Best Jump Starter: 6 Portable Jump Starters Ranked by Engine Size, Not Peak Amps

Best Jump Starter With Air Compressor

A jump starter with an air compressor puts a tire inflator and a jump pack in one box, sharing one battery. Of our six picks, only the VTOMAN X7 has one. Its manual rates the inflator at 160 PSI and says it takes about 2 minutes to inflate a typical car tire to 20 PSI, and you can preset a target pressure so it stops by itself (VTOMAN X7 manual). Its Amazon listing gives a faster figure, about 1 minute to take a 30-inch tire from 30 to 35 PSI. That's a smaller top-up than the manual's figure, so the two numbers don't conflict, but neither is a test we can check. Three things to know before you buy one:

1. The inflator and the jump starter share the battery. VTOMAN's X7 manual says to make sure 3 to 4 charge indicators are lit before you start a car, and its X1 manual asks for more than 2 bars (VTOMAN X1 manual). After inflating a tire, check the charge before you rely on the pack to start the car.
2. Don't run the pump nonstop. VTOMAN's Amazon listings say not to use the air pump continuously and to let it cool for a few minutes when it gets hot. VTOMAN doesn't publish a duty cycle (minutes on, minutes off).
3. It's a top-up pump, not a shop compressor. It's for topping up car, SUV and bike tires and inflatables. If you air down off-road and refill four big tires regularly, a dedicated 12V compressor is the better tool.

VTOMAN jump starter: X7 or X1?

VTOMAN, which also makes portable power stations, sells several jump starters on Amazon. We ranked the X7 because its maker manual and the Amazon listing agree on its key figures: 10L gas and 10L diesel, 4,250A peak, up to 70 starts, a 160 PSI inflator and an 18-month warranty. The manual adds 88.8 Wh and 800A starting current for 3 seconds. The X1 is the budget alternative, below.

We also saw VTOMAN's X3, X5, X5 Cross and X7 Pro on Amazon. We didn't rank them, because we couldn't open a VTOMAN manual for those listings, and the X7 Pro wasn't in stock when we checked.

Jump Starter Comparison Table

The six scored picks and the unscored Clore JNC660. Engine ratings, battery and temperature figures come from each maker's guide, data sheet or product page. Peak amps are shown because makers print them, but they aren't comparable between brands.

Sources: NOCO GB40, GB70, GB150 and GBX45 user guides, data sheets and product pages (no.co); AstroAI S8 user manual and product page (astroai.com); VTOMAN X7 user manual (linked from vtoman.com) and Amazon listing; Clore Automotive JNC660 product page and operator's manual. Temperatures: NOCO lists -20 to 50°C operating and 0 to 40°C charging; AstroAI lists -20 to 50°C operating and 0 to 45°C charging; VTOMAN lists -4 to 140°F operating and says to charge at 32 to 140°F.

Best Jump Starter for Your Car Battery: Check the Battery First

The best jump starter for a car battery is one made for that battery's voltage and chemistry. Check three things in your owner's manual before you choose:

1. It's a 12V battery. Every pick here starts 12V vehicles only. VTOMAN's X7 manual says it "can only be used to start 12V cars" (VTOMAN). AAA warns that a 24V truck system can damage a car (AAA).
2. It's lead-acid, or the maker approves jumping it. NOCO's guides say each Boost is for 12V lead-acid batteries only (NOCO). If yours is a lithium starter battery, ask its maker first. A deep-cycle LiFePO4 house battery is a different product; see our best 12V lithium battery guide for those and our LiFePO4 battery charger picks for charging them.
3. It isn't frozen, cracked or swollen. NOCO and Clore both say never to jump a frozen battery, and AAA says to replace a cracked or bulging one.

Then match the engine size, using the table above. If the battery goes flat again within days, a jump starter only treats the symptom. Have the battery tested, as AAA suggests, and if the car sits for weeks, keep it topped up with a maintainer from our best trickle charger guide.

Jump Starter for Cold Weather: What the Specs Allow

Every lithium pick on this page shares the same two cold limits: it works down to -4°F (-20°C) but charges only above 32°F (0°C). NOCO's guides give a -4 to 122°F operating range and 32 to 104°F for charging, and say "do not operate outside of temperature ranges" (NOCO). AstroAI's manual gives the same operating range, with charging from 32 to 113°F (AstroAI). VTOMAN's X7 manual lists -4 to 140°F and says to charge it at 32 to 140°F (VTOMAN). The GBX45 has a blue LED that lights when the pack is too cold (NOCO GBX45 guide). We found no published cold-cranking test for any of these lithium packs, so we can't tell you how much of their rating is left at -4°F.

