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OF 2024Many motorcyclists may feel daunted by this type of electrical troubleshooting. Lucky for you, RevZilla reader, we’ve got a comprehensive breakdown on the best types, smartest applications, possible pitfalls and even quick hacks to get you up and running in a jam. It’s just part of our mission to serve the riding community! All that being said, the best motorcycle battery — be it lithium, lead-acid, AGM or otherwise — is your ticket to ride so shop wisely with the products on this page.
Best Lead-Acid Motorcycle Battery
Motorcycles In Motion? It’s “Conventional” Chemistry 101
Our pick for the best lead-acid motorcycle battery is Duraboost’s conventional battery. This one is an OEM-direct replacement and comes at a great price. You’ll need to purchase battery acid on your own, flood the case and then charge it at home before firing things up. Also, lead, if you didn’t know, is quite heavy so this one isn’t exactly the racer’s edge.
The best bang for your buck is Fire Power’s Conventional Battery, which still needs to be charged upon arrival but comes with pre-measured acid packs. Finally, our staff pick for honorable mention is the Yuasa Yumicron Conventional Battery. It has been designed to reduce sulfate build-up, plays nice with heavily-modded bikes and delivers more cranking power than some similar products. Once again, you’ll be adding your own acid and charging at home.
Best AGM Motorcycle Battery
Seal The Deal With These Proven Power Sources
Our pick for the best AGM battery is Yuasa’s offering. This is a US-made product that packs plenty of power, will survive storage better than most and comes in plenty of sizes to ensure fitment in your battery tray. On the downside, the warranty period is six months and some owners have found a trickle charger is crucial to keeping it topped off at a usable level. The best value in this category is the Fire Power Maintenance Free AGM Battery, lauded for its impact-resistant case, while our honorable mention is the dependable yet budget-friendly Duraboost AGM battery.
Best Lithium Motorcycle Battery
The Heir Apparent Of Modern Motorcycle Power
Our pick for overall best lithium motorcycle battery is Shorai’s LFX line. Boasting a two-year warranty, this package delivers all the perks mentioned above while still being an easy install and requiring minimal maintenance. The drawbacks are the price, which can be quite prohibitive, and many reviews stating cold weather performance leaves much to be desired.
If you’re looking to save — because the best lithium-ion battery for your motorcycle can cost quite a bit — we’ve nominated the Duraboost Lithium Ion Battery as our best value that still offers innovative features. The runner-up in our lithium shootout is the Antigravity Heavy Duty ReStart Lithium Ion Battery, which touts twice the cranking amps of a conventional battery.
Best Factory-Activated Motorcycle Battery
It’s Plug-And-Play With These Power Sources
Our pick in this department is the Yuasa Factory Activated AGM High Performance Battery. It’s spill-proof design and flush-mount terminals make this an easy install and worry-free experience. On the downside, the warranty isn’t the longest and some users have had a problem with lifespan.
If you’re looking for the best motorcycle battery for a Harley, you’ve likely found it in our honorable mention: the Twin Power High Performance Factory Activated AGM Battery. US-made, vibration-resistant, fully sealed and ready to go, the only faults we found (if you can call it that) is you’ll need a compatible Harley model to drop it into.
Things to Consider
What type of motorcycle battery lasts the longest?
Looking for the longest-lasting source of firepower? We can’t blame ya. The first caveat before we answer the question: You need to take care of these products. Trickle charge ‘em during the off-season, “warm up” lithium ones with a power draw before cranking and don’t repeatedly run them down to near-death. Now back to your first question: Yuasa says you can expect the average lead-acid battery to “sit on a shelf for about three years and should be expected to perform adequately for about another three years after they’re put into use.” Real reviews from RevZilla customers, which you’ll find highlighted on each product listing, can also clue you in on longevity.
