If you are planning to buy a power bank, but don’t know how much mAh a power bank needs, then you are in the right place. Here we will tell you exactly how much mAh your ideal power bank needs. So, how much does it need?
The ideal mAh for your power bank depends on the phone battery capacity. The larger the phone battery capacity, the larger the battery of a power bank should be. A 15000-20000mAh power bank should be fine.
But, that’s an easy answer. We have explained how much mAh your power bank needs for different devices. Let’s dive in.
Contents
What is mAh in Power Banks?
The mAh stands for milliamp Hour and it measures the capacity of a battery. The more mAh a battery has, the more times/longer it can charge a device. The more mAh a power bank has the more charging capacity it can store inside.
A 5000mAh battery can power a device that it’s drawing 100mAh for 50 hours. While a 10000mAh does the same thing for 100 hours.
Batteries with more mAh tend to last longer than those with less mAh. That’s because they consume the charging cycles much slower. However, batteries with more mAh will take longer to fully charge because it takes longer to fill 10000mAh than it takes to fill 5000mAh.
Real vs Marking Capacity
There’s a real difference between the advertised capacity of power and the real capacity of a power bank. A 10000mAh power bank won’t transfer 10000mAh to another device, it will transfer much less. It will transfer about 80/85% of the marking capacity.
Most power banks use lithium batteries that have an average voltage of 3.7V. Power banks use a USB-C port to charge a device, and these ports have a voltage of 5.1V. When manufacturers calculate the capacity of a power bank, it’s based on the 3.7V value and not the 5.1V that we use. So, the real capacity is much less.
To calculate the real capacity you need to convert the mAh to mWh and then back to mAh (with the 5V). So, 10000mAh x 3.7V (Lithium Voltage) = 37,000mWh/ 5.1V (USB-C Voltage) = 7,555mAh. When converting these values, there’s a 10% power loss from the power bank. So, a 10000mAh power bank only has 6,528mAh.
How Much mAh Does a Power Bank Need To Charge an iPhone?
Different iPhones have different battery capacities, thus requiring different power banks. Here’s the list of all iPhones:
| iPhone: | Battery Capacity: | Power Bank Capacity for 1 Charge: | Power Bank Capacity for 2 Charges: |
|---|---|---|---|
| iPhone 6 | 1810 mAh | 2130 mAh | 4260 mAh |
| iPhone 6 Plus | 2915 mAh | 3430 mAh | 6858 mAh |
| iPhone 6s | 1715 mAh | 2017 mAh | 4034 mAh |
| iPhone 6s Plus | 2915 mAh | 3430 mAh | 6862 mAh |
| iPhone 7 | 1960 mAh | 2305 mAh | 4610 mAh |
| iPhone 7 Plus | 2900 mAh | 3411 mAh | 6822 mAh |
| iPhone 8 | 1821 mAh | 2142 mAh | 4284 mAh |
| iPhone 8 Plus | 2675 mAh | 3382 mAh | 6764 mAh |
| iPhone X | 2716 mAh | 3195 mAh | 6390 mAh |
| iPhone XS | 2658 mAh | 3127mAh | 6254 mAh |
| iPhone XS Max | 3174 mAh | 3734 mAh | 7468 mAh |
| iPhone XR | 2942 mAh | 3461 mAh | 6922 mAh |
| iPhone 11 | 3110 mAh | 3658 mAh | 7316 mAh |
| iPhone 11 Pro | 3046 mAh | 3583 mAh | 7166 mAh |
| iPhone 11 Pro Max | 3969 mAh | 4669 mAh | 9338 mAh |
| iPhone SE (2nd-gen) | 1821 mAh | 2142 mAh | 4284 mAh |
| iPhone 12 | 2815 mAh | 3311 mAh | 6622 mAh |
| iPhone 12 Pro | 2815 mAh | 3311 mAh | 6622 mAh |
| iPhone 12 Pro Max | 3687 mAh | 4337 mAh | 8674 mAh |
| iPhone 12 Mini | 2227 mAh | 2620 mAh | 5240 mAh |
| iPhone 13 | 3227 mAh | 3796 mAh | 7592 mAh |
| iPhone 13 Mini | 2406 mAh | 2830 mAh | 5660 mAh |
| iPhone 13 Pro | 3095 mAh | 3641 mAh | 7282 mAh |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max | 4353 mAh | 5121 mAh | 10242 mAh |
How Much mAh Does a Power Bank Need To Charge a Samsung Phone?