A "LiFePO4" label doesn't lift the charging limit. Some jump starters, including VTOMAN's X1 listing, advertise LiFePO4 cells. The cold rule still applies: as our 12V lithium battery guide explains, LiFePO4 makers list a charging range that starts at 32°F (0°C), and only self-heating batteries charge below it. None of the jump starters here lists a heater. Follow the charging range in your pack's own manual, and bring it indoors to recharge.

1. Keep it charged, and charge it indoors. A lithium pack left in a car below freezing can still start the engine, if it's within its operating range, but it can't take a charge until it warms up.
2. Below -4°F, bring it inside overnight. Below that, these packs are outside their rated range. Carry the pack out to the car with you in the morning.
3. Size up for diesels and old batteries. See the headroom rule above. A battery that's more than three years old or keeps going flat should be tested, AAA says, because a short drive "won't save an old battery" (AAA).
4. Never jump a frozen battery. NOCO and Clore both say so.

Facing a multi-day winter storm, not just a cold morning? Our winter storm power backup guide covers keeping phones, a fridge and heat going at home.

Jump Starter vs Jumper Cables: Which Should You Carry?

Jumper cables cost little and never need charging, but they only work if another running car can park close enough. AAA's recommended cable order uses four connections: red to the dead battery's positive, red to the good battery's positive, black to the good battery's negative, and the last black clamp to "a clean, unpainted piece of metal" on the dead car, such as an engine bolt, to keep the final spark away from the battery (AAA). AAA also recommends heavy-duty 6-gauge, 16-foot cables, because thin cables often fail with V6 and V8 engines and in sub-freezing weather.

If you drive alone, park in places where another car can't reach you, or drive in winter, a jump starter is the better first choice. Cables make a cheap backup that never runs flat. If a car sits for weeks between drives, a plug-in maintainer from our best trickle charger guide helps prevent the flat battery in the first place.

Can You Leave a Jump Starter in Your Car? Storage and Airline Rules

Heat is the bigger risk. NOCO's guides give a storage range of -4 to 122°F (-20 to 50°C), with a daily average of 32 to 77°F (0 to 25°C), and say never to let the pack go above 176°F (80°C) "under any condition." The same guides say the device "is intended to be stored indoors when not in use" (NOCO GB40 guide). A parked car can go well past 122°F. In an Arizona State University study, cabin air in cars parked in the sun averaged 116°F after one hour, and dashboards averaged 157°F (ASU). If you keep a pack in the car, keep it off the dashboard and out of direct sun, ideally in the trunk. In a heat wave, bring it indoors. AstroAI's manual also says not to store or use the S8 at high temperatures, and VTOMAN's X7 manual says not to expose it to heat over 158°F.

Recharge on a schedule. Clore, AstroAI and VTOMAN all say to recharge every three months. NOCO packs show their charge level on four LEDs, so check them when you change the clocks.

Flying with one. The FAA says spare lithium-ion batteries, "including power banks," must go in carry-on baggage only, with the terminals protected from short circuits. Batteries up to 100 Wh are allowed, and two larger spares from 101 to 160 Wh need airline approval. Airlines may set stricter limits (FAA PackSafe). Every lithium pick here is below 100 Wh; the VTOMAN X7 is the largest at 88.8 Wh, just ahead of the GB150 at 88 Wh. We found no FAA guidance that names jump starters specifically, and VTOMAN's X7 manual says the product "is prohibited on airplanes or ships" without saying whether that covers carrying it (VTOMAN). Check with your airline before you pack any of them. Our flying with a power station guide covers the Wh limits in more detail.

Jump Starter Buying Guide

1. Match the maker's engine rating to your engine. Use separate gas and diesel figures, and buy one step up for diesels, cold climates or tired batteries.
2. Ignore peak-amp comparisons. A cranking or starting-current figure is more useful when a maker publishes one. Clore does for the JNC660 and VTOMAN for the X7; NOCO and AstroAI don't for these models.
3. Check the safety features. Look for reverse-polarity and spark protection. Every lithium pick here has reverse-polarity protection or a warning light. Rick's also suggests looking for UL 2743, the safety standard for portable power packs, but we couldn't confirm a UL 2743 listing for any of these six from the maker documents, so we don't claim one.
4. Check the temperature ranges, not just the amps. All the lithium picks here operate down to -4°F and charge only above 32°F.
5. Decide if it should double as a power bank or tire inflator. Only the GBX45 has 60W USB-C PD, and only the VTOMAN X7 has an air compressor. The others have a basic 5V USB port, or 12V output on the GB70 and GB150. If laptop charging matters most, compare our laptop power bank picks too.
6. Compare warranties. AstroAI gives 2 years on the S8 and VTOMAN 18 months on the X7. NOCO and Clore give 1 year.

Every price on this page loads live from Amazon. We can't predict prices or promise a discount on any listing.