Wireless charging is cool. There's no getting around it. Setting your phone, tablet, or headphones down and just having them suddenly start charging is wild. Many of the best smartphones support wireless charging, so there's good reason for you to have one or two hanging around your work or home.
In many cases, the technology behind a wireless charger will be fairly simple. That means there's no shortage of affordable wireless chargers to choose from. But, there are plenty of differences to be aware of. Charging speeds can vary considerably, and rarely do wireless charges offer the rapid charging speeds of their wired counterparts. Many wireless charging pads even require you to have a wall charger in order to plug in the pad, and the wireless charging speeds can then vary depending on the output of your wall charger.
We'll guide you through our top picks and keep you informed about the key specs, so you can be sure of how well it can perform with your devices.
TL;DR – These are the Best Wireless Chargers:
- Anker 313 Wireless Charger
- Samsung 15W Wireless Charger
- Belkin BoostCharge
- Anker Magnetic Wireless Charger 633 MagGo
- iOttie Easy One Touch Wireless 2
- Nomad Base Station
- Apple MagSafe Charger
Anker 313 Wireless Charger
Best Wireless Charger
There’s nothing wrong with simple when it comes to a wireless charger. You just want to plop your device on it and be done with it. The Qi wireless charging standard makes that easy by ensuring a decent amount of compatibility between devices, and the Anker 313 Wireless Charger provides a handy way to take advantage of that standard at a fantastic price. For $15, you get the charging pad and USB cord, so once it’s plugged in using the right adapter, you just place your compatible phone or wireless earbuds in the center ditching your device's cords forever.
The Anker 313 Wireless Charger provides fast charging speeds up to 10W on compatible devices. Most Samsung phones with wireless charging let you hit those 10W speeds, and iPhones should support 7.5W. For everything else, you should see 5W. You don’t need to worry about removing your phone's case either, as the pad charges through cases up to 5 mm thick. Anker also includes indicator lights on this wireless charger to inform you everything is working properly and when a device is charging.
Samsung 15W Wireless Charger
Fastest Wireless Charger
Wireless charging often lags behind its wired counterparts where speed is concerned, but the Samsung 15W Wireless Charger changes that. By letting you juice up your device at 15W, it will be back to full at a rate that beats many wired charging bricks. If you’re worried about that boost of speed causing an issue with overheating, Samsung even included a cooling system complete with a fan inside, all in a compact charger.
The Samsung 15W Wireless Charger isn’t Qi certified, but it does support USB PD and Adaptive Fast Charging travel adapters. It also comes with a 25W power adapter, so you won’t need to worry about purchasing one separately. To round out this charger are handy LEDs onboard to indicate when your device is done fueling up.
Belkin BoostCharge
Best Wireless Charging Stand
If you like to be able to use your phone a little bit while it's wirelessly charging, then you'll want a stand rather than a pad. Belkin's BoostCharge wireless charging stand is a strong option that can deliver a fast rate of charge while giving you some flexibility for how you use it.
The BoostCharge stand can deliver a maximum charging rate of up to 15W on Qi-compatible devices. And, to help ensure you get the max charging speeds, Belkin includes a 24W Quick Charge 3.0 power supply in the box. The wireless charging stand can hold your phone in the vertical orientation to charge, or if you want to throw it in landscape so you can watch TV or a movie, the stand will support wireless charging in that orientation as well.
Anker Magnetic Wireless Charger 633 MagGo
Best Wireless Charger Power Bank
Portable chargers are helpful little sidekicks to keep on hand throughout the day when you think you might need a top-up. Oftentimes, you manage to remember a battery bank and your phone, only then you forget the stupid cable you need running between them. That’s where the Anker Magnetic Wireless Charger 633 MagGo comes in handy. Not only can you take it on the go for wireless charging, but it also has a base station for juicing up your devices at home.
The Anker Magnetic Wireless Charger 633 MagGo puts a 5,000mAh battery into a case that has the necessary magnets to latch onto the MagSafe magnets on certain iPhones and Airpods. It may not be the fastest charging at 7.5W, but it's a simple and convenient way to give your phone an extra 17 hours of life. What makes this portable wireless charger really stand out is its stand. When you’re home, you can slide the battery bank into the plugged-in stand to charge up, while pass-through charging allows you to charge your device at the same time. So, you’re not just getting a portable charger but actually a 2-in-1 device.
iOttie Easy One Touch Wireless 2
Best Wireless Charger For Your Car
A basic wireless charger is great for home use, but when you’re on the road, you’ll want something a little more specialized. The iOttie Easy One Touch Wireless 2 is the charger to get for your car whether you’re planning to charge up an iPhone or an Android. iOttie also includes a power adapter that plugs into your car’s auxiliary power outlet and offers a cable to power the charger as well as an extra USB for other devices.
This wireless charging cradle will hold your phone in place while you’re driving so that it sits in proper alignment with the Qi wireless charging coil. With everything aligned right, you’ll get better charging rates, letting you take advantage of the 10W charging available for Pixel phones or 7.5W charging for many recent iPhones. iOttie even makes it easy to mount your phone as there’s a button to automatically shut the cradle once your phone is set down. The cradle comes on an adjustable, telescopic arm, so you can get your view just right. And it can stick to your dashboard or suction to your windshield for lots of placement flexibility.
Nomad Base Station
Best Wireless Charger for Multiple Devices
If you've got a lot of devices to charge and want to get them all charged wirelessly at once, then the Nomad Base Station is for you. It has a specially designed array of three charging coils inside, each outputting 10W and letting you place multiple devices anywhere on the pad to charge at up to a 7.5W rate. This model is especially well suited for Apple Watch users, as it includes an integrated mount for the watch’s charging cable.
The Nomad Base Station is Qi certified, so you can charge almost any device that supports wireless charging. You also aren’t limited to juicing up wirelessly, as you get a USB-C and USB-A port to charge a total of five devices at once. Nomad spares no expense in its design either, with a thin, sturdy aluminum base, padded leather surface, and no-slip feet.
Apple MagSafe Charger
Best MagSafe Charger
The iPhone 14 Pro and other devices in that series have Apple's MagSafe branding. This comes in the form of a ring of magnets that helps hold the iPhone to accessories, including wireless charging pads. So, if you want to have an easy time charging your new iPhone with a charger that will ensure you get the device lined up for the most effective wireless power delivery, you'll want the Apple MagSafe Charger.
This charger will line right up with the MagSafe magnets in your iPhone. This allows it to deliver up to 15W of charging power. You can use the Apple MagSafe Charger with any USB-C power brick, but to get the maximum charging speeds, you should use a 20W power brick. Don't worry about needing to have a bunch of different wireless chargers in the house either, as this pad still supports Qi wireless charging for a wide variety of devices, including all iPhones back to the iPhone 8.
What to look for in a Wireless Charger
Technically, Qi isn’t the only wireless charging standard on the market, but with other standards like PMA and A4WP dwindling in influence, your phone most likely supports Qi charging, so that’s what we've focused in on with this guide.
In addition, it’s important to mention that wireless charging is hardly the fastest way to recharge your phone. Sure, it’s awfully convenient to just plop your phone down on a pad at the end of the day. But wireless charging is just plain slower than the wired fast charging options.
Some folks also have problems with needing to find the right “sweet spot” for their phone on the mat (hence lots of Amazon reviews claiming a given charger is unreliable). I personally love wireless charging, but you may find the speed and reliability of wired charging preferable to the convenience of wireless—it’s all about personal preference.
Kevin Lee is IGN's Hardware and Roundups Editor. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam
