The verdict
Buy the AC180Check price at BLUETTI. It gives up 288Wh, and costs less per watt-hour ($0.39 against $0.45).
The AC180P is the buy only if you find it materially cheaper than the price below. Full working underneath.
Prices are the manufacturer’s at the time of writing. We may earn a commission on these links, which never changes what the figures say.
The short answer
The BLUETTI AC180P holds 288Wh more (25% more). The BLUETTI AC180 is the cheaper way to buy a watt-hour, at $0.39 against $0.45.
Head to head
| Specification | AC180 | AC180P |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 1,152Wh | 1,440Wh ● |
| Continuous AC output | 1,800W | 1,800W |
| Surge | 2,700W | 2,700W |
| Chemistry | LiFePO4 | LiFePO4 |
| Rated cycles | 3,500 cycles | 3,500 cycles |
| Weight | 35.3 lb | 35.3 lb |
| Max solar input | 500W | 500W |
| Max AC charge input | 1,440W | 1,440W |
| AC outlets | 4 | 4 |
| Expandable | No | No |
| Warranty | 5 years | 5 years |
| Price | $449 ● | $649 |
| Cost per watt-hour | $0.39 ● | $0.45 |
A dot marks the better figure on that row. An em dash means the manufacturer does not publish it, and we would rather leave the cell empty than fill it with a number we cannot source.
What each one will run
| Load | AC180 | AC180P |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi router (10W) | 98 hr | 122 hr |
| CPAP, humidifier off (40W) | 24 hr | 31 hr |
| 12V portable fridge (45W avg) | 21 hr 46 min | 27 hr |
| Full-size fridge (50W avg) | 19 hr 35 min | 24 hr |
| Laptop (60W) | 16 hr 19 min | 20 hr 24 min |
| 55-inch TV (90W) | 10 hr 53 min | 13 hr 36 min |
| Microwave (1,000W) | 59 min | 1 hr 13 min |
Figures are capacity divided by draw, with 15% taken off for inverter losses on AC loads. They are arithmetic rather than bench measurements, and a cold battery or a compressor cycling hard will come in lower. Where a row says the unit will not run a load, that load exceeds what its inverter carries continuously.
Where the AC180 wins
- $200 cheaper at list.
- Cheaper per watt-hour, at $0.39 against $0.45.
Where the AC180P wins
- Holds 288Wh more, 25% more stored energy.
Which to buy
- Buy the AC180PCheck price at BLUETTI if the job is a long one: an overnight fridge, a multi-day CPAP run, a weekend away from a socket.
- Buy the AC180 if the job is short and repeated, and you would rather pay less.
- Buy the AC180 if you are simply buying stored energy at the lowest price and the rest of the spec sheet is close enough not to matter.
AC180 vs AC180P questions
Which has more capacity, the AC180 or the AC180P?
The AC180P, at 1,440Wh against 1,152Wh. That is 288Wh more, or about 25% more stored energy.
How long will each one run a fridge?
On a full-size fridge averaging 50W, the AC180 works out at roughly 19 hr 35 min and the AC180P at roughly 24 hr. Both assume 85% of rated capacity reaches the load, and a fridge cycling harder in a warm room will pull both numbers down.
Which is better value?
Per watt-hour stored, the AC180 at $0.39 against $0.45. That is the honest measure here, because it is the one figure that puts a price difference and a capacity difference on the same scale.
How we compare these
Both columns are the manufacturers’ own published figures, taken from the same catalogue of 458 products we track, and every derived number on this page, cost per watt-hour and estimated runtime, is calculated the same way for every product on the site. We do not publish a star rating for either unit, because we have not bench-tested them and a score we invented would be worth nothing to you. What we can do honestly is put the published figures side by side, do the arithmetic in public, and say plainly where a manufacturer has not published something.