Ultimate Lithium Battery Comparison

What is the best lithium battery?

That’s a hard question to answer, with many variables, but this post will hopefully go some way to helping you decide based on your needs.

In this lithium battery comparison I will briefly touch on a few brands that have popped up during my research, as I myself am currently in the market for a lithium battery for my 4WD build.

I will use some tables and scatter plots to help visualise the information for the lithium battery comparison, as well as provide some rough guidance on the differences on the brands and where they shine or fail.

Some of this post will be opinion based, reputations go a long way and it is impossible to actually get hands on experience with all the batteries in this lithium battery comparison, so advice from forums and actual owners has been leaned upon in part.

If you want the best place to house your battery you might be looking at chassis mount canopies, if so check out my in-depth canopy comparison post.

12 Volt comparison posts

• Inverter comparisons.
• DCDC chargers.
• Fixed solar panels.
• Portable solar panels.
• Solar blankets.
• DCDC charger, AC charger and inverter combinations.
• Upright fridges.
• Dual zone chest fridges.
• Upright fridges vs chest fridges.

For those who don’t know about 12 volt systems, I have written a very detailed post about how to plan a 12 volt setup that includes all of the information you could possibly need.

*Affiliates Disclosure

Affiliate links are present on this page. Through partnerships with, but not limited to: Amazon, eBay and Commission Factory, I will make a small commission through qualifying purchases. This comes at no extra cost to you and is just a way for me to try and support myself and the blog.  Thank you.

Lithium Battery Comparison Rundown

Before we get to the information, here’s a quick rundown about why I did it, what brands are involved, why I didn’t choose some brands etc.

Hopefully this clears up some possible questions people might have.

Why I did the lithium battery comparison?

I am in the market for a lithium battery, so this research is what I do before purchase anyway, I feel it will be helpful to share it with others.

Batteries are obviously handy for running 12 volt stuff but also lithium is great for running inverters for 230V appliances, see my inverter comparison post here.

Using tables and scatter plots helps me to understand what I am looking at, to see where Enerdrive differs from Revolution Power for example.

But keep in mind that the tables are not gospel and can be misleading to the eye, but I will try explain those things as the information appears.

Will there be an AGM comparison?

No sorry.

As I have no interest in them personally due to their weight, poor discharge capabilities and lower life span, I won’t be reproducing this style of post for the AGM batteries.

Hopefully the information here is still helpful as a thought exercise and you can carry it over to any comparison that you want to do.

If you would rather an AGM for cost reasons, head here to have a look at the prices and compare them to what is in the tables below.

Just remember to halve the AGM Ah rating to get usable Ah ratings.

Which Battery Manufacturers are included?

In no particular order, click the respective title to be taken to their website:

Rerdarc

Redarc are a well-known brand in Australian 12-volt. Very reputable, high quality with a high price to match.

Enerdrive

Enerdrive is a brand that is possibly the most commonly found, they strike a balance between great quality but without the inflated prices of Invicta, Victron, Redarc etc (although the two are not identical products).

Revolution Power

Revolution Power are a big name in lithium batteries, in fact I believe Redarc batteries are actually just Revolution Power batteries rebranded.

Invicta

Invicta are an off-shoot of Sealed Performance Batteries, these appear to be very good quality from a company with a lot of experience making batteries.

DCS

DCS batteries are known for their very high continuous discharge abilities which make them better suited to starting the car in case of emergency.

Amptron

I do not know too much about Amptron’s origins as it seems quite vague on the website, I included them as they appear to pop up frequently and were readily available for me to buy if needed.

Victron

Victron are a big name in renewable energy, they do a lot of house solar, inverters and batteries and have a range of 12 volt for boating and 4WD applications.

iTechworld

iTechworld provide a budget of lithium to balance the other brands here, these are a good option for those who want to save money.

Kings

Kings are another budget option in the market, popular with those who do the odd weekend here and there.

