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Can you take a power bank on a plane? Yes, in your hand luggage, and never in the hold. That part has not changed. Almost everything around it has. Since a power bank caught fire on an Air Busan jet in January 2025, regulators and airlines across the UK, Europe, the US and beyond have rewritten the small print: how many you can carry, where they sit in the cabin, and whether you can use them at all once the doors close.
Get it wrong and the best case is an awkward conversation at security. The worst case is watching your power bank go in the bin in front of the queue, or being that passenger paged mid-flight because something is charging inside an overhead locker.
This guide gives you the current rules wherever you board: the 100Wh limit and how to check your own bank against it in ten seconds, what changed on 27 March 2026, and a side-by-side table of 18 airline policies across the UK, the EU, the US and the major long-haul carriers. Every rule is cited to the regulator or the airline that wrote it, the same way we source everything we publish.
Can You Take a Power Bank on a Plane? The Core Rules
Airlines measure power banks in watt-hours (Wh), not the milliamp-hours (mAh) printed in big type on the box. Three Wh bands decide everything, and they are the same in the UK, the EU, the US and everywhere else, because they all come from the same ICAO and IATA framework:
| Capacity | Status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Under 100Wh (up to about 27,000mAh) | Allowed | No approval needed. Carry in hand luggage. This covers nearly every consumer power bank sold today. |
| 100Wh to 160Wh (about 27,000 to 43,000mAh) | Approval needed | Airline permission required in advance, maximum two. Several carriers, including Ryanair, Wizz Air, British Airways, Southwest and Emirates, refuse power banks in this band outright. |
| Over 160Wh | Banned | Not permitted on passenger aircraft in any bag, full stop. This includes large camping power stations. |
Two universal rules sit on top of those bands. Power banks travel in the cabin only, never in checked luggage, because a lithium fire in the hold cannot be reached by the crew. And since 27 March 2026, the global baseline adds: maximum two power banks per passenger, kept out of overhead lockers, never recharged on board.
Sources: IATA lithium battery passenger guidance, UK CAA: rule changes effective 27 March 2026, US FAA PackSafe, EASA dangerous goods guidance.
Is Yours Under the Limit? Check in Ten Seconds
The conversion is one line of arithmetic. Take the mAh figure, divide by 1,000, multiply by the battery voltage. Nearly all power banks use lithium-ion cells at a nominal 3.7V, the figure airlines themselves use, so:
Wh = (mAh ÷ 1,000) × 3.7
Want to check your own power bank? The table below covers the sizes most people carry. For any other capacity, our calculator turns mAh into watt-hours in one step and tells you whether it flies.
Open the flight calculatorWorked examples for the sizes people actually buy:
| Printed capacity | Wh at 3.7V | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 5,000mAh | 18.5Wh | Allowed, no approval |
| 10,000mAh | 37Wh | Allowed, no approval |
| 20,000mAh | 74Wh | Allowed, no approval |
| 26,800mAh | 99.2Wh | Allowed, just under the line |
| 30,000mAh | 111Wh | Airline approval required |
| 40,000mAh | 148Wh | Airline approval required |
| 50,000mAh | 185Wh | Banned from passenger flights |
Formula per American Airlines (Wh = mAh × 3.7 ÷ 1,000) and the UK CAA packing guidance. Virgin Atlantic publishes the same equivalences: 100Wh is about 27,000mAh, 160Wh about 43,000mAh.
What Changed in 2025 and 2026
On 28 January 2025 an Air Busan A321 was destroyed by a fire that started in an overhead locker before departure; South Korean forensic investigators traced the probable cause to a short-circuited power bank. Around 50 lithium battery incidents were logged on US flights in 2025 alone, per the FAA. The industry response arrived in waves, and it is why advice written before 2025 is now wrong:
South Korea bans power banks from overhead bins on all Korean carriers and requires them kept within arm’s reach. Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways ban in-flight power bank use weeks later (Singapore Airlines advisory, CNN explainer).
Southwest becomes the first US carrier to require power banks to stay fully visible while in use, not inside a bag (CNN). From 20 April 2026 it goes further, capping each passenger at a single bank under 100Wh (Southwest policy).
Emirates limits passengers to a single power bank under 100Wh and bans both charging it and charging from it on board (Emirates announcement).
The Lufthansa Group (Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, Eurowings, Brussels Airlines and more) bans using or charging power banks on board across the whole group (Eurowings policy page).
The big one: an ICAO addendum, mirrored by the UK CAA, sets the new global baseline. Maximum two power banks per passenger, carried where you can reach them rather than in overhead lockers, never recharged on board, and not recommended for charging devices in flight either (UK CAA).
Individual airlines keep layering their own rules on top of that baseline, which is exactly why the next table exists.
Airline Power Bank Policies Compared (UK, EU, US and Worldwide)
The 100Wh basics are universal. What differs by airline is the count you can carry, whether the 100 to 160Wh approval route exists at all, and what you may do with the bank once airborne. Checked June 2026 against each carrier’s published policy:
| Airline | Under 100Wh | 100 to 160Wh | Use in flight | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | ||||
| British Airways | Allowed, max 2 banks, rating must be displayed | No approval route for power banks | Never recharge the bank from seat power | Seat pocket or under the seat |
| easyJet | Allowed, max 2 banks | Accepted up to 160Wh | No use on board at all, no charging other devices | Carry-on only, kept where you can monitor it |
| Ryanair | Allowed, max 2 banks | Not permitted, no approval route | Device charging at cruise only; never recharge the bank | On you or under the seat, not overhead |
| Jet2 | Allowed, max 2 banks, label must be readable | Accepted up to 160Wh, automatic approval | Never charge the bank on board; should not be used in flight | Carry-on only, protected against short circuit |
| Virgin Atlantic | Allowed, max 5 spares including banks | Permission required, max 2 | No use on board at all, no plugging in | Accessible, not in overhead lockers |
| European Union | ||||
| Lufthansa Group | Allowed, max 2 banks | Prior approval required | No use or charging on board (from 15 Jan 2026) | Seat pocket, on you, or under the seat |
| Air France | Allowed, up to 20 spare batteries | Transport agreement required, max 2 | No use or recharging on board | Not in overhead bins, kept under supervision |
| KLM | Allowed, max 2 banks, capacity must be listed | Permission required | No using or charging on board | With you, not in the overhead bin |
| Wizz Air | Allowed, max ONE power bank | Not permitted for power banks | No use during any phase of flight | Under the seat or seat pocket, monitored |
| TUI Airways * | Allowed | Operator approval, max 2 | ICAO baseline applies * | Carry-on, terminals protected |
| United States | ||||
| American Airlines | Allowed, max 2 banks | Up to 2 spares with approval | Must stay visible while in use; never recharge from seat power | Under the seat or seat pocket, not overhead |
| Delta | Allowed, up to 20 spare batteries | Approval required, max 2 | No recharging the bank; no device charging during taxi, take-off, landing | Under the seat or seat pocket advised |
| United | Allowed, cabin bags only | Per FAA approval rules, max 2 | Allowed, but the bank must stay within reach while in use | On you or in a personal item, not in overhead bins |
| Southwest | Allowed, max ONE power bank (from 20 Apr 2026) | Not permitted for power banks | Must be fully visible while in use; no in-seat charging | Personal item under the seat, not overhead |
| JetBlue | Allowed, carry-on only | Per FAA approval rules, max 2 | No bank-specific ban published; FAA baseline applies | Spares stay with you, including at gate-check |
| Worldwide long-haul | ||||
| Emirates | Allowed, max ONE bank, rating must be displayed | Not permitted | No use or charging on board (from 1 Oct 2025) | Seat pocket or under the seat, never checked |
| Singapore Airlines | Allowed | Airline approval required | No charging banks via onboard USB, no using banks to charge devices (from 1 Apr 2025) | Carry-on, kept accessible |
| Thai Airways * | Allowed * | Approval required * | In-flight use banned (from 15 Mar 2025) * | Carry-on, kept accessible * |
* The Thai Airways row is confirmed via named secondary reporting (CNN, the Qatar CAA news summary); verify on the airline’s own page before relying on it. Every other row is taken directly from the linked airline or regulator page, checked June 2026.
Two more worth knowing if your route crosses Asia: all Korean carriers must keep power banks within arm’s reach under a South Korean government rule from March 2025, and Cathay Pacific also restricts in-flight use. The rules of each operating carrier apply leg by leg, so check every airline on your itinerary, not just the first one.
How to Pack a Power Bank for a Flight
From Darleene
Her take
“When Alan kept on about watt-hours and making sure the rating was printed on my power bank, I’d tuned out. It’d been round the world with me and never caused a fuss.
Then security took it off me. The label had worn off the bottom, they couldn’t read the rating, and that was that. Gone, in front of everyone.
