If your car battery is playing up, a quick fix is a quality battery charger, but the time may have come for a new battery. Without a battery, your car is, quite literally, a non-starter. Turn the ignition key or press the start button, and the car should if the battery is charged, fire into life. If not, you’ll be left feeling just like your car battery: flat.
You probably don’t give the battery a second thought. Because it’s hidden away, either under the bonnet or in the boot, it’s out of sight and out of mind. However, with a lifespan of around five years, you’re likely to require a new battery at some point. Battery faults are the most common cause of breakdowns, so prevention is definitely better than cure.
If you are having battery troubles well before the expected expiry date of a car battery, it may just need reconditioning. Smart battery chargers are able to do this, which we explain in our smart battery charger guide.
The best car batteries 2024 at a glance:
The best car battery: Bosch S5 A11 80Ah Car Battery – Buy now from Amazon UK
Editor’s pick: Varta Blue Dynamic C22 Car Battery – Buy now from Tayna Batteries
Best for start-stop systems: Yuasa YBX9096 Car Battery – Buy now from Amazon UK
If your car is struggling to turn over, there’s a warning light on the dashboard, or the battery goes flat after just a few days, it might be time to invest in a new battery. Your local tyre fitters will offer a free battery health check so you’ll know if a replacement is required.
The best car batteries 2024
Pros
- Easy to use and to find the right parts for your vehicle
- You can add in different vehicles in your 'garage'
- You can change the vehicles in the search results to find suitable products
Cons
- You may need Amazon Prime for free delivery
The best car battery
It even caters for cars with regenerative braking, which will suit a lot of hybrid and electric vehicles. It also has four times higher deep-cycle resistance than what Bosch call, a conventional starter battery. All of this capability means it's inevitably more powerful than others and can handle high-voltage vehicles and their amenities with ease.
Pros
- Suitable for stop-start systems and many technological on-boards
- Designed for regenerative braking, which suits many hybrid and electric vehicles
- Great quality and sturdy design and build
Cons
- It will be very overkill for many vehicles
Editor's pick
Blue Dynamic is the name of Varta’s mid-range car batteries, with the C22 designed for small and medium cars. It’s ideal for older cars without a start-stop system.
Pros
- Good value for money at under £70
- Chosen by many manufacturers as a good battery supplier
- Perfect for smaller vehicles, albeit without stop-start
Cons
- Unsuitable for cars with start-stop systems
- Not suited to larger vehicles
| Voltage: | 12V |
| Cell composition: | Lead-acid |
| Capacity: | 52Ah |
| Current: | 470A |
Best for larger, tech-filled cars
It uses AGM or Absorbent Glass Mat technology, which allows larger quantities of energy to pass through. This provides superior power to support the electrical demands of modern vehicles. Bosch rates the performance during cold starts and resistance to deep cycles as ‘excellent’, which makes the S5 A08 superior to other Bosch batteries.
Pros
- Great build quality and sturdy materials
- Excellent battery performance and ideal for performance vehicles
- Designed for stop-start systems and regenerative braking
Cons
- Overkill for many cars without the electric amenities
| Voltage: | 12V |
| Cell composition: | AGM |
| Capacity: | 70Ah |
| Current: | 760A |
Best mid-range car battery
The brand provides batteries as OEM equipment to brands such as BMW, General Motors, Honda, and much more. This 3000 series doesn't cater to stop-start systems, as it's a lower-end model to other Yuasa batteries.
Pros
- Ideal battery for a wide variety of vehicles
- Designed to work effectively in hot and cold temperatures
- Can provide up to a quoted 30,000 engine starts
Cons
- Doesn't cover vehicles with stop-start systems
Best for small cars
This battery is 100 per cent maintenance-free, with Bosch claiming that it is two times more efficient than a standard battery. It’s not suitable for cars with a start-stop system, though.
Pros
- Excellent battery that's suitable for small cars and superminis
- Great build quality and pretty good value at just over £70
- Quite a bit lighter than many others at just 11kg
Cons
- Unsuitable for start-stop systems
- Not suited to medium-sized or larger vehicles
| Voltage: | 12V |
| Cell composition: | Lead-acid |
| Capacity: | 45Ah |
| Current: | 440A |
Best for start-stop system
The Yuasa YBX9096 can handle up to 360,000 engine starts and is engineered for cars with start-stop technology. When you discover that the cheaper and smaller Yuasa YBX1000 battery can tackle 20,000 engine starts, you can see the importance of choosing a battery that’s fit for purpose.
Pros
- Designed for start-stop systems in modern cars
- Has the capability to cope with 360,000 engine starts
- Suitable for regenerative braking and other clever ameneties
Cons
- Needs to be programmed to the ECU
| Voltage: | 12V |
| Cell composition: | AGM |
| Capacity; | 70Ah |
| Current: | 760A |
Best on a budget
It’s a relatively new brand, but the customer reviews are positive. Given the low prices, a Powerline car battery could make good financial sense if you don't do huge mileage and have a car with minimal electrical components.
Pros
- Perfect for cars with fairly minimal electrical features
- Better value for money than the others at £50
- Comes with a four-year guarantee
Cons
- Won't last as long as the others
- Isn't designed for stop-start systems
| Voltage: | 12V |
| Cell composition: | Wet |
| Capacity: | 32Ah |
| Current: | 250A |
Best leisure battery for campervans
This 12V, 120Ah unit from SuperBatt is one of the best for it. It's even designed for marine use, so if you happen to have a boat, it's useful for that purpose, too. It comes with a two-year warranty, and is said to last years in fully-functioning use.
Pros
- Great quality battery designed to last for years
- Perfect for campervans, caravans, or even boats
- Comes with a two-year warranty, which is reassuring to buyers
Cons
- Isn't designed to be a car battery
Car batteries: FAQs and things to remember
How can I find the correct battery for my vehicle?
The easiest and only way to find out which battery your vehicle requires is to use a search filter. Amazon Garage or similar providers are examples, where you enter your vehicle before it brings up a list of compatible batteries. Our selection of batteries listed shouldn’t be taken as advice for your vehicle. They are simply examples to explain what kinds of batteries at different capabilities are out there.
Do I need a different battery for a stop-start system car?
The short answer is yes: batteries for vehicles with stop-start systems are generally levelled-up on power. So, if your car has a start-stop system, make sure the battery is up to the task. Equally, a bigger car with a larger engine will require a battery that’s fit for purpose, regardless of whether it features modern tech. That said, don’t go overboard. A mid-range or even budget-brand battery could be suitable for an older car with a small engine.
It’s important to buy the right battery for your car. Fortunately, Amazon allows you to search for car batteries and other parts using your registration plate so you can be sure that the battery will fit your car. Don’t just buy on price; you should consider the brand as well as its performance in cold weather.
How do I keep an eye on my battery’s health?
Although we wouldn’t recommend stockpiling car batteries, you should plan ahead. Get a battery tester and use it from time to time. A good battery should last around five years, so start considering a new one after four years.
Another method for monitoring your battery’s health is by investing in a battery trickle charger. A CTEK unit can give you an indication of how healthy your battery health is; it does so by showing a series of lights, and if it consistently shows an amber light, then it’s time to upgrade to a new car battery. Otherwise, it should charge it – with care – all the way up to green.
During the winter, it’s useful to hook up your car’s battery to a trickle charger. This is because should a car be parked up in the cold, the lifespan will be greatly reduced. A trickle charger will maintain a battery’s life and prolong its health. Additionally, your car will throw up issues if your battery isn’t charged up enough, and a trickle charger can prevent this.
Are jump starters good for your battery?
In an ideal world, you don’t want to have to revert to a jump starter. They can put a bit of stress on a battery and alternator. However, a lot of the capable ones out there are quite harmless to car batteries.
This can however, be the opposite if you rely on a poor quality or faulty jump starter. A NOCO, Gooloo, or other recommended brand can prevent damage as they’re quite cleverly-designed.
What is the best battery for a campervan?
Usually, they’ll have two. One for the engine and driving amenities, and a leisure battery for the camping amenities, such as the cooker and so on. Ideally, you want a capable leisure battery that can take whatever power units your van has, which will usually be tailored to motorhome, caravan, or even marine spec. A good quality car or van battery for the engine should suffice, as the engine and tech is shared with many of the manufacturers’ car counterparts. But always go onto Amazon garage to check.
Ryan Gilmore is the Deputy Autos and Tools Editor for Parkers and CAR, specialising in car cleaning and hand tools. With an MA in Automotive Journalism, when he’s not testing buckets he can be found looking at old Porsches.
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