There are a lot of Samsung phones, but we choose the models that people use the most:
| Phone: | Battery Capacity: | Power Bank Capacity for 1 Charge: | Power Bank Capacity for 2 Charges: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung Galaxy Note 10+/Note 10+ 5G | 4300 mAh | 5258 mAh | 10516 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 10 | 3500 mAh | 4117 mAh | 8234 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 9 | 4000 mAh | 4705 mAh | 9410 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 8 | 3300 mAh | 3882 mAh | 7764 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 7 | 3500 mAh | 4117 mAh | 8234 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra | 5000 mAh | 5882 mAh | 11764 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S20+ | 4500 mAh | 5294 mAh | 10558 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 | 4000 mAh | 4705 mAh | 9410 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S10 5G | 4500 mAh | 5294 mAh | 10558 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S10+ | 4100 mAh | 4823 mAh | 9464 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S10e | 3100 mAh | 3467 mAh | 6934 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S10 | 3400 mAh | 4000 mAh | 8000 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S9+ | 3500 mAh | 4117 mAh | 8234 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S9 | 3000 mAh | 3529 mAh | 7056 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S8 Active | 4000 mAh | 4705 mAh | 9410 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S8 + | 3500 mAh | 4117 mAh | 8234 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy S8 | 3000 mAh | 3529 mAh | 7056 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy A50/A30/A20 | 4000 mAh | 4705 mAh | 9410 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy A70/ A90 5G | 4500 mAh | 5294 mAh | 10558 mAh |
| Samsung Galaxy A10 | 3400 mAh | 4000 mAh | 8000 mAh |
How Much mAh Does a Power Bank Need To Charge a Google Pixel Phone?
Here’s the list of all Google Pixel Phones and how much mAh a power bank needs to charge them:
| Phone: | Battery Capacity: | Power Bank Capacity for 1 Charge: | Power Bank Capacity for 2 Charges: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Pixel 4 XL | 3700mAh | 4352mAh | 8704mAh |
| Google Pixel 4 | 2800mAh | 3294mAh | 6588mAh |
| Google Pixel 3a XL | 3700mAh | 4352mAh | 8704mAh |
| Google Pixel 3a | 3000mAh | 3529mAh | 7058mAh |
| Google Pixel 3 XL | 3430mAh | 4035mAh | 8070mAh |
| Google Pixel 3 | 2915mAh | 3429mAh | 6858mAh |
| Google Pixel 2 XL | 3520mAh | 4141mAh | 8282mAh |
| Google Pixel 2 | 2700mAh | 3176mAh | 6352mAh |
| Google Pixel XL | 3450mAh | 4058mAh | 8116mAh |
| Google Pixel | 2770mAh | 3258mAh | 6516mAh |
| Google Pixel 4a | 3140mAh | 3694mAh | 7388mAh |
| Google Pixel 5 | 4080mAh | 4800mAh | 9600mAh |
| Google Pixel 5a 5G | 4680mAh | 5505mAh | 11010mAh |
| Google Pixel 6 | 4614mAh | 5428mAh | 10586mAh |
| Google Pixel 6 Pro | 5003mAh | 5885mAh | 11770mAh |
What Kind of Portable Charger Works Best for You?
Now that you have seen different phone models and their requirements you must know the type of power bank you need. You could either choose a light or heavy model.
If you don’t need a power bank daily (or twice a day), then a power bank with 5000-20000mAh is good enough. These power banks are smaller and lighter so you can carry them around. As you can see from the list above, no smartphone requires more than 10000mAh for a full charge. But, a power bank should be able to charge a phone 2 times, so a 15000mAh or 20000mAh is good enough.
If you need a power bank for heavy uses then a 40000mAh power bank is a must. These types of power banks come with large batteries so moving them around can be harder. Heavy-duty power banks also come with AC/DC ports that you can use to charge a laptop.
Final Words
A power bank is a very useful device. But, if the power bank doesn’t have enough battery capacity to charge your devices, it won’t help you. That’s why you need to calculate how much battery capacity a power bank should have to fill your needs.