Buyers' Guides

Best AA flashlights

If you said to someone “Buy me some batteries when you’re at the store”, the chances are – if they didn’t tell you where to get off for being so rude – that you’d end up with AA batteries. They are, simply, the most common batteries out there, and they’re the first type of battery that comes to mind for most people.

So it’s no surprise that flashlights that run on AA batteries are incredibly popular too. AAs are cheap and easy to buy, and most houses have plenty of gadgets that run on AAs, which means they’re simple to ‘borrow’ from another device in case of emergencies.

(Of course, this can be a disadvantage too – there’s nothing worse than coming to use a flashlight and finding the battery compartment empty because someone else has taken the AAs to power the television remote!)

While AA flashlights have been around for years, and as such may seem almost quaint nowadays, advances in circuitry and LED technology mean that some of the more recent AA flashlights are almost as efficient as flashlights that run on Lithium ion batteries.

They’re a good, solid option – particularly if you’re buying a gift for someone and don’t want to burden them with having to track down unusual battery sizes. If you’re looking for something small, light and versatile, you really can’t go too far wrong with an AA flashlight, so we’ll run through the best AA flashlights for the money.

Our recommended AA flashlights

ThruNite T10

This light is powered by a single AA battery and produces 169 lumens of light on its maximum setting with a decent runtime of 1.5 hours.

It can also be used in Low (20 lumens / 39 hours) and a juice-sipping Firefly mode (0.2 lumens / 147 hours).

The T10 is turned on via the tail switch and offers multiple methods for changing between modes, either involving multiple presses of the tail switch or twisting the head of the flashlight.

It sounds more complicated than it is, but fortunately the flashlight has a memory function and stores the last used setting, which is handy for people who struggle to remember how to get the mode they want.

The T10 is made from aluminum and is very durable, shockproof and water resistant. It weighs in at 35.2g without batteries.

Amazon buyer rating 4.3/5

EagleTac D25A2 Mini

The D25A2 Mini packs a lot of punch into a small package. Powered by two AA batteries, this light gives off a whopping 349 lumens in Turbo mode and will keep shining for 1.5 hours (rated using an Eneloop rechargeable battery rather than an alkaline).

At Medium output, it generates 98 lumens for seven hours, while at Low it manages 5 lumens for 100+ hours.

There are five further modes: Strobe, Flash (high), SOS, Beacon and Flash (low), making the D25A2 an extremely versatile and capable performer.

The light is switched on using a twist switch and is really easy to operate one-handed.

It has a constant current regulation for all its output modes, is impact resistant and has a water resistance rating of IPX-8.

Included with the light is a stainless bezel, spare o-rings, a pocket clip, a lanyard and an attachment clip. And, of course, it comes with EagleTac’s 10-year warranty.

Amazon buyer rating 4.8/5

Streamlight 88033 Protac Tactical Flashlight 2AA

The ProTac 2AA is a durable, attractive flashlight that will appeal to many on looks alone. With its anodized aluminum finish and and tempered glass lens, it certainly looks the part and doesn’t disappoint in usability either.

The 2AA has three output modes: High, Low and Strobe. At maximum output, it generates 155 lumens and runs for 2 hours. In Low, it puts out 11 lumens and runs for 36 hours, while the Strobe lasts for 4 hours.

Switching between the modes can be programmed using the company’s Ten-Tap Programming system, with three user selectable programs available: