DJI Power 500 vs Anker 521 PowerHouse
Side-by-side on the specs that decide it — surge, capacity, runtime and price.
Both models' specs verified against manufacturer listings · Last updated
The short answer
Anker 521 PowerHouse costs $110 less. Whether that gap is worth closing depends on what you need to run.
- DJI Power 500 holds 100% more energy (512Wh vs 256Wh), so it runs the same load proportionally longer.
- DJI Power 500 has 1700W more surge headroom (2000W vs 300W) — that decides whether a fridge, pump or AC compressor will actually start.
- Anker 521 PowerHouse is 8.1 lb lighter (8.2 lb vs 16.3 lb).
- DJI Power 500 is rated for 4,000 cycles vs 3,000 — meaningful if you cycle it daily.
Neither of these will start a sump pump or well pump — both surge below the ~3,400W those motors need. If home backup with pumps is your use case, look at higher-surge models instead of either of these.
The smaller DJI unit: 512Wh and 1,000W make it a capable weekend companion, with fast charging and low noise as the standouts.
Best for: Weekend campers and creators who want a light, fast-charging half-kWh unit.
Where it falls short:
- 512Wh is a single-day capacity
- No expansion
A pocket-scale LiFePO4 unit for keeping devices alive. 200W of output means it's a charger, not an appliance station.
Best for: Travelers and campers topping up phones, cameras and a laptop.
Where it falls short:
- 200W output runs devices only
- 256Wh is small
| Spec | DJI Power 500 | Anker 521 PowerHouse |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $359 | $249 |
| Capacity | 512 Wh | 256 Wh |
| Continuous output | 1000 W | 200 W |
| Surge output | 2000 W | 300 W |
| Battery | LiFePO4 | LiFePO4 |
| Rated cycles | 4,000 | 3,000 |
| Weight (lighter wins) | 16.3 lb | 8.2 lb |
| Max solar | 200 W | 100 W |
| Recharge time (faster wins) | 1h 10m | 2h 30m |
Runtime head-to-head
| Appliance | DJI Power 500 | Anker 521 PowerHouse |
|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator | 7.3 hrs | ❌ |
| Mini fridge | 13.8 hrs | ❌ |
| Chest freezer | 5.4 hrs | ❌ |
| CPAP machine | 10.9 hrs | 5.4 hrs |
| Sump pump | ❌ | ❌ |