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Although most modern gadgets now choose built-in batteries, there are still many useful household items that rely on old AA batteries. Flashlights, toys, clocks, and remote controls are among the most common products that require them. You will also find bridge and DSLR cameras, radios, video game controllers, and travel razors powered by them.

If you only use a few of the above gadgets, you will definitely consume a lot of battery in a year. In the long run, this might make rechargeable batteries a more attractive option, but they are not convenient, and for some devices, you'd better stick to disposable batteries. Of course, not any disposable battery will work. You need a battery with a good lifespan so that you don’t need to replace it when you need it most.

In order to determine which AA battery is best for various situations, we ran multiple pairs of batteries in a high-power 500-lumen LED flashlight and measured the voltage every 30 minutes. The flashlight needs a stable 1.5V to run at full brightness, about 1.2V to run at an acceptable brightness level, and most batteries run out in less than an hour. Then we chose the best battery based on performance and price.

Below you will find the top-ranked lists in their respective categories. If you need further guidance on which battery is best for your needs, there is a buying guide at the bottom of the page explaining the differences between various types of batteries, including rechargeable batteries.

Read now: How to choose the best battery for you

Price: 4 x AA, £7 | Buy now from Amazon

If you are looking for a battery that can travel a long distance no matter how much it consumes, then Energizer Ultimate Lithium is your best choice. Although 33% lighter than the equivalent alkaline battery, each battery is fully charged; even after powering our 500-lumen test flashlight for 90 minutes, they can still provide 1.48V, which is very long after other batteries allow the light to diminish Keep the maximum brightness within the time. After another 90 minutes, there is still nearly 1V on our test meter.

This is an impressive performance, and with a storage life of 20 years and the ability to work at temperatures from -40°C to 60°C, they will not let you down. Needless to say, you paid the price for this endurance, and the operating cost per battery exceeds £1.50. Nevertheless, when you really need a long-lasting battery, you only have to bear the price.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Lithium; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used: AAA, 9V

Price: 8 x AA, £4.80; 12 x AA, £4.99; 20 x AA, £6.90 | Buy now from Amazon

The phrase "cheap and cheerful" almost sums it up. Amazon will sell you 12 or 20 batteries for less than £7, and it will be difficult for you to find alkaline batteries from well-known brands at a cheaper price. Basics still has a ten-year shelf life and leak-proof design, and uses Japanese patented technology to minimize self-discharge and maintain a good performance level.

As always, you get what you pay for, Basics loses power faster than its more expensive competitors. After only 90 minutes of use, the voltage drops below 1V, making the output of our high-intensity flashlights look terrible . However, for low-power devices, you can't go wrong-one package can keep your remote control working for many years.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA, 9V, C, D

Price: 16 x AA, £8; 48 x AA, £17; 16 x AA and 12 x AAA, £15 | Buy now from Amazon

Most of us don't buy batteries in advance, but take them away when we need them. In this case, Energizer alkaline power batteries are very suitable for daily use. They are usually cheap in supermarkets and online stores, if you buy in bulk, you can buy them for 40 pence per battery. This may make you expect substandard endurance, but Energizer batteries may surprise you: In our tests, they were the best among alkaline batteries at 60 and 90 minutes, even though they were three minutes later When the voltage dropped to only 0.75V, the flashlight seemed to be nearly exhausted after further struggling for several hours of use. So, for high power consumption devices, this is not your first choice, but if you want to keep all kinds of gadgets powered, this is a good and cheap way.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA

Price: 8 x AA, £6.36; 12 x AA, £10 | Buy now from Amazon

Can't extend to high-priced lithium batteries? Duracell’s Ultra Power battery is your next best choice. These little beauties are slightly ahead of the competition in terms of high power consumption performance, and can still provide 1.27V after powering our 500-lumen LED flashlight for 30 minutes-although Varta Longlife batteries have a little endurance at 90 minutes and 180 minutes. A few minutes mark is bigger.

Duralock claims that its Duralock power storage technology will maintain full power storage within ten years. You can use the built-in "Powercheck" meter to check the status of the battery. Press the white dots on both sides to display a color-coded meter.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA, 9V, C, D

Price: 8 x AA, £5; 12 x AA, £7; 20 x AA, £12; 36 X AA, £22 | Buy now from Amazon

Duracell’s mainstream AA batteries are not great in any area, but they are all-round batteries, and if you find them on sale, they are worth buying. Duracell claims that they provide 50% more power than most AA batteries, and you can still use Duralock technology to keep them fresh for up to ten years.

