Best portable power stations for a power cut (2026)

Who it's for: Keeping the essentials going through a power cut — fridge, phones, router, lights and small medical devices.

A well-judged, genuinely portable unit that covers most household outage needs without fuss. The long-life LiFePO4 battery and fast recharge make it a sensible one-off buy — just wait for it to drop from its inflated RRP.

Don't buy if Your goal is to run heating or a kettle during an outage — a 1,500W limit won't cope with a 2–3kW load. And if you only need to keep phones and a laptop alive, a £30–£90 power bank does that for a fraction of the price.

Who it's for: A household wanting a dependable ~1kWh backup to keep phones, laptops, the router, lights and a fridge going through a power cut.

A well-built, quiet 1kWh unit with safe LiFePO4 cells and unusually fast recharging, making it one of the more sensible mid-size backups for a British home. Just wait for a discount, as the RRP rarely reflects the real price.

Don't buy if You need to run high-wattage appliances such as a kettle or electric heater, or want more than a few hours of fridge-plus-essentials runtime — step up to a 2kWh+ station. Equally, if you only need to keep phones and a laptop topped up, this is overkill and a power bank costs a fraction.

Who it's for: Whole-home backup during power cuts, and off-grid trips

A genuine step up on the outgoing 2000 Plus — noticeably lighter for the same 2kWh capacity, with a LiFePO4 cell rated for thousands of cycles. It isn't cheap, but it's built to still be working a decade from now. Its 2200W inverter briefly surges to 4400W for motor start-ups, and the LiFePO4 cells are rated for years of weekly cycling.

Don't buy if you want to scale capacity over time — the 2000 Plus it replaces took add-on battery packs up to 12kWh; this model doesn't, so buy for the capacity you'll actually need.

Who it's for: Keeping a fridge, router, phones and a few lights running through a multi-hour power cut, for households who won't need to expand capacity later.

The best-value model in EcoFlow's current 1kWh range, and the lowest-priced of its three: the same 1,800W output and LFP chemistry as the DELTA 2, a slightly faster 45-minute 0-80% mains recharge, and a 10ms UPS switchover. The trade-off is that this 'Classic' model's capacity is fixed: unlike the DELTA 2 there is no extra-battery port, so 1,024Wh is what you get.

Don't buy if You only need to keep phones, a tablet and a laptop topped up — a much cheaper power bank does that job. And skip this specific 'Classic' model if you think you'll want to add capacity later, since it has no expansion port; the standard DELTA 3 or DELTA 3 Plus do.

Who it's for: Keeping the essentials going in a power cut — fridge, broadband router, phones and a few lights.

A well-judged mid-size unit for household backup: the long-life LFP battery, genuinely fast recharge and quiet operation make it a sensible first power station. Just size it to essentials, not the whole house.

Don't buy if You want to power high-draw appliances (kettle, microwave, heaters) or keep much of the home running — the capacity and 500W output are too small; step up to a Delta-class unit instead.

Who it's for: Keeping phones, a laptop, the router and a few lights going through a short power cut.

A well-made, genuinely portable LiFePO4 unit that does one job well: topping up your essential devices during a brief outage. It is not a whole-home backup, and you pay a small premium for the Jackery name.

Don't buy if You want to keep a fridge, kettle or heating running through a longer outage - for that you need a 1,000Wh+ station, not this.

Who it's for: Keeping phones, a laptop, the router and a couple of lights going through a short power cut.

A well-built entry-level unit with long-life LiFePO4 cells and a genuinely fast one-hour recharge. Sensible for essentials during a brief outage, but its small 256Wh battery and 300W rated output mean it is a top-up device, not a whole-home backup.

Don't buy if You want to run anything with a heating element or motor — a kettle, microwave, fridge or heater — for any length of time; the 256Wh capacity and 300W output are too small, and you should step up to the River 2 Max/Pro or a 1,000Wh-plus unit.

Who it's for: Keeping phones, a Wi-Fi router and a couple of lights running through a short power cut.

A well-built, compact entry-level unit with a long-life LiFePO4 battery and genuinely fast recharging. The 268Wh capacity is modest, so treat it as a lifeline for small essentials rather than a whole-home backup.

Don't buy if You need to keep a fridge-freezer or any heating going for hours — step up to a 500Wh–1,000Wh+ unit instead.

Who it's for: Keeping the essentials running through a day-long power cut - fridge or freezer, router, phones, lights, and a kettle in short bursts.

A genuinely capable mid-size backup: safe LiFePO4 chemistry, a strong 1,800W output, and unusually fast recharging make it a sensible household power-cut buy. The catch in 2026 is timing - Bluetti has largely replaced it with the Elite 100 V2, so check that model's price before committing.

Don't buy if You are buying new today - the near-identical Bluetti Elite 100 V2 has superseded it, usually costs less, and improves on charging and app control, so buy that instead unless you find the AC180 heavily discounted. Also skip it if your real need is running an electric heater or cooker through an outage; a 1,800W station cannot do that job.

Who it's for: Keeping a fridge, lights, router and phones running through a multi-hour power cut, with a long-life battery.

A well-built, long-life LiFePO4 station that recharges fast and carries a 5-year warranty, so it is dependable for running household essentials through an outage. It is now an ageing model, so it only makes sense at a genuine discount rather than near its old RRP.

Don't buy if You need to run high-wattage appliances like a kettle or electric heater, want something light enough to carry easily, or can find a newer station with more capacity and headroom for similar money.