20700 vs 21700 Battery: Comprehensive Comparison Guide

As we all know, besides the 21700 battery, there are some new size batteries that are the same as the 21700 battery. The 20700 battery have same voltage, can charge with the same charger also, and they are all cylindrical. But there are slightly difference between 20700 vs 21700 Battery, the 21700 is slightly larger in volume than the 21700 and has a larger capacity.

What is 21700 battery?

A “21700 battery” is short-hand for a rechargeable, lithium ion battery that is 21 mm in diameter and 70 mm in length.

This size cell first became popular both in electric cars like Tesla and electric scooters.

For now, It is also often used in vaping and flashlights.

What is 20700 battery?

A “20700 battery” is short-hand for a rechargeable, lithium ion battery that is 20 mm in diameter and 70 mm in length also.

The 20700 battery is similar to 21700 battery as can be seen. and the 20700 batteries are always used in various sorts of electronic devices and vehicles like skateboards battery, electric scooters battery and hoverboard battery.

It is often used in vaping and flashlights also.

Comparison between 20700 vs 21700 Battery

Voltage

Because the same raw materials are used, they all belong to ternary lithium batteries. So the two voltages are same basically, both 3.6/3.7V. This also means that they can be charged using the same charger, just because the 21700 battery is larger than the 20700 battery, it will take longer.

Capacity

The capacity of 20700 battery are 4250mAh typically, but the capacity of 21700 battery are 4800mAh and 5000mAh. So the 21700 battery can last longer.

Charge/discharge rate

Both 21700 batteries and 20700batteries have discharge at 3C (Battery C Rating Explanation And Calculation), so their discharge rates are basically the same, and there is not much difference.

Dimension

as I have shown, the size/diameter of 20700 is 20mm and the length is 70mm. while the size of 21700 is slightly bigger at 21mm and its length is the same as 70mm. So they are same nearly.

Weight

The cell weight of the 21700 battery is 72g, while the cell weight of the 20700 is 63g. Obviously, the 21700 is heavier. Mainly because the 21700 is larger, and more raw materials are put when we made it.

Price

According to common sense, because the 21700 is larger and has a larger capacity, the price should be more expensive. However, the actual result is the opposite, the 20700 battery is more expensive than the 21700 battery.

As we all know, Tesla uses 21700 batteries, which has also caused a large number of manufacturers to start producing 21700 batteries. But on the contrary, 20700 batteries are not so widely used, and the number of production is not so many, which also causes rare things to be expensive. Now the price on the market is that the 20700 battery is more expensive than the 21700.

Performance

The performance of the 20700 vs 21700 Battery is basically the same, there is not much difference. If I had to make a comparison, it would be that the 21700 battery lasts longer than 20700 battery. What we also need to know is that both batteries have a 20% higher energy density than other contemporary batteries.

Application

The 21700 is more mature and widely used than the 20700 battery, but they are also used in a variety of devices, and the two are actually interchangeable.

The 21700 is relatively versatile, such as:

Flashlight
Electric bicycle
E-cigarette
Electrical tools
Electric wheelchair
Golf cart lithium battery
Electric car

The 20700 has relatively few applications, such as:

Scooter
Skateboard
Cordless Power Tools
E-cigarette

Are 21700 batteries and 20700 batteries interchangeable?

Of course that both are interchangeable if size allows. as I have said, their voltage, discharge rate, etc. are all the same.

Are 21700 batteries better than 20700 batteries?

Due to the promotion of the market, many companies on the market produce 21700 batteries, which also promotes the industrialization and batchization of batteries to become more mature. There are many manufacturers producing 21700 batteries, which makes the battery supply oversupply. Therefore, the 21700 has a higher cost performance than the 20700.

So if you happen to be designing a product, it is best to use a 21700 battery, which is more mature.

Where I can find the best 21700 batteries?

ELB has rich experience in battery production, and has successfully developed 4800mAh 3C 21700 batteries and 5000mAh 2C 5000mAh. Welcome to connect with ELB technical team to get the details about the prices and technical files.

Where I can find the best 20700 batteries?

ELB also successfully developed 4250mAh 3C 20700 batteries. Welcome to connect with ELB technical team to get the details about the prices and technical files.