Where is [insert brand]?

I cannot include every brand, for my own sanity it is too difficult to spread yourself too thin and start forgetting everything you have researched and growing more and more confused.

You can use the measures I have in the tables to compare to whatever brand you want. I have no intention of adding any more things to the tables.

How accurate is the lithium battery comparison information?

It is hard to say. This post is one of a few  that I have been researching comparing 12 volt components from 12V lithium batteries to Inverters to DCDC chargers and more, so there has been a lot of information I have been processing.

It is not impossible that I have made an error. If you notice anything feel free to let me know in the comments.

I would however say that it is very highly accurate as I have viewed the information a few times over.

It does need to be noted though that the prices will change, some items will go up in price as stocks dwindle or inflation takes hold.

Pricing discrepancies

Wherever possible the price used was the official price of the manufacturer’s website at the time of writing, regardless of whether it was on sale or not.

iTechworld and Kings were heavily discounted prices when I made the tables, so you may see higher prices. However, with these budget brands you won’t need to wait long until you find another sale price as it’s part of their modus operandi.

If you click the links in the tables you may find prices are cheaper than listed, mygenerator often has cheaper prices on Invicta and Revolution Power than the official websites for example.

What information is compared?

In the lithium battery comparison I have included a handful of information that I thought was of more importance.

If there are blank spots in the table it means that I either could not find the information or that it was not readily available to me.

All information was taken from the manufacturers’ websites wherever possible for (hopefully) the most legitimacy possible.

Things that will be compared include:

• Weight.
• Cost.
• $ / Ah (lower is better).
• Ah / kg (higher is better).
• Dimensions.
• Max charge input.
• Recommended charge input.
• Maximum discharge rates.
• & a few other things.

This is the bulk of the information that you need, but if you would like more information visit the websites linked above, I will try to mention any interesting points of information as it is presented.

Now let’s get into the lithium battery comparisons.

Lithium Battery Comparison Tables

In this section I will present the data sets separated by Amp Hour sizes.

I have set a minimum of 100Ah but there are smaller batteries on the market, but I needed to set limits somewhere to avoid data overload, plus this was the smallest size under my consideration.

At the upper end I set the limit at 300Ah. Although I was not going to go over 300Ah I was curious as to how the value changed depending on the size as well as if any weight was saved for each Amp hour gained.

These larger sizes are more commonly used for caravan and RV setups, but can be used in 4WDs that need to spend a lot more time off the grid, so it was worth adding.

You can use the lithium battery comparison tables to sort by which column’s data you find the most useful. Sort by weight, or cost for example.

Click to view lithium batteries at mygenerator.com.au

100Ah Lithium Battery Comparison

We’ll start with the 100ah lithiums, these will give you 80Ah of usable charge if you discharge to the recommended 20% minimum.

100Ah batteries are more than enough for the majority of people who do a few days away here and there, provided that you have solar or are driving to recharge.

If you click the battery titles you will be taken to Amazon or eBay for purchasing, these are affiliate links that cost no extra for you.

Alternatively clicking the price will take you to mygenerator.com.au 

This post contains over 20 hours of research and that is simply my way of trying to regain something for my work.

100Ah scatter plot

This scatter plot is simply a visual aid, note that the X and Y axis are not starting at “0”.

This was to help spread the data out for better viewing but also gives the illusion that things are further “apart” than they would be with the two axis anchored at zero.

100Ah Lithium Table – Things to Note

Enerdrive E-lite

These batteries are different to the B-Tec range in that you won’t have access to the Bluetooth battery monitoring app. They do however still have a BMS, this is more of an entry level system from Enerdrive and a good option to save costs.

Victron Superpack vs Smart

Victron Smart batteries do not come with a BMS, they are the only battery in the list that doesn’t have a BMS and will need to be paired with an external BMS.

This does allow them to discharge faster than the superpack and they are one of few batteries that can be wired in series.

