⚡ What Size Power Station Do I Need?

Select your use case and we’ll instantly recommend the perfect portable power station.

What size power station do I need? It’s the first question every buyer asks, and the answer depends on what you’re powering and for how long. Choose your setup below and our free calculator works out the ideal capacity in watt-hours, then recommends tested portable power station picks for your exact needs.

Amy Cuban, Beacar lead reviewer
By Amy Cuban · 8+ years off-grid · 70+ units tested · Updated July 2026

1Choose Your Primary Use

🔥 Camping is selected by default — choose the option that best matches your setup.

2Select Your Devices

Devices are pre-selected based on your use case — tap + Add Your Devices to change.

Tap + to add a device, − to remove. Add as many as you like — we’ll calculate the exact size you need.

3Adjust Your Needs

Adjust for your usage intensity — 8h is a typical day; slide left for lighter, right for heavier.

Days of Backup
Power Draw
0 W
Daily Need
0 kWh
Recommended
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Perfect Match Found

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Why we recommended these

    Portable Power Station Comparison: Your Top 3 Matches

    Here’s a side-by-side portable power station comparison of your three recommended picks — capacity, output, real-world runtime for your setup, and price — so you can see exactly how they stack up before you choose.

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    Amy tests every recommended unit herself. Affiliate links help support Beacar, but they never change which products we recommend — if something underperforms on the bench, we say so. See how we test →

    Watts vs Watt-Hours vs kWh: What They Mean for Power Stations

    Watts, watt-hours, and kilowatt-hours confuse most first-time buyers. Our power station size calculator handles the math for you, but knowing these three terms helps you shop smarter. Here’s the plain-English, 30-second version.

    Watts (W)

    How fast a device uses power — like how wide a faucet is open. A phone sips at 15W; a microwave gulps at 1,200W.

    Watt-hours (Wh)

    The size of the tank. A 1,000Wh power station can run a 100W TV for about 10 hours. Battery capacity is measured in Wh.

    Kilowatt-hours (kWh)

    Just 1,000 watt-hours — a shorthand for bigger batteries. A 2kWh station holds 2,000Wh. Your home’s electric bill uses the same unit.

    The Power Station Sizing Formula (How We Calculate It)

    No black box here. This is the exact math our power station wattage calculator runs on every recommendation, so you can check the numbers yourself and understand precisely why we suggest the capacity we do.

    Running Time (hours) =
    Power Station Capacity (Wh) × 0.85
    Appliance Wattage (W)

    The 0.85 multiplier accounts for the roughly 15% of energy lost as heat when the inverter converts stored DC battery power into AC. So a 1,000Wh station running a 100W TV lasts about 1,000 × 0.85 ÷ 100 = 8.5 hours.

    For appliances that cycle on and off, like fridges, we use their true average draw over time, not their peak wattage. That’s exactly why a 12V fridge runs far longer than its 60W label suggests, and why our numbers stay realistic. See exactly how we test →

    What Size Power Station Do I Need? Capacity Chart by Use

    Prefer to skip the calculator? Find your scenario below for a ballpark capacity by use case. For a precise number and matched picks, run the power station sizing calculator above, then dig into our tested portable power station reviews.

    Portable power station size comparison showing 1070Wh, 2048Wh and 4096Wh capacities side by side
    Watt-hours are easier to judge side by side: a 1,070Wh unit handles a weekend of phones, lights, and a small fridge; 2,048Wh covers van and RV loads with a coffee maker; 4,096Wh is home-backup territory. The chart below breaks down which tier fits your setup.
    CapacityBest ForRunsPrice
    Under 500WhDay trips, emergency phone chargingPhones, tablets, lights, a laptop or two$150–$300
    500–1,000WhWeekend camping, light van useAbove + a 12V fridge, fan, small electronics for a day$300–$700
    1,000–2,000WhVan life, RV weekends, home essentialsFridge, TV, laptop, router, coffee maker, lights$550–$1,300
    2,000–3,600WhRV living, 1–2 day home backupAbove + microwave, power tools, most kitchen devices$1,100–$2,400
    3,600Wh+ (expandable)Multi-day outages, off-grid living — emergency backup guideFull essentials for days; scales with extra batteries$2,400+

    Note: capacity (Wh) tells you how long a station runs; output (W) tells you what it powers at once. You need both — a big battery with a weak inverter still can’t start a microwave. Our portable power station capacity calculator checks both.

    How Long Will a Power Station Run a Fridge, TV, or CPAP?

    Wondering how long a power station runs a fridge, TV, or CPAP? These are real-world runtimes on a 1,000Wh unit, after the ~15% inverter loss. Cycling appliances show true average draw, not peak wattage. Bigger batteries scale proportionally — double the capacity, roughly double the runtime.

    ApplianceRunning WattsRuntime on 1,000Wh
    📱 Phone charging15W50+ full charges
    💡 LED lights50W~17 hours
    💻 Laptop65W~13 hours
    📺 TV (LED)120W~7 hours
    🧊 12V fridge (cycling)60W running (~28W avg)~30 hours (about 1.5 days)
    😴 CPAP (no humidifier)55W~15 hours (about 2 nights)
    🍱 Full-size refrigerator150W avg~1 day (cycles on and off)
    ☕ Coffee maker1,000W~10–12 brews
    🍲 Microwave1,200W~40 minutes of cook time

    Can You Run a Power Station on Solar? Off-Grid Recharging Explained

    Here’s the trick that lets you buy a smaller, lighter, cheaper power station: pair it with a solar panel. Instead of hauling every watt-hour, you refill during the day.

