NiMH Battery Buying Guide
Get the best NiMH batteries
Amazon pays me a if you buy any of the stuff I link to. At the end of the month I pile up all the money on the bed and roll around in it.
Know whether you're buying LSD's or not
Most NiMH batteries are "low self-discharge" (LSD), which is
usually what you want. LSD means they won't lose
lots of charge just sitting around unused. The only reason you
might want non-LSD is to get a small amount of extra capacity
(~8%). So, for most purposes make sure you're buying
high-capacity LSD's with good reviews, like Voniko.
On Amazon, LSD batteries are advertised as such.
In stores, you're unlikely to see the old non-LSD flavor, but
double-check that you're buying LSD's anyway. All eneloop
flavors are LSD, so eneloops are good. The packages of other LSD
brands will have marketing "code words" that indicate that they're
LSD, such as "Pre-charged" (since normal NiMH's always require
charging before use), "Ready to Use", or "Hybrid". And of
course, the dead giveaway is anything on the package that says how
much charge the batteries retain after one year or more.
Best AA NiMH batteries
Some readers want my personal recommendations, but the experience of thousands of customers on Amazon is more reliable data than just one person's experience. (For the same reason, don't ask for recommendations for contractors on Nextdoor; one or two neighbors' opinions isn't nearly as authoritative as dozens to hundreds on Yelp.) Also, I used to recommend a brand I had a good experience with, but those batteries died after a few years (after only dozens of charge cycles). So now, please enjoy this survey of the highest-rated AA cells on Amazon that I did in July 2020.
Also see my recommended chargers.
Best AAA NiMH batteries
Here's my survey of the best-rated AAA batteries on Amazon in July 2020.
Also see my recommended chargers.
Some Bad brands |
There are dozens to
hundreds of cheapo brands, and I can't list them all, this
is just a sample. • BTY • CTA
("1200mAh" more like 750, and many of
the 20 I bought were DOA or had puny capacity)
• Firepeak• Go!Green • GODP • GTL • Precision Design • Sunpack • Tangfire • TOMO • Ultrafire • Zeikos |
IKEA NiMH batteries
Readers asked me to comment on IKEA's “LADDA” brand of LSD NiMH batteries, so here you go: At $6.99/4-pack (AA or AAA), they're cheaper than Amazon for AA but more expensive than Amazon for AAA. And that's as long as you don't mind a trip to IKEA; if you want the batteries sent to you then I imagine the shipping/delivery charges will outweigh the savings versus Amazon batteries, but I can't say for sure because the IKEA website refused to tell me the cost of delivery because the batteries were out of stock. As for quality, the stated capacities are 2450 and 900 mAh respectively, and if the customer reviews on IKEA's website are to be believed, the batteries themselves are fine.
Don't buy batteries on eBay
eBay has lots of off-brands you've never heard of that are pure garbage, giving only a tiny fraction of their rated capacity. I've tested lots of these off-brand batteries, and I know before I stick them in the tester that they're junk because they're usually light as a feather. I've tested batteries labeled as 1500mAh which are actually only 300! So when buying NiMH batteries, you absolutely have to stick to the well-reviewed brands like those listed above.
No longer recommending Maha/Powerex
I used to recommend Maha/Powerex (highest capacity at the time, black with yellow lettering), but after a few years, most of them have severely reduced capacity (like 88%) and/or discharge within a few minutes of taking them out of the charger.
Most charge cycles
Sanyo claims 2100 charge cycle for their latest brand (4th
generation eneloop), but even if you charge them every
single day, then even batteries that get "only" 1000 cycles will
last nearly three years, so for most users the extra recharge cycles
vs. other brands (or older eneloops) aren't a big advantage.
C- and D-size LSD NiMH's
C- and D-size eneloops are available only in Japan. Drat!
But never fear, you have some other options.
- Powerex (C: 5000 mAh • D: 10,000 mAh)
- Acculoop Precharged (C: 4500 mAh • D: 10,000 mAh)
- Tenergy Centura (C: 4000 mAh • D: 8000 mAh)
You could also just get an upsizer
(adapter) that lets you put 2 AA batteries into a C- or D-shape case.
