Softgun ·Apr 17, 2025

Guide - Battery and charger for AIRSOFT

Which battery fits electric airsoft rifles? Or which charger fits AIRSOFT? It's not always easy to know which battery or charger you need for AIRSOFT. That's why we've created a little guide on what the difference between Li-Ion, Li-Po, Li-Fe, and Ni-Mh is!

Battery Guide

To power an electric rifle you need a suitable battery. There are several types of batteries for airsoft, and they come in all sorts of configurations. Primarily, there are three types of batteries:

Li-Po (Lithium-polymer battery)
Li-Ion (Lithium-Ion battery)
Ni-Mh (Nickel-metal hydride battery)

Li-Po has been the most popular battery type in recent years, but Li-Ion is the one we see taking the top spot now! And not without reason! Li-Ion is the most efficient battery type for airsoft for 4 reasons:

Li-Ion has an even higher energy level than Li-Po.This means you'll get more shots per charge compared to a Li-Po battery of the same size. "More bang for your buck"! Some of the Li-Ion batteries we have feature a so-called SUPER capacity of a whole 6000mAh. This could give you around 3500-5000 shots out of one charge!
Li-Ion is safer and less sensitive than Li-Po, which in turn is more sensitive than NiMh.
Li-Ion has a so-called "no memory" function which means you can safely charge the battery all the way down (to 0%) without damaging the battery. Unlike Li-On, Li-Fe, and Ni-Mh which should never be fully discharged as it damages the battery.
Holds the battery capacity extremely long! Say you charge it fully, the battery capacity will be the same several months later. Unlike other batteries that need to be charged every time before you use them.

Li-Ion has therefore become very popular in the airsoft community! If you're a beginner in airsoft, it might be a good idea to start with one of the other types of batteries since they are currently cheaper than Li-Ion.

No matter what you choose, it's important that you read the instructions that come with the battery and/or charger on how to charge, store, and use the battery.

When you're choosing your new battery, there are two things that are especially important to consider, which are power and size.

Choosing the power of the battery

7.4v and 11.1v batteries are the most common powers and these are used in 95% of all electric AIRSOFT's. As a general guideline, one can easily determine the battery power needed based on the muzzle velocity.

7.4v and 9.9v batteries:

Best suited for airsoft between 285 - 400 fps.This applies to most electric rifles straight out of the box, which are not pre-upgraded.

11.1v battery:

Best suited for airsoft over 400 fps +. High voltage batteries (11.1v and up) will be able to power powerful rifles with high muzzle velocity over 400 fps and provide a faster rate of fire.

Milliampere (mAh)

Behind the voltage, it always states how many milliamperes the battery should have. Simply put, this means how many shots you will get out of the battery (rough estimate) before you need to recharge. If it says f.eks. 11.1.v 2200mAh - You can expect to shoot approximately 2200 bb shots before needing to recharge the battery.

Choosing the battery size

The size of the battery should be based on what fits in your replica. F.eks. this 7.4v battery will fit all M4/M15 variants with Cranestock and Mini-Tamiya plug.Otherwise, we recommend that you look under related products on the rifle you have bought/are going to buy to see which battery fits.

Recommended batteries

Chargers

Among chargers, we recommend this multi-charger that fits all battery types except Li-Ion. For Li-Ion battery types, we recommend that you ONLY use a dedicated charger meant for Li-Ion batteries, like this one.

Recommended chargers

Tips for extra safety:

Buy a charging bag! This is a brilliant product that makes the charging process / storage of the battery a bit safer. See the product here!

Note. It's easy to charge incorrectly, it can damage the battery and in the worst case lead to fire/explosion hazard.Always read the instruction manual carefully, both for the battery and charger before using them. And never leave a battery charging unattended!

For more inspiration also read:

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