rather than a memory-saving guarantee for every computer.

Search alternatives

The source suggested Everything and Listary as third-party search alternatives when built-in search is disabled. The choice involves a trade-off between memory use and the search functions available.

Source report

Update: 02 Oct 2026