Best Portable Car Jump Starter with Air Compressor

Get the WOLFBOX MegaVolt16 Air if you drive a pickup, an SUV or a diesel. Get the NOCO Boost Air if you drive a car with a gas engine. Both put a jump starter and a compressor in one box. If you'd rather keep one heavy unit in a garage or truck bed, get the DeWalt 1600A jump starter with compressor. Tires 35 inches or taller need a separate compressor, covered below.

Best Portable Car Battery Jump Starter

The best portable car battery jump starter is the one rated for your engine, and the best portable car jump starter with air compressor adds a pump that suits your tires. Find your vehicle below.

• You drive a pickup or SUV with a V8 or a diesel engine. This pack is rated 3,000 A for 8 L gas and 6 L diesel engines, and in GearLab's F-150 run it added 5 PSI to 275/70R18 tires in about 3 minutes. With a 400 lm flashlight and a USB-C power bank on top of the jump starter and the 160 PSI compressor, we'd call it the best 4 in-1 jump starter with air compressor for a truck. Get the WOLFBOX MegaVolt16 Air.
• You drive a car or crossover with a gas engine and want the pump to stop on its own. A pressure sensor pauses inflation at the set pressure and shuts the pump off, and the pack is rated for gas engines up to 8.0 L. For a car, we'd pick it as the best portable jump starter with air compressor. Get the NOCO Boost Air.
• You keep your gear in a garage or truck bed, and weight doesn't bother you. This pack is rated 1,600 peak amps for engines up to a V8, has a 120 PSI digital compressor with auto-stop, and Bob Vila named it best overall. It's a 17.5 lb sealed lead-acid unit, so if you want less to carry, get the WOLFBOX instead. Otherwise, get the DeWalt 1600A jump starter with compressor.
• Your tires are 35 inches or taller. A separate compressor rated for tires up to 37 inch does the air, and any pack above does the starting. If you only need air and no jump, see the best portable air compressor. Buy the Viair 400P-A.
• Your engine is a gas engine bigger than 8 L or a diesel bigger than 6 L. GearLab's top pick for big engines is rated 4,250 A. Pair it with the Viair above for air. Get the NOCO Boost X.

Engine size and the best heavy duty jump starter

The best heavy duty jump starter for a V8 or a diesel is rated for your engine first and for amps second.

Engine-size ratings are each maker's own, and brands do not share one scale. If you're between two sizes, take the bigger one.

Skip the GOOLOO GP2000 for a big engine. GearLab reports an 8 L gasoline rating for it but found it lacked the power for larger engines, and it has no compressor. Skip the Stanley J5C09 too: GearLab scored it the lowest of 13 and found it delivered less current under load than rivals.

Peak amps and CCA on the box

Peak amps are a burst of a few seconds, and GearLab notes there is no industry standard for peak amps. Compare packs on engine rating first, then take the higher amps if two tie.

CR's buying guidance calls 400 to 500 CCA enough for passenger cars, SUVs and pickups. CCA is a battery test, defined under SAE J537 at -18°C for 30 seconds, and Power-Sonic says no lithium CCA standard exists. Treat a pack's CCA figure as the maker's own number. CR also notes CCA is often missing from jump starter specs, so don't hold out for it.

Cold weather and storage

Keep the pack out of a hot car and recharge it on a schedule. Keep lithium-ion batteries out of hot vehicles, and recharge about every 3 months whether the pack is lead-acid or lithium.

Tire pressure and connection steps

Inflate to the cold pressure on the tire and loading information label on the driver's doorjamb. Never go past the tire's own maximum.

Connect the pack as its maker and your vehicle maker instruct, because the steps differ by vehicle. Kia's hybrids use a jump point in the engine-compartment fuse panel, for example.