The superpack does not need additional items to be paired with it, the BMS is internal.

I will personally be avoiding Victron regardless due to the inflated prices.

iTechworld

These prices are heavily discounted, but I decided to include them anyway as I am sure they go on special more frequently and to higher extents than other brands will.

Invicta

Invicta batteries come with a 7 year warranty that is leading the pack by a fair way, but the 5 year warranty options are more than most people would ever need.

It is really good to see the faith they place in their products. When looking at warranties though make sure to read the fine print, they will often include details such as the battery not being mounted inside an engine bay.

100-200Ah Lithium Battery Comparison

This range of batteries is a great option to get a true 100Ah of usable energy out of the battery. That tiny bit of an extra boost with very little in the way of additional weight.

This bracket of batteries suits intermediate usage and is the category that I am most interested in for my initial choice of battery.

If you click the battery titles you will be taken to Amazon or eBay for purchasing, these are affiliate links that cost no extra for you.

Alternatively clicking the price will take you to mygenerator.com.au 

100-200Ah scatter plot

Here you can see how Redarc and Revolution Power are the same, with Revolution Power being the original battery.

The only difference is that Revolution Power sell their low draw version at a lower cost to Redarc, they’re otherwise identical.

100-200Ah Lithium Table – Things to note

Redarc batteries

Redarc batteries are just Revolution Power batteries rebranded. There are no discernible differences between the two.

Before Redarc had their own batteries their products were often paired with Revolution Power when sold in packages. Although Redarc market their batteries as “100Ah” they say so under the specification of “Nominal Capicity”, meaning they class the usable 100Ah as the size of the battery.

However I believe they are in fact 125Ah batteries and are therefore presented in this table.

This will also apply in the 250-300Ah category where Redarc have been grouped at 250Ah despite listing on their site as 200Ah.

Discounted pricing

Kings and iTechworld were heavily discounted which has skewed the information slightly, but I doubt this is going to change anyone’s perceptions.

If you wait for any sale you will easily find them for these prices so I have included these prices in the comparison.

200Ah Lithium Battery Comparison

For those who want to use large inverters and 230 volt appliances this is where you want to start looking. In the smaller batteries you need to go with DCS or Victron (smart) for the high output.

But you’re better off increasing your capacity as well as your discharge and getting more bang for your buck, unless space or weight is at a premium in your setup.

This set up is also good for many caravans, especially when done in parallel.

If you click the battery titles you will be taken to Amazon or eBay for purchasing, these are affiliate links that cost no extra for you.

Alternatively clicking the price will take you to mygenerator.com.au 

200Ah scatter plot

It is becoming a bit of a trend that an Enerdrive battery will be filling the “middle ground” so to speak.

Although never the best $ / Ah or Ah / kg, they’re always good in both categories and find themselves somewhere in the middle.

250-300Ah Lithium Battery Comparison

For the very heavy users, those who go remote and might not have access to sunlight to recharge the batteries for a few days but can still get by.

These come packed with power, but comparing the weight even of these to the old AGMs and it is incredible to think how much better lithium batteries are.

Again though, I personally would be avoiding Victron with the cost and weight that they’re offering.

If you click the battery titles you will be taken to Amazon or eBay for purchasing, these are affiliate links that cost no extra for you.

Alternatively clicking the price will take you to mygenerator.com.au 

250-300Ah scatter plot

250-300Ah Lithium Table – Things to note

Victron

Looking at the table you might think Victron wouldn’t sell any batteries. But if you needed a massive current draw, they appear to be offering something nobody else can.

Revolution Power

If I were to ever be shopping for this size battery I would be going with Revolution Power.

The Ah / kg is a really good result and the difference in cost compared to the others for the extra amperage would not matter to me at this price point.

Lithium Battery Comparison Conclusion

Keep in mind that at the end of the day your needs may be dictated by a set of parameters that makes the rest of the information irrelevant.

