Fix Guide: Tahoe Safari "Service Worker" High CPU
Symptom: Safari on macOS Tahoe causes high CPU usage even when all tabs are closed. Activity Monitor shows com.apple.WebKit.Networking using 100%+ CPU.
Why this happens
Legacy service workers from sites like YouTube or Slack can get stuck in an infinite update loop within Tahoe's new Safari sandbox.
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Fix 1: Clear Safari Service Workers
- Open Terminal.
- Run the following command to purge the worker cache:
rm -rf ~/Library/Containers/com.apple.Safari/Data/Library/Caches/com.apple.WebKit.Networking/ServiceWorkerCache
- Force-quit Safari and relaunch.
Fix 2: Reset Safari Networking
- In Terminal:
killall com.apple.WebKit.Networking
Recommended Tool: 1Password
To reduce the number of active background extensions and workers:
- Get 1Password for a highly optimized extension that doesn't trigger the WebKit networking loops common with legacy password managers.