List of battery sizes

Additional recommended knowledge Daily Visual Balance Check Essential Laboratory Skills Guide Daily Sensitivity Test Contents 1 Battery chemistry 1.1 Primary battery chemistries 1.2 Rechargeable battery chemistries 2 Non-standard brand-specific names 3 Table of modern battery sizes 3.1 Naming notes 4 See also 5 References

This article refers to common battery types and sizes in household and light industrial use.

Battery size generally refers to the shape, voltage, and terminal layout of a battery. Thus the term "size" has become interchangeable with "type". Batteries of different types will usually not have the same dimensions and terminal layout.

Battery chemistry

Older batteries were mostly based on rechargeable lead-acid or non-rechargeable alkaline chemistries, with nominal voltages in increments of 1.5 Volts, each representing one individual electrochemical cell.

New battery chemistries have strained older naming conventions. Rechargeable NiCd and NiMH typically output 1.25 V per cell. Some devices may not operate properly with these cells, given the 16% reduction in voltage, but most modern ones handle them well. Conversely, lithium-ion rechargeable batteries output 3.7 V per cell, 23% higher than a pair of alkaline cells (3 V), which they are often designed to replace. Non-rechargeable lithium-chemistry batteries, which provide exceptionally high energy density, produce about 1.5 V per cell and are thus similar to alkaline batteries.

Many new battery sizes refer to both the batteries' size and chemistry, while older names do not. For a more complete list see battery types. This summary is only for types relating to battery "sizes".

Primary battery chemistries

Rechargeable battery chemistries

Non-standard brand-specific names

Battery naming is further confused by the practice of manufacturers that assign novel names and numbers to their batteries, disregarding common, colloquial, IEC, and ANSI naming conventions (see LR44 battery as an example). Often this is done to steer customers towards a specific brand, and away from competing or generic brands, by obfuscating the common name. For example, if a remote control needs a new battery and the battery compartment has the label, "Replace with CX472 type battery," many customers will buy that specific brand, not realizing that this is simply a brand name for a common type of battery. In this article, brand-specific names have been purposefully omitted to avoid confusion.

On the other hand, with obscure battery types, the name of a specific brand will sometimes become the most common name for that battery type, as other manufacturers copy or modify the name so that customers recognize it.

Table of modern battery sizes

The following table is a list of battery sizes which are currently available in modern society. Note that there were other sizes other than those listed in this table which are no longer available due to either a decline in popularity or changing technological needs. Batteries for obsolete portable vacuum tubes devices for example, are not listed. A table of older, obsolete, and uncommon-availability batteries types and sizes can be found below this table.

Naming notes

• SR# / LR# / AG# Button Cells: IEC SR series batteries are silver oxide chemistry and provide 1.55 volts, while IEC LR series batteries are alkaline chemistry and provide 1.5 volts. Since there are no 'common' names beyond the AG# designation, many places use these three terms interchangeably, and they will all fit and work. The only difference is that the SR series typically have 50% greater capacity than the LR series. In low-drain devices like watches (without lights) this isn't very important, but in high-drain devices like blinkies, key chain flashlights, or laser pointers the LR type is preferred. [There seems to be a contradiction here; are you sure it shouldn't be SR instead of LR?] Typically SR and LR will be the same price unless one buys in wholesale volume so there is no reason not to get the SR version. Often the free 'demo' batteries that come with a device are the LR version.

• IEC CR# series: Denotes lithium–manganese dioxide chemistry. Since LiMnO₂ cells produce 3 volts there are usually no alternate chemistries for a CR# coin battery. Conversely one LiMnO₂ cell can replace two alternate chemistry cells, in a 3, 6, 9, or 12 volt battery. CR cell numbers correlate with the cell dimensions, being the diameter in millimetres (except for the extra half millimetre in some cases) followed by the height in tenths of a millimetre.
• Button / Coin / Miniature: In many places these are used interchangeably.

See also

• 9 volt battery
• AA battery
• AAA battery
• AAAA battery
• LR44 battery (Good example of manufacturer naming versus IEC/ANSI naming)
• Button cell
• A battery (vacuum tubes)
• B battery (vacuum tubes)
• C battery (vacuum tubes)

References

• IEC 60086-1: Primary batteries - Part 1: General
• IEC 60086-2: Primary batteries - Part 2: Physical and electrical specifications
• IEC 60086-3: Primary batteries - Part 3: Watch batteries
• IEC 60086-4: Primary batteries - Part 4: Safety of lithium batteries
• ANSI C18.1, Part 1 Portable Primary Cells and Batteries With Aqueous Electrolyte - General and Specifications
• ANSI C18.1, Part 2 Portable Primary Cells and Batteries With Aqueous

Electrolyte ? Safety Standard

• ANSI C18.2, Part 1 Portable Rechargeable Cells and Batteries - General and Specifications
• ANSI C18.2, Part 2 Portable Rechargeable Cells and Batteries ? Safety

Standard

• ANSI C18.3, Part 1 Portable Lithium Primary Cells and Batteries - General and Specifications
• ANSI C18.3, Part 2 Portable Lithium Primary Cells and Batteries ? Safety Standard