In our test, when powering our test flashlights, they were not far from Ultras, but like Energizer alkaline power supplies, they were still difficult to maintain a good voltage after 180 minutes. If you have a motor and a high-power flashlight for power, this is a problem, but for clocks, game controllers and remote controls, for example, Duracell will do well.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA, 9V, C, D

Price: 100 x AA, £30 | Buy now from Amazon

If you know PowerAdd, it may be because of its power bank. However, this Chinese manufacturer also sells AA alkaline batteries for £100 and £30, which are not bad. They have a 10-year leak-free structure and all necessary safety features. In our test, we found that they are more durable than AmazonBasics batteries. In our intensive flashlight test, both batteries provide nearly 1.2V after one hour. Voltage, and after three full hours, the voltage of one battery is 1.2V, and the voltage of the other battery is 0.76V. They are not the best choice for critical power-hungry devices that don’t want to change the battery frequently, but you might do worse for remote controls, colorful lights, toys, and game controllers.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA

Price: 8 x AA, £4.30; 10 x AA, £6 | Buy now from Amazon

Varta’s Longlife Power batteries are worthy of the name, consistent with the best alkaline batteries after 60 minutes of testing, and then surpassed them within three hours, and when most competitors struggled to reach 0.8V, they still managed to provide 0.9V of power. This is not enough to run a power-hungry motor or keep our 500 lumens flashlight at full brightness, but if you are running, such as a game controller, the lifespan of Vartas should be a little longer than others. More importantly, they still guarantee ten years of storage. Prices for larger packages fluctuate greatly, but if you buy 20 batteries, we have seen them as low as 45 pence per battery.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Alkaline; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AAA, 9V, D, 3LR12

Price: 4 x AA, £3.99; 8 x AA, £12; 16 x AA: £20 | Buy now from Amazon

Lithium batteries have a longer service life on high-power devices, but their cost is much higher than that of ordinary alkaline batteries. However, the price premium for these cheap lithium batteries is not that high, four AAs cost less than £5-or you can buy them in bulk for less than £20. They are designed to retain power for up to 10 years, and can withstand temperatures as low as -40°C and as high as 60°C, and the box will notify you that they have prevented leakage and explosion-this is our long-term commitment It is a bonus item.

Now, reviews on Amazon are not always positive about the performance of these batteries, and users of Blink outdoor cameras are particularly angry. However, in our tests, we found that the service life of a pair of Energizer Lithiums is the same as that of the equivalent Energizer Lithiums. It is still 1.47V even after 90 minutes and drops to 1.36V after three hours, which is actually better than our current The champion is better. More interestingly, we also found that they have been used in Xbox Series S controllers for several weeks. Blink owners will want to give them a miss, but other than that, they are well worth the bet.

Main specifications-Chemistry: Lithium; Rated voltage: 1.5V; Can also be used for: AA, AAA

AA batteries may be cheap and easy to use, but that doesn't mean they are all the same. Different manufacturers use different chemistries and processes to make them, and there are big differences in how much power a battery can provide, how long it lasts, and how quickly the battery loses energy when in inactive use. For some purposes—when you power low-power devices such as clocks or remote controls—the difference is not that important, but for high-power devices, such as cameras, game controllers, or anything with lights, screens, or Motor equipment, you will see a huge difference in service life and reliability.

Zinc Chloride: This used to be the preferred general-purpose battery, but alkaline batteries are now very cheap and you don't see them often. They are as cheap as chips when purchased in bulk, and are good for low-power gadgets such as remote controls, but you will quickly browse them on anything more demanding.

Alkaline: Mainstream battery technology for high power consumption equipment. They are cheap, easy to find, and have a longer life than old zinc chloride batteries. Technological progress has also reduced or even solved the main problems-short shelf life and leakage tendency.

Lithium: Lithium batteries work better than alkaline batteries. They have a longer service life, have a long shelf life, do not release so much electricity when not in use, and can cope with extreme temperatures. Although ordinary alkaline AA will struggle below 0°C, lithium batteries can operate as low as -40°C. They can also be 9 grams lighter than equivalent alkaline AA batteries, which is important when you have something powered by four AA batteries. The only negative? They are much more expensive.

In general, you should choose alkaline batteries for most battery needs, but choose lithium batteries for digital cameras or other high-power products that require reliable charging for as long as possible.

In many cases, yes. Rechargeable devices don't provide as much voltage as disposable devices (usually 1.25V instead of 1.5V), but they usually stay at the same level for longer and can be charged when they are exhausted. You need to pay more upfront costs for the battery and charger (if you need it), but you will make up the difference in several uses-and the charging cost of AA batteries is so low that it is almost not worth considering. Considering the obvious environmental issues, this is easy, although many local councils and some supermarkets now offer free recycling.

Next: The best rechargeable battery

However, there are exceptions. Sometimes you only need a battery, and getting a rechargeable battery is neither possible nor convenient. More importantly, most rechargeable devices will self-discharge over time and continue to lose power until they are basically useless and need to be charged. For many devices, this is not a problem, you use them intensively in a short period of time, but for things you use for a long time, such as remote controls, regular charging can quickly become annoying. You may find the same goes for game controllers, toys, and some other gadgets and devices. Here, standard disposable AA batteries usually work better because they do not self-discharge at nearly the same rate.

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