10 Best Portable Car Battery Chargers 2024 in the United States

If your car battery has “conked out”, and it’s not strong enough to start your engine, you’ll need some help. You can’t always rely on someone else using jumper cables to jumpstart your car (what if there isn’t anyone around?). And not only that–with today’s cars, which contain lots of delicate electronics, a jumpstart might actually cause damage. A good portable car battery charger, or “jump box”, is a perfect solution.

Not only will a portable car battery charger be able to start your car. It can also charge up the car battery, in the event that running the car doesn’t charge the battery. And portable car battery chargers will also have other accessories, such as a flashlight, USB ports to charge your phone, and even cables to charge up a laptop! Depending on the model, they can be suitable for starting lawnmowers, motorcycles, boats, and more!

We’ll look at the specs of the best items in the MSN list of the Top 10 portable car battery chargers. You’ll see that it’s great to have around to be ready for any emergencies that may arise!

What Types of Portable Car Battery Chargers Are There?

We can classify portable car battery chargers into two groups:

• Automatic: Most of the portable chargers in the MSN list of the Top 10 are automatic battery chargers. They’re able to measure the amount of charge in your car’s battery, and they have an automatic shutoff, to prevent the battery from overcharging. One of the most popular is the Audew Portable Jump Starter Car Battery Charger.

Audew Portable Jump Starter Car Battery Charger

• Manual: Automatic chargers have a disadvantage in that they may not detect a battery that has lost all of its charge. A manual battery charger can save even a battery that has been totally drained. However, they may not have an automatic shutoff. Instead, they will continue to transfer charge to a car battery until you disconnect it, or until it has lost all of its stored charge. But there is a risk of overcharging your car battery, which can damage it. An example is the Schumacher DSR139 Manual Wheel Charger.

Schumacher DSR139 Manual Wheel Charger

How Do I Use a Portable Car Battery Charger?

The procedure for using a portable car battery charger is much the same as when using jumper cables:

1. Make sure that all of the car’s electrical gadgetry are turned off: headlights, radio, etc.

2. Connect the battery charger’s positive clip to the battery’s positive terminal,

3. Attach the battery charger’s negative clip to the engine block. (You can also attach it to the battery’s negative terminal, but that can cause a spark. If the battery is exuding gas, there is the risk that a spark can cause an explosion.)

4. Start your car.

5. Once your car has started, disconnect the charger’s cables: first the negative cable, then the positive one.

What Features Should I Look For in a Portable Car Battery Charger?

• Charging up the battery charger: Your car battery charger has to be charged up before you can use it. Most can be charged in any of 3 ways:

  • USB port

  • An adapter that you insert into the cigarette lighter in your car

  • By means of a wall plug adapter

• Current specs: You’ll see numbers for the amount of current that the charger emits in units of milliamp-hours. So, for example, the General Portable Car Jump Starter Power Bank boasts a 20,000 mAh battery. That means that, if a car battery holds 48 amperes of current, it will take 48/20 = 2.4 hours to totally charge up.

• Safety Features: There are several safety features in the best car battery chargers, for example,

  • Over-current and over-voltage protection, to limit the current if it should exceed the device’s current and voltage rating,

  • Overload protection, to stop the current in the event of a short-circuit,

  • Over-charge protection, to shut off when the car battery is fully charged,

  • High-temperature protection, to protect against the device overheating,

  • There should also be a warning when reversing the polarity of the positive and negative alligator clips. This can damage the battery or the car’s electronics.

• USB charge: Most car battery starters have USB ports so that you can power up your cellphone or tablet. That’s another potential life-saving feature, in the event that your phone has died as well. With a good car battery charger, you’re assured of being able to power up your phone again!

• Flashlight: Many car battery chargers will also have a flashlight. That’s a big plus at night if you have to lift up your car’s hood to find the battery. In addition, the Nexpow Car Jump Starter has a flashlight that works in three modes: as a steady flashlight, as a strobe light, and as a handy SOS signaller, if you have to signal for help.

Nexpow Car Jump Starter

Wrap Up

We’ve gone over some of the major pluses of having a portable car battery charger on hand. It’s one more level of protection, to help get you unstuck in the event that your car battery has died. Looking at the offerings in our list of the best car battery chargers, and MSN’s other buying guides for automotive products, you’ll see that they go for less than $100. Check out their features and select one–it’s worth the peace of mind!