Drone Battery Pack Calculator

Design and calculate weights, safe continuous currents, voltages, and capacities for custom Series (S) and Parallel (P) drone battery configurations.

Pack Connections

4S
Multiplies voltage
1P
Multiplies capacity and current

Single Cell Characteristics

mAh
g
Leave empty for chemistry default (28.6g)
C
C

Connection Schematic (4S 1P)

-+3.7V-+3.7V-+3.7V-+3.7V
Blue wires represent Series (accumulating voltage). Red channels indicate Parallel links (accumulating capacity).

Understanding Drone Battery Pack Chemistry & Assembly

Series (S) vs Parallel (P)

Series connections string cells end-to-end (- of one to + of next), summing the individual voltages together. Parallel connections connect identical cells side-by-side (+ to +, - to -), summing capacity and current output while maintaining a single cell's voltage.

What is a battery C-Rating?

The C-rating defines the safe discharge speed relative to pack capacity. A 1300mAh (1.3Ah) pack with a continuous rating of 75C can safely supply a continuous current of 1.3Ah x 75C = 97.5 Amps.

Lithium chemistry options

LiPos are standard for racing due to high continuous currents. Li-Ions (18650/21700) offer higher energy density but fail under fast acrobatics. LiFePO4 packs provide long cycle life and safety, but they are too heavy for most drones.

Battery Pack Math Formulas

Creating custom lithium battery packs uses simple arithmetic. Nominal and fully charged voltage are computed by:

Pack Nominal Voltage (V) = Series Count (S) * Cell Nominal Voltage (V)
Pack Max Voltage (V) = Series Count (S) * Cell Max Voltage (V)

Pack capacity is multiplied strictly by the parallel count (P):

Pack Capacity (Ah) = [Single Cell Capacity (mAh) * Parallel Count (P)] / 1000

Energy capacity, which describes actual battery size, is computed in Watt-hours (Wh):

Pack Energy (Wh) = Pack Nominal Voltage (V) * Pack Capacity (Ah)