Best portable EV chargers, for rentals and travel

Which socket will you actually find? That settles this more than the number on the box.

So on a holiday-flat Schuko, the socket limits all three chargers below alike. Ingenieur.de also reports the Bundesnetzagentur, Germany's network regulator, advises against regular charging on household sockets, because older wiring can heat up under hours of load. Treat that socket as a stopgap.

If you rent your home, these work without drilling, as long as there's a suitable socket. One catch applies in Germany: ADAC, as reported by Elektroauto-News, says portable boxes must also be notified to the grid operator up to 11 kW, and approved above it, sometimes through an electrician. If a red socket has to be added, that's an electrician's job, and my wallbox picks may suit you better.

Scores below come from ADAC's test of seven portable chargers, published in July 2024. They aren't mine. Prices are German shop prices, checked 2 November 2026, and they differ elsewhere.

NRGkick Pure: my pick

€559 at The Mobility House, for 22 kW and a 5 m fixed cable at IP67.

But that buys no plug. You need a separate attachment, priced by socket type on the same page. Budget for at least Schuko and one CEE. NRGkick lists attachments from Schuko to 32 A CEE and Type 2. The shop says the box reads each attachment's limit by itself and watches the temperature at every phase pin.

ADAC gave a DiniTech NRGkick 1.8, tied for second. Autozeitung lists that unit as the 5 m with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, which matches this one's spec, but no report names the Pure. It's 3.76 kg, so it isn't one for a light bag. Solar-led charging is a paid upgrade in the app.

Juice Booster 3 air: lightest to carry

2.3 kg with cable and plug, sealed to IP67. Two safety adapters come in the set: CEE16 and Schuko. That's the point of it, since you can charge the day it arrives.

The 3 air won ADAC's 2024 test at 1.6, as the EU Traveller Set: €1,449 at the time with four adapters and a bag, says Autozeitung, and the dearest of the seven. This Basic Set has two adapters and costs €1,189, against €559 for the NRGkick before attachments. Power stops at 11 kW. For a car capped at 11 kW on AC, that loses you nothing. The NRGkick wins if you've got a car that takes more and a red 32 A socket to feed it.

I'd pay this only if you'll really be carrying it around.

go-e Gemini flex 2.0: for two fixed places

€829 at go-e's shop, shipping extra, with a 6 to 7 week lead time when I checked. It has a 32 A red CEE plug on a 30 cm lead and a Type 2 socket, so you'd also buy a cable, such as the Harting at €119, and adapters if you need other sockets.

Think of it as a wallbox you can move: home and a holiday house, both with red sockets. A built-in SIM keeps the app working with no Wi-Fi. It weighs 1.82 kg before you add a charging cable. go-e's shop says that because of legal provisions it mustn't be used in Norway, without naming them, and I couldn't find an independent test.

Not sure how many phases you'll find at the other end? Single-phase or three-phase explains what your car does with each. The three are listed under portable chargers.