The best motorcycle battery tender? Well that depends…
When running, your battery is both the source and receiver of direct current (DC). The alternating current (AC) pumped out by the bike’s charging system, soon after rectified and regulated, helps keep the flow going. When your ride won’t start and a weak battery is suspected, you need an alternative to the electricity-generating devices behind the engine case. This, of course, is done with battery chargers. There are some that require your steady attention and monitoring of voltage levels to know when it’s done (more on that below). Others “float” and tend to the voltage levels while intermittently turning on and off; yet another automated type will send different levels of power to promote overall battery health. The latter helps address sulfates that accumulate over time and eventually draw down overall voltage.
How to feel like a genius and use a multimeter on your motorcycle
There are tell-tale signs of a weak battery: dim headlights and sluggish cranking chief among them. Electrical gremlins will also take time to track down and today’s modern bikes require precise amounts of electricity to power internal computing. Ditch the guesswork and talk to the terminals — all you need is a digital multimeter! Touch the positive and negative leads to corresponding connections on the battery and see what you get. Anything around 12.6 with the key off is good, but reliability drops quickly the closer you get to 12.0 and below. You should be above 13 volts while running and especially when the throttle is applied, which speeds up engine revolutions and therefore the charging system.
Dead batteries hate this one weird trick!
A flat battery doesn’t have enough juice to get those pistons pumping. Be your own starter motor and override that slightly undercharged battery with a bump! We’ve got all the instructions here so go find a hill, a friend, a Good Samaritan or some two-out-of-three-ain’t-bad combination to see if your grumpy bike will fire up with a pop start.
Frequently Asked Questions
Electricity, like water, wants to flow. Each and every product here is guaranteed to get your bike cranking so buying the “best motorcycle battery” is a bit more nuanced. Looking for a featherlight product that’ll flood the starter with voltage? Go for the best lithium motorcycle battery. Need to power up a farm hack and ride it around the yard? In our humble opinion, a bare-bones AGM fits the bill. For the rest of us riding down the middle, where performance, longevity and reliability meet, it’s hard to go wrong with any of our best-rated motorcycle battery nominations.
Batteries aren’t inherently dangerous, but there’s still the off chance of things going wrong due to malfunctions or accidents. An absorbed glass mat (AGM) battery is shipped fully prepped from the factory. You needn’t worry about sulfuric acid spilling out of a sealed/absorbed type when you buy the best gel motorcycle battery. On that note, spills are a non-starter when it comes to lithium batteries, which can be mounted in every conceivable position.
We’ve previously answered this question, to a degree, over on Common Tread. To wit, “small batteries, like the one in your motorcycle, do not take kindly to being discharged … Sometimes batteries can be brought back from the dead, but even when salvageable, permanent and irreparable damage has been done by both the discharge and subsequent rapid charging you’re probably going to attempt.” The previous estimate from Yuasa — three years of shelf life plus three more years of regular use — is a good frame of reference.
A prolonged period of inactivity is not good for any bike battery. Voltage drops over time and can eventually reach a point where re-charging at any rate will not help it recover. Don’t hold your breath for anything well under 12 volts; 12.6 is the magic number and readings slightly below should be OK. We say all this to also say yes, take the battery out of the bike if you won’t be riding for weeks or months. Ensuring that it’s hooked to a trickle charger for that period will have it ready for use when it’s time to go riding again.
RevZilla prides itself in providing riders with some of the most reliable and top-performing products out there. You’ll find some of our favorite brands here, including Antigravity Batteries, Duraboost, BikeMaster, Fire Power, Shorai, Twin Power USA, Yuasa Battery and more.
Final Thoughts
It’s the moment of truth… are you going riding today or playing shade tree mechanic? Turn the key, crank the motor, the dash lights glow and off you go. Run that same power source unchecked for too long and we promise it’ll give up when you need it most. However, with the advice, insight and 2024's best motorcycle batteries available on this page, you can confidently put power to the ground every time. For the rest of RevZilla's best, check out our hub of informative articles.
