About & Methodology
PowerMatchLab is an independent decision-support site. We help you work out what power station you need and compare the options — we do not sell products and we do not physically test them.
What PowerMatchLab is
PowerMatchLab compares portable power stations for the United States market and helps visitors size their needs. It is reader-supported: when the Amazon Associates programme is active, qualifying purchases made through our links may earn a commission at no cost to you. We do not accept payment for placement, ratings or reviews.
Three kinds of statement
Every number on the site is one of these, and we label which:
- Manufacturer claim — a specification published by the maker. Tied to an official source and a “last verified” date on each product page. We have not independently measured it.
- PowerMatchLab calculation — a figure we compute from your inputs or from published specs using the documented assumptions below (for example the Power Calculator result and runtime estimates).
- Editorial assessment — our judgement, such as the PowerMatch Score or the pros and cons framing. Explainable, but a judgement.
When a value is unknown we keep it empty internally and show “Not verified” where the interface needs something visible. We never substitute 0, false or “N/A” for a genuine unknown.
Power Calculator
The calculator is deterministic. For each device:
continuous watts = running watts × quantitydaily energy (Wh) = continuous watts × hours per day
Then across all devices:
total energy demand = sum of daily energy × days of autonomyrequired usable capacity = total energy demand ÷ usable efficiencyrecommended minimum capacity = required usable capacity × (1 + reserve)required continuous output = sum of continuous watts (assumes simultaneous use)required surge = total running watts + the single largest startup surge above its own running watts
The example appliances are editable starting points, not universal wattages. Invalid entries (negative or non-numeric) are clamped and rows with zero power or quantity are ignored in the totals.
Default assumptions (all adjustable in the calculator)
| Assumption | Default | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Usable efficiency | 85% | Assumed usable share of nameplate capacity after inverter and conversion losses. |
| Reserve headroom | 20% | Extra capacity kept in reserve above the calculated requirement. |
| Fallback surge multiplier | 2× | Fallback startup-surge multiple applied only when you do not enter a real surge value. |
Recommendation engine
After the calculation, every catalog product is classified against your requirement:
- Best Match — meets capacity with reserve, clears the continuous load with margin, covers the estimated surge, satisfies your stated requirements, and scores reasonably.
- Good Match — meets the required capacity and output with some margin.
- Possible Match — meets the bare minimum, or has caveats such as an unverified surge rating.
- Not Suitable — fails your required continuous output or capacity, or a hard requirement (240V, TT-30). Shown with the reason, not hidden.
PowerMatch Score
The score is an editorial assessment, normalised against the other products currently in the catalog — it answers “how does this compare with the others we list”, not “how good is this in absolute terms”. Each dimension is scored only when the underlying data exists for that product. If fewer than 3 dimensions can be scored, no overall number is published.
| Dimension | Basis |
|---|---|
| Capacity | Nameplate usable energy (Wh) versus the rest of the catalog. |
| Output Performance | Rated continuous watts, with a bonus for verified surge headroom. |
| Portability | Energy carried per kilogram (Wh/kg); lighter-per-Wh scores higher. |
| Charging Speed | Maximum AC (wall) charging input in watts. |
| Expandability | Whether extra battery capacity can be added, and how much. |
Noise Level and Value for Money are deliberately not scored: the catalog carries no noise measurements and no verified prices, so scoring them would mean inventing data. Radar charts are only drawn when every plotted series has at least three real dimensions.
Runtime estimates
Product pages show an estimated runtime table using:
estimated runtime (h) = capacity_wh × 0.85 ÷ device watts
This is a calculation with an assumed 85% usable efficiency, not a measurement. Real runtime depends on the device, its duty cycle, temperature and the unit’s age. We label these “estimated”, never “guaranteed”.
Amazon links
Each product stores a direct Amazon product URL. A future Amazon Associates URL field is currently empty. Until it is populated, “Check Price on Amazon” uses the verified direct product URL. We never fabricate a tracking ID or an affiliate link. See the Affiliate Disclosure.
Corrections
If a specification here is wrong or out of date, that is a bug. The canonical dataset is products.json; corrections there flow through the whole site.