What is a plug-in battery and when should you use one?

What do we mean by a plug-in battery?

A plug-in battery is a home storage unit that you connect directly to a wall outlet. It contains integrated electronics, an inverter, and one or more outlets or ports for your devices.

Key characteristics

• Plug & play: usually just needs a grounded outlet.
• Mobile: can be moved between rooms or even used outdoors.
• Limited capacity: typically 1–5 kWh, aimed at peaks and small backup use cases.

When does a plug-in battery make sense?

• If you live in a rented home or apartment where you cannot modify the fuse box.
• If you only want to buffer specific devices like a fridge, modem, or home office.
• If you want to experiment with storage before investing in a larger fixed system.

In the Leafy Energy demo, plug-in batteries are used to show storage in a simple way, without diving straight into complex installations.