The 3 Best Portable Jump Starters in 2026: Get Charged Up | WIRED

Save StorySave this storySave StorySave this storyThe AI Database →SectorAutomotiveLeaving your headlights on used to mean a knock on a neighbor's door—or a long and maybe costly wait for a tow truck. But battery technology changes everything, whether for cars or portable blenders or power packs. Portable jump starters now don't cost much more than the price of a single tow and can jolt your car awake even with a bone-dead battery. Most can also charge your phone or laptop in a pinch.My conversion moment happened in a remote stretch of northern Delaware, where I'd left my headlights on after a foggy morning drive. I chased phone signal for most of an hour, until a passing parks employee happened to have one of the new breed of lithium-ion jump starters tucked behind his seat. I drove straight to the auto parts store and procured a basic 1,000-amp NOCO jump starter ($100) that saved my hide multiple times thereafter.NOCO is still a brand I recommend. The same goes for a reliable, low-cost Gooloo A3 jump starter ($70) that I bought after moving cross-country. But after testing eight of the most highly regarded lithium-ion jump starters on the market over dozens of starts, it's the Wolfbox 4,000-amp jump starter ($170) that came out on top for its mix of reliability, price, capacity, and sheer cranking power. The Wolfbox charges fast, starts the engine smoothly, and stays above half capacity after 15 jump starts from dead on a six-cylinder engine.A newer 1250A NOCO Boost X ($...