The best MagSafe battery pack

The best MagSafe battery pack is a convenient way to ensure that your iPhone stays topped up on power if you're likely to be away from an electrical socket for any length of time.

Designed to attach to any MagSafe-compatible iPhone (basically any model from the iPhone 12 onwards), these (mostly) compact power packs clamp to the back of your phone using powerful magnets and charge wirelessly, so you don't have to worry about bringing any cables with you.

Because they're small, you need to be aware that most of these battery packs aren't really a substitute for one of the best power banks or best wireless chargers; very few of them will deliver a full charge, especially if you've plumped for the iPhone 14 Pro Max, but they're generally a cheap and convenient way of squeezing a few more hours of use out of your phone.

We've picked out some of the best MagSafe battery packs available now, including Apple's own official battery pack that might feel like the obvious choice, although we feel that you'll get much better value out of the other options on the market. Read on to discover why.

The best MagSafe battery packs 

Apple's own MagSafe Battery Pack is classic Apple, with all that entails. It's delightfully minimal, all-white with curved edges and looking like a slightly squashed AirPods case, and it just works: simply attach it to the back of your iPhone and it'll get to work. That's the good news; the bad news is that compared with the rest of the chargers listed here it does feel a bit limited.

Apple's a little coy about the battery capacity (our research suggests it's 1470mAh, less than the other packs in this roundup), but the bottom line is that it won't provide a full charge; the best you'll get is 70 per cent additional charge with an iPhone 12 or 13 mini. This is also the only pack that doesn't charge over USB-C; instead you have to use a Lightning cable, which isn't included. Admittedly it looks good and has some smart charging features you won't find elsewhere, but you could do a lot better (and pay a lot less too).

Coming in at less than half the price of Apple's own MagSafe battery pack, this option from Anker feels like a significantly better deal to us. Granted, it doesn't have the Apple's minimal looks, but beyond that it's pretty much all win. 

Its 5000mAh battery packs in over three times as much power, giving you up to 17 hours of charge, and while it's a bit clunkier to use, it does offer Anker's MultiProtect safety system, with foreign object detection, short circuit protection, temperature control and more. On top of that it actually comes with a USB-C cable, and there's even a choice of colours so you can match it with your iPhone.

Need all the power? With 10000mAh under the hood, this Belkin MagSafe battery pack can deliver all the juice you're likely to need for an impressively low price. The downside, of course, is its size; this isn't a svelte little battery pack, it's a chunky monster that's more of a full-size wireless power bank that you can attach to the back of your iPhone to make it significantly bulkier. 

If you can live with its size, however, it's the perfect choice for keeping your iPhone going if you're going to be away from an electrical socket for a while, and as an added bonus you can also use it to charge other devices at the same time.

After more than just a MagSafe battery pack? This option from Anker doubles as a kickstand, so you can use to prop your phone up – either in portrait or landscape mores – and charge it at the same time. On top of that, this is a neat and compact battery pack that won't bulk your iPhone out too much when you have it attached. It uses Anker's Mini Cell technology to pack a lot of charge – 5000mAh – into a small package without compromising charging efficiency. It comes complete with a USB-C cable, and there's a choice of five colours if you need to have a battery pack that complements your phone.

A slightly cheaper option if you want a MagSafe battery pack with a built-in kickstand, this ESR HaloLock power bank has the same battery capacity as the Anker above, and features a recessed stand that folds out so you can prop your phone up on your desk in portrait or landscape mode. Unlike the Anker there's not much colour choice – white or black – and it's a bit thicker and heavier than the Anker, but its magnet's a bit more powerful and it and supports pass-through charging so that you can charge the battery while it's busy keeping your phone topped up. It can deliver a full charge to an iPhone 13 mini, while a full-fat Pro Max model will get 0.6 charges out of it.

On a budget and don't need a lot of power? This bargain Belkin MagSafe battery pack ought to do the trick. With only 2500mAh of battery capacity it's not going to deliver a whole load of charge to your phone, but it's a cost-effective way to give your phone's life a quick boost if you're going to be out and about all day, and it supports pass-through charging too. Basically this one does much of what Apple's own battery pack does – in more of a clunky way, to be fair – at less than a third of the price, and comes its own cable, too.

If you've been checking out all these MagSafe battery packs and wondering why on earth there isn't one with a little ring on the back that you can use to carry your phone, well, here it is. The iWALK Magnetic Wireless Power Bank is a great alternative to a PopSocket that also charges your phone, and the finger ring on its back works as a kickstand, too. Its 6000mAh battery seems quite a lot for its low price, but some reviews claim that it's not the fastest charger and gets a bit warm while doing its thing.

Also read: the best MagSafe wallets