    A 1,000Wh station with a 200W panel replenishes roughly 600–800Wh on a sunny day — enough to keep a 12V fridge, lights, and phones running almost indefinitely. That’s the heart of any reliable camping power station setup.

    Match the panel’s voltage to your station’s input range; brand-matched panels guarantee compatibility. For tested pairings, see our best solar panels for camping guide, or browse our camping power guide for more picks.

    LiFePO4 vs Lithium-Ion: Which Power Station Battery Is Better?

    In 2026, every power station worth buying uses LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) batteries. They last 3,000–4,000 charge cycles — roughly 8–10 years of daily use — versus just 500–800 cycles for older lithium-ion (NMC) units. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Saver Guide stresses that matching capacity to your actual load is what makes a station last, and independent research from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) shows LiFePO4 chemistry runs safer and more stable across extreme temperatures than older lithium-ion cells.

    Every product our power station sizing calculator recommends above uses LiFePO4. So if you’re shopping elsewhere and spot an unusually cheap unit, check the battery chemistry before you buy.

    Power Station Sizing FAQ: Common Questions Answered

    Quick answers to the questions we hear most about sizing a portable power station for a fridge, TV, CPAP, camping, or home backup. Still unsure after reading these? Run the portable power station sizing calculator at the top of this page for a personalized recommendation in seconds.

    How many watts does a refrigerator use?
    A full-size refrigerator runs at about 150W, but the compressor only cycles on roughly a third of the time — so it actually uses around 1.2–1.3kWh per day. The catch is startup: for a second or two the compressor draws about three times its running wattage, which is why our calculator quietly makes sure every recommended power station can handle that startup spike.
    What size power station do I need to run a TV?
    A typical LED TV draws around 120W. Four hours of viewing uses about 480Wh, so a 500Wh power station covers an evening of TV, and a 1,000Wh unit runs a TV for roughly 7–8 hours of actual screen time. Add your other devices in the calculator above to get a combined recommendation.
    Can I run a microwave on a portable power station?
    Yes — but only on units with a strong enough inverter. A microwave draws around 1,200W while running, so you need a power station rated for at least 1,500W of continuous output. Mid-size units like 1kWh-class stations from EcoFlow, Jackery, and Bluetti handle microwaves fine; small camping units under 800Wh generally can’t.
    How much battery do I need for camping?
    For a weekend of phone charging, lights, and small electronics, around 500Wh is plenty. Add a 12V fridge or plan longer trips off-grid, and you’ll want 1,000Wh or more. Run the calculator with the Camping preset above — it uses realistic run-times for each device rather than worst-case math.
    Will this calculator work for RVs?
    Yes — choose the RV Living preset. It pre-loads a realistic RV setup (fridge, TV, laptop, coffee maker, router, lights) and typically lands in the 2,000–3,600Wh range. If you boondock for several days without recharging, bump up the Days of Backup and the calculator will size accordingly. See our best power stations for RV use for tested picks.
    What’s the difference between watts and watt-hours?
    Watts measure how fast a device uses power; watt-hours measure how much total energy a battery holds. Think of watts as the speed of water from a tap and watt-hours as the size of the bucket. A 50W device running for 10 hours uses 500Wh. There’s a plain-English breakdown just above this FAQ.
    How long will a 1,000Wh power station run a 12V fridge?
    Because 12V portable fridges cycle on and off, they average roughly 25–30W over time even though their compressor draws 40–60W while running. A 1,000Wh power station at 85% real-world efficiency will keep a standard 12V fridge cold for around 30 hours — about 1.5 days on a single charge. Pair it with a solar panel and you can run one indefinitely in good weather.
    Can a portable power station run a full-size house refrigerator?
    Yes, but you have to account for two numbers: the continuous running watts (about 100–200W for a modern fridge) and the surge that hits when the compressor kicks on (often 800–1,200W for a split second). Your power station needs an inverter rated to handle that startup spike. For dependable outage backup, we recommend at least a 1,500–2,000Wh unit. See our best power stations for running a fridge for tested picks.
    How much power buffer should I leave when sizing a power station?
    Plan for about a 20% cushion above your calculated need. Inverters lose roughly 15% of battery capacity as heat converting DC to AC, and real-world conditions (cold weather, aging batteries) eat into the rest. Our calculator already builds this buffer in — it applies the 85% efficiency factor plus a 15% reserve, so the size it recommends is what you’ll actually get in the field, not just on paper.

    Keep Reading: Hand-Tested Power Station Guides

    Still weighing what size portable power station do I need? These hand-tested guides go deeper on the picks just recommended.

    🔋 Best Portable Power Stations of 2026Our full tested ranking across every brand and size. → 🏠 Best Power Stations for Home BackupKeep your fridge and Wi-Fi on through any outage. → ☀️ Best Solar Panels for CampingPair a panel with your station to recharge off-grid. → 📚 Portable Power Stations: Start HereNew to this? The complete beginner’s guide. →

    Beacar is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this page, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you.
    Sizing method: realistic per-appliance run-times and duty cycles × your days of backup ÷ 0.85 usable capacity, plus a one-time 15% reserve. We size for the full stretch you tell us — pair with solar if you want to run longer on a smaller unit. We size up, never down.

    ⚡ Calculating your power needs…
    Checking battery capacity…
    Matching compatible power stations…
    Finding the best products…