Medical Alerts with the Best Battery Life

A long-lasting medical alert battery can save the day if there’s a power outage or a charger snafu. We’ve got the scoop on which brands combine a long-lasting battery with exceptional service.

Bay Alarm Medical tops the list for best in-home medical alert battery life, caregiver alerts, and free pendant replacement. Our other picks focus on mobile alert batteries. These last longer if the device doesn’t include automatic fall detection or GPS technology, so options run the gamut from 5 to 30 days.

Bay Alarm Medical also monitors the battery inside its wearable help button and sends a new one when needed. This usually takes a few years. Since you don’t have to take the button off to charge, you’ll stay protected no matter what.

Visit Bay Alarm Medical, or read our full Bay Alarm Medical review.

This medical alert watch costs about $50 up front and around $25 to $40 per month. We recommend the all-inclusive Ultimate Package, which includes fall detection, app access, and a 24/7 telehealth service called Urgent Care for around $40/month.

The Lively Wearable 2 is best for active people who aren’t interested in an at-home medical alert system, since Lively doesn’t sell any of those.

Read our full Lively review to learn more

QMedic’s in-home base station runs for just 24 hours on a backup battery. But, as we mentioned with Aloe Care, QMedic’s long-lasting mobile device can be used to get help instead, regardless of whether the base unit is up and running.

The main catch with QMedic is that you have to pay annually. And if you end up wanting fall detection later, you’ll need to switch to a different company because QMedic doesn’t offer that technology.

Visit QMedic to learn more.

Although LifeFone’s prices seem reasonable at first glance, it’s easy to get nickeled-and-dimed before you know it. For example, app access costs an extra $8 per month, and fall detection costs another $5. The LifeFone VIPx could end up costing nearly $60 per month, but at least there’s no up-front equipment fee.

LifeFone offers a slightly more affordable device called the VIP, a medical alert with the longest battery life of 30 days. But you can’t add fall detection or app access to the VIP, so it’s just an alert button with GPS tracking for emergency responders.

Visit LifeFone or read our full LifeFone review.

The Aloe Care Health Mobile Companion boasts the longest-lasting battery of any three-in-one mobile medical alert system on the market. It stays on for up to five days from a full charge, and it reminds you to place it in the charging cradle when its battery gets low.

Despite its impressive mobile battery, Aloe Care’s in-home base station has the lowest backup battery life on the market. It lasts just six hours during a power outage.

To compromise, we recommend getting a Mobile Companion even if you aren’t very active. It doesn’t rely on the base station at all, so it can be your emergency backup when the power’s out. 

Visit Aloe Care or read our full Aloe Care Health review.

We like LifeStation’s proactive approach when it comes to backup battery alerts. Caregivers receive a call and an email whenever the base station’s backup battery gets low. This is a great fail-safe just in case someone accidentally unplugs the unit. The backup battery lasts up to 32 hours, and the mobile unit lasts up to five days.

We think LifeStation is a little behind the times in terms of caregiver technology since they don’t send text alerts or have an app. But if you don’t give a hoot about smartphones, LifeStation offers an affordable medical alert system with an average battery life.

Read our full LifeStation review.

The battery life for Lifeline products falls into the average range: 30 hours for the base unit backup and 3 days for the mobile device. Philips Lifeline monitors pendant batteries and automatically sends a new pendant. Caregivers can view device statuses through the Lifeline Cares app.

Bay Alarm had a slightly longer battery backup and a more affordable price point.

Read our full Lifeline review.

MobileHelp's base station backup battery lasts 30 hours, and the mobile device shuts down after one day. MobileHelp will send a replacement pendant when its battery runs out, but it’s up to you to contact the company and request the new pendant.

Read our full MobileHelp review.

Medical Care Alert's mobile device has a three-day battery life. While that's sufficient for many people, it's certainly not the best battery in the medical alert industry. 

Life Alert’s help button lasts up to 10 years, and they’ll send a new one when its battery gets low. But Life Alert is incredibly expensive and offers very little equipment or tech. We like other brands’ updated equipment much better.

Read our full Life Alert review.

ADT Medical's base station battery lasts just 12 to 20 hours, and its mobile device works for up to three days. ADT Medical monitors in-home pendant batteries and sends customers a new one when needed. There’s no caregiver app.

Read our full ADT Medical review.

We think Bay Alarm Medical has the best in-home medical alert system with a long-lasting backup battery, fuss-free pendant battery replacement, and easy-to-use caregiver app.

For a go-anywhere device, we love Medical Guardian’s Mobile Companion because it includes automatic fall detection and has a five-day battery life. The QMedic Mobile GPS and LifeFone VIPx have longer battery lives because they don’t include fall detection.

The Lively Wearable 2 is a bit of a strange bird since the device battery lasts a long time, but its functional life depends on your smartphone battery. Lively’s strength is its price: it’s one of the most affordable mobile medical alert systems on the market.

Ready for more comparisons? Read our take on the best medical alert systems.

We compiled battery data for over 75 medical alert products to write this medical alert review. We considered devices with the longest-lasting batteries and companies with customer-friendly battery policies. Here are the main criteria we considered:

• How can caregivers keep track of device batteries?
• How long does the battery last on mobile devices?
• How long does the backup battery last on in-home systems?
• Are there any extra features that help users charge devices correctly?
• Does the company monitor and replace the in-home help pendant when its battery gets low?
• How long does the battery last on mobile devices with extra features like GPS and fall detection?

We’ve tested Bay Alarm and Aloe Care products hands-on. To learn more, check out the SafeWise methodology page.

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