If you don’t have the money for anything more than a Kings or iTechworld battery then just compare those two.

If you need high discharge rates but want a 100Ah battery then you will need to pony up for something like the Victron or DCS.

Otherwise you will need to go larger towards the 200Ah batteries to unlock that higher discharge rate.

A warning about paralleling batteries

Also keep in mind that although these batteries can all be paralleled, it does not increase the maximum discharge rate without risking damaging the BMS on the batteries.

It increases your capacity but you should not go over the maximum discharge rate of what only one battery can handle. So no 3000 watt loads from two 100Ah batteries if you want to keep them for a long time.

Not all BMS are the same

Don’t be fooled into thinking that a cheap battery with a BMS is the same as an expensive battery with a BMS.

A BMS can be bought from China for quite cheap, but the difference in workmanship as well as quality of the printed circuit board, the soldering as well as the parts used and the brains behind it makes a world of difference on the higher end batteries.

A word on the cheaper brands

There is nothing wrong with buying a Kings or iTechworld battery.

One thing worth noting though is that you are getting a cheaper quality battery, however that does not mean that it won’t last.

A lot of the difference in price comes down to quality, in quality assurance and quality control, as well as research and development and components. It is not likely that 1 company has 60% markup for the same product as one who has 5% markup.

You can have a Kings battery, keep it well charged, only do weekend camps a few times a year and it will present a much better value proposition for you.

If you’re an apprentice and you can only afford that entry level then go for it.

Where I would urge against it is if you plan on going remote, when you rely on the battery to get by and you’re not near assistance.

If a battery can go on sale for almost half price (iTechworld) then it shines a light on the true price of the internal components.

If a lithium battery only has a 1 year warranty (Kings) then it reflects the manufacturer’s trust in their product going the distance. But that doesn’t mean it won’t and that’s where the bargains can be had.

What did I choose and why?

In the end I ended up going for an Enerdrive B-Tec 125Ah for the following reasons…

Reputation

These guys have a great reputation without the hefty price tag of some of the other brands like Invicta and Victron.

The warranty is massive at 5 years and that shows that they really believe in their product.

Opportunity

I found an Enerdrive 125Ah B-Tec on Facebook marketplace for only $1,100!

It had been installed on a vehicle for about a week before they decided that they wanted more capacity, they also needed a larger battery to go with the larger current draw that they needed.

The good thing about buying these Bluetooth batteries second hand is that you can connect to the app and check the batteries’ health as well as its cycle count before paying.

I picked one up with 11 cycles on the clock, discounted about $500 (depending on where you shop).

Weight

I did the maths before making a purchase (this will be covered in another post coming soon).

I figured that 100 usable Ah would suit me just fine for my intended style of travel, there was no need to go ridiculous, it’s important to resist the urge for the large 200Ah batteries if you don’t need them.

You save cost and weight this way, plus I can always buy a 2^nd battery of the same size one day to have 200 usable Ah, more than I will need for years.

This way I can grow into the system and not get caught up in fanciful high capacity desires until I really need it.

Cost

Forgetting the fact that I found this for a steal, this is the battery I wanted due to its great performance for $500 cheaper than the equivalent Revolution Power, Redarc or Invicta batteries.

Enerdrive has plonked itself quite nicely in that middle ground, but that isn’t to say they competitors batteries aren’t better, just that the features that make them better do not justify the extra cost for me.

There’s no point paying for a battery that has amazing discharge capabilities if you never are going to use that facet of the battery. You pay the price without the benefit.

Conclusion

I hope this lithium battery comparison has been somewhat enlightening and helpful. At the end of the day you choose what suits your setup.

Keep an eye out for good quality stuff on the second hand market, be patient and wait for sales, there’s still good value to be had out there.

I will have a series of other comparison posts coming soon that compare things such as: Inverters, DCDC chargers, solar panels and more.

Stay tuned.