Best Portable Chargers & Power Supplies

Running out of power on the road or in the backcountry can mean anything from a mild inconvenience to a life-threatening emergency. Finding the right portable charger to add to your gear list can be both a trip- and a life-saver.

Battery and electronics technology have improved dramatically over the past ten years. Modern power banks can do anything from powering up a few iPhones or cameras to jumpstarting a dead car battery.

Portable chargers let you quickly check your GPS on your way home, take photos on day ten of your thru-hike, or even power small appliances like fans, lights, toasters, CPAP machines, or small refrigerators.

Whether you use it for comfort, convenience, or as an emergency backup, the right portable charger is a solid investment for any camping or backpacking trip.

Of course, the choices available vary widely in size, price, quality, and intended purpose.

To help narrow down your options and make the research easier, here’s our guide to the best portable chargers in 2020.

• Rankings
• Factors to Consider when Purchasing a Portable Charger
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
• Decision Criteria: How We Ranked Our List
• Rankings & Reviews

 

Inputs: where will you get power?

There are many potential power sources for charging your battery pack and/or device, such as:

• A wall outlet (used to charge up your battery pack beforehand)
• A 12V charger (such as a car charger)
• USB (attached to any source, including a generator)
• Solar energy (i.e. solar panels)
• Kinetic motion (for example, hand-crank flashlights, windmills, or streamflow-powered devices).

Depending on your needs and what you have available, consider narrowing down your options to one of these inputs before making any other decisions.

Storage: how will your battery pack be integrated with your charger?

There are, generally, three types of batteries:

• Nickel-Metal-Hydride batteries work best to recharge AA or AAA batteries; if you plan to recharge headlamp or GPS batteries, this is likely the most convenient option for you.
• Lithium-based batteries are the same as what’s in most cell phones; they are a common type of portable battery pack best for recharging USB-corded devices.
• Lead-acid batteries are heavier and less efficient, but can power much larger devices. These are best for car camping and power-intensive charging situations.

Some units are designed to be recharged indefinitely in the field (e.g. solar panels), while others (e.g. most portable battery packs) only serve as a backup reserve of energy which must be charged through a DC or wall outlet before each use.

If your model includes a power source as well as a storage location, consider whether you want the two to be detachable – for example, it may be useful to leave your solar panels in camp and take the newly recharged battery pack with you.

Outputs: What kind of devices do you need to power?

The output of your charger (in volts) must match the input of your devices, or they won’t charge.

If your electronics need DC input (like a laptop), you’ll need over twice the voltage output than you would to power a USB-cord charged device.

For example, most chargers can charge a cell phone, but few can power up a laptop or anything else which need direct current input. Some chargers include only USB ports; others will have more options or more ports to charge multiple devices at once.

If you have a lot of people or devices needing to charge at once, you’ll want to look for a product with both higher maximum output and more ports. If you want to charge bigger appliances or do things like jump-start a car battery, you’ll also need to look for much more heavy-duty options.

Some small chargers will work well for just 1-2 smart phone charges. If you just want to extend the battery life of your phone or camera on a short trip, these options will work just fine.

If you’re on an extended trip and need to recharge multiple times, looking into a solar-powered model vs. a battery charged option might make more sense.

If you need to power larger devices like laptops, or charge multiple devices at the same time, this should also factor into your decision-making process, as larger-capacity chargers tend to also be bigger, heavier, and more expensive.

Do you need to limit weight or footprint?

Unsurprisingly, battery weight and size generally increase proportionally with capacity and/or maximum electricity output.

If you’re in a front-country setting or car camping, a large battery or even a generator might be the best choice. In the case of solar-powered chargers, larger panels usually equals faster charging.

On the other hand, if you’re backpacking across Europe, in an ultralight thru-hiking situation, or just trying to shove a charger last-minute into your pack, investing in something small and lightweight can free up extra inches and reduce weight.

Still, on a long trip, an already-used battery pack becomes useless dead weight, and if your solar panels are too small, you may have to wait a very long time for them to work.

So, consider the length of your trip and how much energy you’ll need when deciding whether to prioritize weight or charging capacity.

