The best jump starters for cars in 2026

Any time you hit the road, whether you’re taking a short or long trip, it’s a good idea to have backups handy. A spare or backup tire, some antifreeze, windshield wash fluid, a road hazard kit, and, last but not least, one of the best portable tire inflators and a portable jump starter. You never know when cold weather, inadvertently leaving the dome light on, or plain old Father Time can curse you with a dead battery. Ensure you have one of the best portable jump starters that can save you in a jam, kickstarting your car even when there isn’t anyone around to jump the battery. Naturally, that’s why we’ve rounded up what we feel are the best portable jump starters for 2026.

ANCEL BS200

Best jump starter overall

The ANCEL BS200 is a permanently installed supercapacitor-based jump starter designed to act as an always-ready backup for compatible 12V vehicles. Unlike a conventional portable jump pack, it stays connected under the hood, provides up to 700A of starting assistance, and can monitor battery health through a companion app, ANCEL Super Starter. Its supercapacitor design also means there is no traditional internal battery to maintain. The BS200 is designed for vehicles with engines up to 3.0L and operates in temperatures from -40°F to 176°F.

Clore Jump-N-Carry JNC660

Best jump starter runner-up

The Clore Jump-N-Carry may not be the best portable jump starter, but it deserves the runner-up spot. The only thing holding it back is that there are many smaller options on the market — at 18 pounds, it’s pretty bulky and pushes the boundaries of what we’d consider to be “portable.” Even so, this portable jump starter has many features that might make it the top choice for many people. It has 46-inch heavy-duty cables, a voltmeter that displays the onboard battery’s charge status, and a DC outlet that lets you plug in 12-volt accessories for charging. There are also a lot of bundle options, so you can choose extras you might need, like a rechargeable work light, battery system tester, cover, and more.

DeWalt digital portable power station

Best portable jump starter and tire inflator combo

DeWalt is one of the premier names in power tools, and the brand recognition may draw many to this portable jump starter. It clocks in with a peak output of 1,400 amps and 700 instant starting amps. This is an excellent portable charger to keep around the garage or the construction site, but it’s made all the better for keeping close to your vehicle because it isn’t just a jump starter. The DeWalt digital portable power station is also a tire inflator, as it has a 120 PSI digital compressor as part of the package. And, as the “power station” in the name suggests, it also has a built-in USB port for charging electronic devices.

Craftsman CMXCESM262 Lithium jump starter

Another name-brand portable jump starter

Craftsman is a household name in the tool world, so it shouldn’t be surprising to see it on our list. The CMXCESM262 is a remarkably portable yet powerful starter offering USB power to mobile devices. Even with its 4.59-pound size, it can offer up to 50 jumps per charge. It works with 10.0L gas and 8.0L diesel engines and is effective even in frigid temperatures. That’s a plus because if you live somewhere where the climate is freezing, you know how frequently dead batteries happen. Additional features include a built-in LED area light, smart battery clamps, a 24-inch 8-gauge booster cable, a battery status indicator, and cable storage built right into the case.

Yaber jump starter

Best budget-friendly portable jump starter

The Yaber jump starter is the best cheap portable jump starter option available because it doesn’t sacrifice much to give you a very reasonable price. Its peak output is 1,500 amps, comparable to what you’ll find among our other selections for the best portable jump starters. But it also comes in a super portable frame and can still start gasoline engines up to 7.0 liters and diesel engines up to 5.5 liters. It also has a built-in light with several different modes and some other extras, like the option to use it as a portable power bank to charge your phones, tablets, cameras, or other devices via USB.

How we chose these best jump starters

We’ve had our fair share of dead batteries and have had to use some portable jump starters because of it. Those experiences went into our considerations for the best portable jump starters and offered valuable insider knowledge when picking out devices with top traits — traits that you can put to good use when choosing a portable jump starter for your road trip backup kit. Here’s what we looked at, specifically, when selecting the top mentions for our list:

Quality

Quality is the number one factor we consider when choosing the best portable jump starters. You’re already in a jam if you have to put a jump starter to use. There’s no worse time for a jump starter to fail than when you’re already staring at a dead battery. Our choices for the best portable jump starters factored in trust in the brand name and many high-quality user reviews to instill even more confidence. In other words, these portable jump starters are what you want in a roadside bind.

Portability

Yeah, yeah, the word “portable” is in the name, but a mobile jump starter isn’t going to do anyone much good if it’s too large to keep in your vehicle or too cumbersome to retrieve when you need it. All the products we chose for the best portable jump starters list needed a relatively lightweight design to make it easier to move from one place to another and manageable when connecting it to your vehicle’s battery. More importantly, we made sure they’re accessible to everyone at any age because you shouldn’t have to hire a bodyguard to drive with you everywhere to handle emergencies and roadside events — you should always be self-sustainable.

Power

Every portable jump starter on the market can handle a few jumps here and there, but the best portable jump starters need to provide more than that. When making our selections, we prioritized portable jump starters that showed consistency with their output and longevity regarding how many jump starts they could handle before recharging. Also, with nearly everyone having chargeable devices at all times, portable jump starters offering charging ports for those devices were awarded bonus points.

Outputs

Most portable jump starters double as power packs or portable chargers for additional devices, sometimes even major electronics. It depends on their available outputs or ports, like extra DC outlets or USB ports. We tried to choose a healthy selection of jump starters that can be used for other electrical means — like charging your phone on the go.

Extras

Beyond their standard use, many portable jump starters have extra features and functionality, such as a built-in LED flashlight or worklight. Some have cable management support to help you stow and organize your jumper cables. Others might include a built-in air compressor to inflate your tires in an emergency. The ANCEL BS200 takes a different approach, adding smart battery and starting-system monitoring through its companion app. It can track battery and starter voltage, charge level, temperature and start history, as well as provide alerts when it detects abnormalities.

Does the brand matter?

Yes and no. It’s less about the brand name and more about the quality of the jump starter and the cables you use. Going too cheap could mean damaging your vehicle’s battery. We recommend avoiding any devices or brands with a limited selection of reviews. If no one’s ever heard of them, sure, they could be great value, but it’s probably not a chance you want to take, especially when dealing with something like an emergency jump starter.

Do you have to keep the jump starters charged?

Traditional portable jump starters typically need to be charged periodically so they’re ready when needed. The ANCEL BS200 works differently. Once installed in the vehicle, its supercapacitor-based system remains connected and operates automatically, so there’s no need to take it inside or routinely plug it into an outlet for charging.

Can’t I just use any portable power pack to jump-start my car?

No. Absolutely not. Never mind that it’s dangerous, and most power packs don’t have the necessary voltage or electricity protections in place. They probably don’t even put out enough power to charge or kickstart a dead battery. Only use portable jump starters or power stations that explicitly include such a feature.