The one I travel with now has the number printed clear and large, it stays in my hand luggage, and I check I can actually read it before every trip. Turns out Alan had a point.”
Edge Cases: Medical Devices, Tools, Trains and Smart Luggage
Medical devices and mobility aids
Battery-powered wheelchairs and mobility aids follow a separate, more generous framework, but the airline must approve them in advance. Under the CAA rules, a lithium-ion battery that has to be removed from the aid can be up to 300Wh and travels in the cabin, with spares limited to one 300Wh or two 160Wh batteries. When the battery stays installed in the mobility aid there is no Wh cap. Portable medical devices such as CPAP machines are generally fine in the cabin; tell the airline when you book.
Power tool batteries
Same watt-hour bands, same logic: the tool can go in checked luggage, but its lithium-ion batteries must come out and travel in your hand luggage, terminals protected. IATA names power tools explicitly in the over-100Wh approval rule, and the FAA PackSafe entry treats tool packs like any other spare battery. Most trade batteries of 5Ah at 18V are 90Wh and pass; the big 12Ah packs do not.
Trains, ferries and coaches
Far simpler. Eurostar does not restrict power banks (its battery bans target e-bike and e-scooter batteries), UK National Rail conditions are silent on them, and Amtrak has no power bank rule either. Ferries and coaches across the UK, EU and US likewise have no general restriction. If your trip mixes a flight with a train leg, it is only the flight that constrains what you buy.
Smart luggage
A suitcase with a built-in battery is treated as a power bank wearing a disguise. The battery must be removable; if the case goes in the hold, the battery comes out and travels in the cabin with you. Airlines including British Airways and Ryanair refuse bags with non-removable batteries outright, and Ryanair caps non-removable batteries in the cabin at a tiny 2.7Wh.
How to Choose a Flight-Friendly Power Bank
The airline rules quietly define the perfect travel power bank. Stay under 100Wh, which in practice means 27,000mAh or less, and every rule in this guide reduces to “hand luggage, within reach, label visible”. Manufacturers know it: the popular large sizes cluster at 20,000 to 27,000mAh precisely because that is the biggest battery that clears security without paperwork in the UK, the EU and the US alike.
Beyond the limit, three things matter. A clearly printed Wh rating on the casing, because the label is the rule. Enough output wattage for what you carry, since a laptop needs 60W or more while a phone is happy with 20W. And a size you will actually bring: a 10,000mAh bank at 37Wh refills most phones twice and disappears into a jacket pocket. Our best travel power banks guide ranks the current field, and the laptop power bank guide covers the high-wattage end. You can also check any bank against the limit in seconds with our power bank flight calculator.
Three Flight-Safe Picks We Have Reviewed
Every power bank we have reviewed clears the 100Wh limit with no approval needed. These three earn their carry-on slot, with the watt-hour maths shown so you can see exactly why they pass:
Laptop-class 140W output and a clear digital display, with the capacity rating printed where security can read it. One battery for the whole travel day.
Comfortably inside the limit with a built-in cable, so there is one less thing to dig out of the tray at security. 65W to a single device covers most ultrabooks.
As much capacity as you can carry without paperwork, plus two built-in USB-C cables. The travel-day choice when a laptop, phone and earbuds all need feeding.
Recycling an Old Power Bank, Wherever You Are
A worn label, a swollen cell, or a bank that no longer holds charge means retirement, and lithium batteries never go in household bins: crushed cells start fires in collection trucks and sorting plants. Every region has a free route:
Elsewhere in the world, look for the crossed-out wheelie bin symbol on the casing and ask any large electronics retailer: battery take-back schemes now operate in most countries, and the shop that sells power banks usually takes the old ones.
The Short Version
So, can you take a power bank on a plane? Yes: in your hand luggage, under 100Wh, no more than two, kept within reach, label readable, and never on charge once you are airborne. Follow those six points and the new rules cost you nothing but a glance at the casing before you pack.
If your current bank fails the label test or the maths, start with our best power banks for travel guide: every pick in it clears the limit by design. For iPhone wireless charging specifically, see our best MagSafe power banks 2026 guide, all picks are airline-safe.
Can You Take a Power Bank on a Plane? FAQs
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We write rules guides the boring way: regulator documents read line by line, every airline policy pulled from the airline’s own page, and a date on every claim so you can see what was checked when. When a rule could not be verified at the source, we say so instead of guessing. Read our full methodology.
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