eneloop varieties compared
There are lots of flavors of eneloops. Here's how they compare:
Sanyo/Panasonic
eneloop
types compared |
||||||||||
Capacity ("up to")* |
Recharge Cycles ("up to") |
Remaining
charge after... |
Price6 | Model No. | Identifying Characteristics |
Notes |
||||
6mo. |
1yr | 2yrs |
3yrs |
|||||||
eneloop
pro (2nd gen. of eneloop XX, 2013) |
AA:
2550 mAh AAA: 950 mAh |
500x |
85% | $18.72 $14.99 |
AA:
BK-3HCCE AAA: BK-4HCCE |
black body | Great balance of capacity & shelf-life, but pricey. | |||
eneloop
(4th gen) released Apr. 2013 |
AA: 2000 mAh AAA: 800 mAh |
2100x |
90% | 85% | 80% | 75% | $14.99 $12.35 |
AA:
BK-3MCCE AAA: BK-4MCCE |
Good, all-around batteries. | |
eneloop
lite 2nd gen; Apr. 2013 |
AA: 1000 mAh AAA: 600 mAh |
3000x | no longer avail. in U.S. |
AA:
BK-3LCCE AAA: BK-4LCCE |
"eneloop lite" on body | Lower capacity, but cheaper | ||||
non-eneloop
Sanyo NiMH |
AA:
2700 mAh |
1000x |
70% |
50% |
0% |
discontinued | GES-NH2700-4BP | black top, silver body, red logo | Higher capacity than eneloops, but lose charge faster when sitting idle |
- Capacity. eneloops used to have a stated rating for capacity, but now there's an "up to" figure, and a "minimum" figure, which is usually 100 mAh less than the "up to" figure for AA's, and 50 mAh less for AAA's. My tables show the "up to" figures.
- Discharge rate. The 3rd generation eneloops are rated to have 70% of their original charge left after five years of idle time. While I couldn't find five-year figures for the current generation of eneloops, I'm guessing that the five-year rating hasn't changed.
- eneloop plus. There an "eneloop plus" model with a special feature to prevent overheating (for safer kids' toys), but as I write this they're not available in the U.S. and I can't find good specs on them.
- Panasonic/Sanyo. Sanyo was the original manufacturer, then Sanyo was acquired by Panasonic. eneloops have been a Panasonic brand since April 2014.
- Temperature. All all eneloops above are rated for use down to -4°F. Only the very first generation eneloop was rated for "only" 14°F, which is still well below freezing and PFC (pretty freakin' cold).
- Prices last checked Aug. 2020, and are for 4-packs without the charger.
- History. Eneloop debuted in 2005. Here's its history.
And here's data on older eneloop models:
Older
(discontinued) eneloop models |
|||||||||
Capacity |
Recharge Cycles ("up to") |
Remaining
charge after... |
Model No. | Identifying Characteristics |
|||||
6mo. |
1yr. | 2yr. |
3yr. |
5yr. |
|||||
eneloop XX released 2011; now called 'eneloop pro' |
AA: 2500 mAh AAA: 950 mAh |
500x | 75% | AA:4HR-3UWX | |||||
eneloop lite 1st gen; June 2010 |
AA: 1000 mAh AAA: 600 mAh |
2000x |
90% |
85% |
80% |
75% |
AA:
HR-3UQ AAA: HR-4UQ |
"eneloop
lite"
on body |
|
eneloop
3rd gen. rel. Nov. 2011 |
AA: 2000 mAh AAA: 800 mAh see footnote above |
1800x |
>90% |
90% |
80% |
80% |
70% |
AA:
HR-3UTGB AAA: HR-4UTGB |
gray top, crown logo on side |
eneloop
2nd gen. rel. May 2010 |
1500x |
90% |
85% |
80% |
75% |
AA:
HR-3UTGA AAA: HR-4UTGA |
gray
top, crown logo on side. Some of these also came in
"glitter" colors. |
||
eneloop
1st gen. rel. Nov. 2005 |
1000x |
75% |
AA:
HR-3UTG AAA: HR-4UTG |
white
top, no crown logo on side |
Sources for the eneloop tables:
eneloop Pro: Charge
cycles, capacity, 1-yr. self-discharge rate
eneloop lite: Panasonic
eneloop 4th gen.: Capacity,
recharge cycles, model number, 1yr. self-discharge
eneloop XX: Charge
cycles, capacity, self-discharge rate
2nd generation (1500x): Capacity,
cycle life
1st generation (1000x): Capacity, cycle life,
temperature, model #'s (PDF),
2-year
discharge rate, release
date
Discharge rates: 1st/2nd
gen, lite, and non-eneloop; 3rd
gen.
3-yr., lite
Prices as per Amazon on 12/17/12
Other: An eneloop fan has compiled lots
of eneloop stats & info
I used to have more sources, but Panasonic/Sanyo removed the old pages
from their sites, and most of them are not in the Wayback Machine
either.
Various brands' actual capacities compared
Hobbyists have done capacity testing on various brands of NiMH
batteries and here are the results:
- Non-LSD, 2013. My tests of Sanyo and Powerex 2700
AA's are here for historical purposes, because Sanyo no longer makes
theirs, and because both seemed to suffer from rapid self-discharge
(like a few hours) after a few years and only dozens of
cycles. FWIW, my tests showed 2620 and 2690 mAh, for an
average of 2655 mAh, and the Powerex 2700's were 2590, 2630, 2640,
and 2660, for an average of 2630 mAh. (Tested with a La Crosse
BC-700 on the Refresh program, new out of the box.)
- LSD, 2011, by NLee the Engineer
- LSD, 2011, on Whirlpool forums (only 4 brands: eneloop, Imedion, Powerex, and Vapex)
- LSD, 2009-11, at StefanV
- Non-LSD, 2008, on Candlepower
Forums