4 Compact Battery Packs More Powerful Than You Might Think

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A battery pack or portable charger is a handy gadget that can help you charge your phone without a plug when you're away from a wall outlet. However, it's not always convenient to travel with a massive power bank despite its higher battery capacity if you're only looking to charge a phone or mobile accessories once. Fortunately, several brands offer power banks that are more compact and lightweight than the competition without compromising on battery capacity.

But with so many options on the market, it's not easy to find a genuinely compact battery pack that has a usable rated capacity and provides good charging speeds. Therefore, we have done the work and handpicked some of the best-rated options after considering device specifications and buyer reviews, along with expert opinion when available. For our recommendations, we are focusing on battery packs that have a small footprint and weigh less than 100 grams for every 5,000 mAh of their marketed capacity.

Anker's Nano Power Bank is a compact and lightweight portable charger that weighs just 3.5 ounces and is about the same size as a lipstick case or a thick lighter. It still packs a 5,000 mAh battery; however, as it has a rated capacity of 2,600 mAh, you can only expect it to provide around that much power to your phone or mobile accessories. It also comes with a built-in USB-C connector as well as a regular USB-C port. 

Another highlight of the Anker offering is the 22.5W charging support. While this is not a particularly impressive charging speed, it's still pretty decent and will top up your phone in reasonable time. The company claims it can charge an iPhone 15 from zero to 43% in 30 minutes. Other features include support for pass-through charging, which allows you to keep charging the phone while topping up the power bank. 

Moreover, at its $27 list price, it doesn't cost a lot, and you can choose from five color options. It's one of the best portable chargers according to Consumer Reports. Amazon shoppers have also awarded the power bank a good average rating of 4.3, based on over 15,000 reviews. Buyers like its portability and the built-in USB-C connector; however, some aren't very pleased with its limited battery capacity. Also, there are some complaints about disconnection issues with the built-in connector.

Aptly named, the INIU Pocket Rocket P50 is one of the smallest 10,000 mAh battery packs you can buy. It's just a bit smaller than a credit card in length and width. It's also pretty light at just 5.6 ounces and packs three USB ports for charging, including two USB-C ports, which can deliver up to 45W of power when used individually. There is also support for USB Power Delivery (USB PD), Programmable Power Supply (PPS), and Samsung Super Fast Charging 2.0, making it a great choice for Apple, Google, and Samsung devices.

The third USB-A port is good for up to 18W charging. However, when you use all three or two ports simultaneously, the power output will drop to a total of just 15W. In other features, there is a digital display to show the battery percentage, and the company supplies a braided USB-C cable that doubles as a lanyard. Moreover, it's rated for a capacity of 6,200 mAh, which is slightly higher than what you get in many other 10,000 mAh power banks.

The INIU Pocket Rocket P50 carries a price tag of $33 and has received an average rating of 4.2 out of 5 on Amazon, with over 3,000 reviews. Folks are happy with its build quality, size, and portability. However, a small selection of buyers complain about their power bank being defective and dying within days or months. Experts from Reviewed, WSJ Buy Side, and T3 were also impressed with it, and highlighted its affordability, design, and availability of three ports, but point out its slow 20W self-charging speed and that the bundled cable is only rated for 3A, which is not suitable for Samsung's fast-charging tech.

If a 5,000 mAh power bank is a bit too small for your needs, CukTech sells a reasonably compact 10,000 mAh portable charger called the 30W Mini Power Bank. While it's just over an inch thick, it's only the size of a credit card and weighs 6.9 ounces. To put its weight into context, it's less than the weight of an iPhone 17 Pro, meaning you're essentially carrying another phone with you. The rated capacity is 5,600 mAh, which means it can deliver at least one full charge to most of the popular phones, except for the likes of the OnePlus 15 or 15R with their batteries of over 7,000 mAh.

In other highlights, you get 30W charging support for both your phone and topping up the power bank itself. There is also one USB-C and one USB-A port to handle most devices, and the former is good for the full 30W, whereas the latter tops out at 22.5W. Moreover, the company includes all common power bank-related safety technologies, including overcurrent protection, short-circuit protection, and temperature protection. Another thing in favor of the CukTech offering is its aggressive pricing, and you'll only have to shell out $26 for it — the same price as Anker's Nano Power Bank.

Amazon shoppers have also given it a solid average rating of 4.4 out of 5, based on nearly 450 reviews, with folks appreciating the fast charging speed, compact design, and good pricing. That said, some buyers note getting defective units and warranty troubles. ChargerLab conducted a teardown and said that the power bank construction shows good workmanship and is a smart choice for anyone looking for a small power bank.

Baseus, a China-based mobile accessory brand, offers another really compact portable charger, the PicoGo AC22 Mini, that not only packs a 10,000 mAh battery but has a couple of interesting features. For example, it can provide up to 45W fast charging via USB Power Delivery (USB PD), a feature that's hard to find in such a design. It also comes with a built-in retractable USB-C cable, helping you avoid the hassle of carrying a cable separately. Despite these features, it weighs just 6 ounces, has a smaller footprint than the CukTech 30W Mini Power Bank, and is about the size of an AirPods case.

It also has the same rated capacity of 5,600 mAh as the CukTech offering; however, it supports a slower 20W charging speed to juice up the power bank itself. Besides the built-in USB-C cable, the Baseus power bank has an additional USB-C port, support for pass-through charging, a host of safety precautions, and a smart display that shows the available battery percentage and fast charging status.

It's priced at $40 and has garnered an average buyer rating of 4.2 on Amazon, based on around 150 reviews. Shoppers praise its build quality, small form factor, and charging speed. However, some folks complain about getting defective units.

There is no dearth of portable chargers on the market, including power banks that do more than just charge. However, if you want something truly compact and portable, the number of choices shrinks. Still, you can find a reasonable selection. While selecting compact battery packs, we focused on reputable brands and looked through their portfolios for some of the most compact and miniature battery packs. We limited our selection to only include portable chargers with a battery capacity between 5,000 mAh and 10,000 mAh, as anything less, after considering the rated capacity, would be too little to offer a decent amount of charge, and anything higher would become too chunky and heavy to be considered compact and portable. 

More importantly, weight was an important criterion for us, so we excluded any portable chargers weighing more than 100 grams for every 5,000 mAh of battery capacity. Finally, we considered Amazon reviews and expert opinion when available to refine the choices, and all our recommendations have received an average buyer rating of 4.2 or more out of 5.