Where will you be bringing your charger?

Not all chargers are acceptable on airplanes. If you have a lithium-ion battery, you’ll have to remember to put in in your carry-on baggage. This is because multiple-component batteries pose a slight fire risk which is easier to address in the cabin than in the cargo hold of a plain.

If your power bank holds over 100-watt hours, you probably won’t be able to fly with it at all.

If you’re camping or hiking, you should also consider the weather you’re likely to encounter. Some models are more weatherproof or drop-resistant, or designed to function better in extreme cold or hot temperatures.

Solar models will also only likely work somewhere with reliable direct sunlight and when you have time to leave them out in direct sunlight for extended periods of time. Some outdoor activities, like canoeing, car-camping, and desert backpacking, work better for solar charging than others.

The rugged factor: how durable do you need your equipment to be?

If you’re in the backcountry, a waterproof charger, or a power source which can work in below-freezing or very hot conditions can be really important.

For example, solar powered models are a popular and effective choice for many campers, but solar power only works where there’s abundant and predictable sunlight, and when you know you can be stationary for extended periods of time to charge.

 

What’s the maximum capacity of a portable charger? How much juice do I need to charge up my device?

Two factors are important here: output and capacity.

The amount of electricity a battery pack can release at one time is different from how long that electricity production can be sustained. Even if a portable charger holds enough charge for 10 iPhones, for example, it might not be able to charge all 10 of them at the same time.

Output is generally measured in volts – for example, USB-charged devices generally need up to 5V, while larger devices like laptops might need 12V-or up to 24V to charge.

Capacity refers to how much energy the battery can store, and is usually measured in milliamp hours (mAh). For context, 10,000 mAh is about enough to charge a small iPhone twice.

So, to charge your device, you’ll need both sufficient voltage to move current into your device’s battery, AND enough battery capacity to charge it. You should be able to examine your device itself and find the technical specs to tell you what your device’s voltage and battery capacity are.

How long do portable chargers last?

As the technology stands today, all batteries do have a shelf-life. It’s worth investing in a more durable model if you know you’ll be using it on many trips.

However, assume that even high-quality batteries can only be charged a limited number of cycles. This stat will generally be provided by the manufacturer; most models say they’ll work for at least 1,000 charging cycles, or 500 on some models. Most products will work longer than this, though your results may vary after you pass that mark.

How heavy are portable chargers?

Advances in lithium battery technology have resulted in devices which are much lighter than they were even five years ago. Earlier models and larger power stations use lead-acid batteries, which are less energy-dense, so these stations are heavier.

Lithium batteries cut weight in half, but larger models are still typically on the heavy side for a backpack – you can find single-phone-chargers which clock in under a pound, but expect to pay more for lightweight, bigger-capacity chargers.

Is paying a higher price worth it?

For bigger batteries and generators, it’s not uncommon for them to weigh upwards of 30 lbs. and cost over $1k.

When investing in a battery, keep in mind cost per mAh output rather than the simple price tag. It may be worth paying more for a more efficient, lighter-weight model, but cost-per-watt-hour is generally the best method of evaluating a product unless that number is balanced out with extra useful features.

Weight

We’ve included the weight of each model to help you assess how much heft it would add to your pack or vehicle. We also considered the amount of energy per added pound as a method of gauging whether extra weight is a detracting factor.

Output and Storage Capacity

While your exact needs may vary in terms of the output required, we’ve factored in both voltage and storage capacity to help you estimate what devices you can charge, and how many times, using each model.

This is also a key aspect of assessing the value of each charger; price per unit of electricity output also factored into our decision.

Speed of charging/recharge

Waiting four hours for your camera to recharge is no fun. Of course, the exact speed you need will vary, but we included an estimate of the time it would take to fully recharge your device into our ranking.

Durability and Weatherproof-ness

Some models are water proof or cold-resistant. Even if you don’t plan to use your charger in extreme environments, some models are susceptible even to a bit of early-morning dampness.

We also ranked our options in terms of versatility and the number of outdoor weather types they’d be able to withstand.