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Battery Comparison

 

Battery Type Comparison
For a range of common types and sizes.

Battery Type
Nominal
Voltage
Relative
Capacity
Use In High Current
Devices
Recharge
Number
Recharge
Cycles
Self
Discharge
Rate
 Notes
Alkaline - Standard
1.5V
Medium
Poor
No
n-a
Slow (>5yrs)
 
Alkaline - High Power
1.5V
High
Good
No
n-a
Slow (>5yrs)
 
Alkaline - Rechargeable
1.5V
High*
Poor
Yes
50-100
Slow (>5yrs)
Not recommended. Capacity reduces with use.
Carbon Zinc
1.5V
Low
Poor
No
n-a
Slow (>5yrs)
  
Lead Acid
2.1V
Hign
Good
Yes
500-800
Med (3%/m)
 
Lithium
3.6V
High
Good
No
n-a
Slow (>10yrs)
Do not confuse with Lithium Ion batteries which are rechargeable
Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH)
1.2V
High
Good
Yes
Up to 1000
Fast (25%/m)
 
Nickel Cadmium (NiCad)
1.2V
Medium
Good
Yes
Up to 800
Fast (10%/m)
Being replaced by NiMH
Zinc Chloride
1.5V
Low
Poor
No
n-a
Slow (>5yrs)
  

Notes:
1. Number Of Recharge cycles: How many times the battery can be recharged.
2. Achieving the number of cycles with NiCads requires draining the battery occasionally.
3. Achieving the number of cycles with NiMH requires shallow discharging (charging before the battery loses too much power).
4. Self Discharge Rate: How quickly the batteries lose their charge when left unused. Discharge is faster at higher temperatures.
5. Rechargeable batteries must be recharged using the correct type of charger.

 

Battery Capacity Comparison
For a range of common types and sizes.

Battery Type
AAA
AA
C
D
PP3
Alkaline - Standard
960mAh
2375mAh
6500mAh
12500mAh
480mAh
Alkaline - High Power
1150mAh
2850mAh
7800mAh
15000mAh
580mAh
Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH)
1000mAh
2700mAh
5000mAh
11000mAh
300mAh

Notes:
1. Capacity is rated in either milli Amp hours (mAH) or Amp hours (AH).
2. All capacities quoted are the highest capacity, cheaper batteries wil have lower capacities.
3. The capacity of alkaline batteries can be higher than the equivalent NiMH but the capacity drops under high load.
4. The capacity of NiMH batteries does not reduce significantly under high load.
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