Windows 10 tip: Check the performance of your laptop battery. A powerful but obscure command-line tool lets you see at a glance how your portable PC's battery is performing and how much battery. The pop-up window also indicates if the laptop is plugged in and the battery is charging. Missing laptop battery icon in Windows. In macOS, click the battery icon in the menu bar at the top of your screen. The icon displays the condition of the battery.
There are different types and sizes of laptop batteries. To determine what laptop battery you have, remove it from the laptop and look at the top or bottom.
The Dell battery, pictured here, is a Li-ion battery. Its type is Li-ion II, its rating is 10.8V, 4050mAH, and its charging current of 2.5A. Its unique part number (P/N) is also listed.
Common laptop batteries are Li-ion, NiMH, and Ni-Cad, with nearly all laptops today using Li-ion batteries.
![]() Manufacturer website
Many laptop manufacturers provide details on their website for which batteries their laptops use, including model numbers and part numbers. Check your laptop manufacturer's website to get battery details for your laptop model. The website may also allow you to purchase a new battery or provide a link to where you can purchase a new battery.
Third-party utility
If your battery is not labeled or you're unable to read the information on the battery, consider using a third-party utility that's capable of giving you detailed battery information. For example, BatteryCare is a free software utility capable of doing this.
Additional information
When using laptops and netbooks, it's important to keep a close eye on the status of your battery. Depending on your operating system, this can be done in a few different ways.
Windows 10
In Windows 10, find out how much battery power is left by clicking the battery icon in the Windows Notification Area in the bottom-right corner of your screen. The pop-up window also displays how much time remains to fully charge the battery, if being charged.
![]() Windows 8
In Windows 8, you'll need to access the desktop environment by pressing the Windows key on your laptop or the Windows button on your tablet. When you get to the desktop, click the battery icon in the Windows Notification Area in the bottom-right corner of your screen.
Windows 7, Vista, and XP
In Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows XP, click the battery icon in the Windows Notification Area in the lower-right corner of your screen. The pop-up window also indicates if the laptop is plugged in and the battery is charging.
macOS
In macOS, click the battery icon in the menu bar at the top of your screen.
The icon displays the condition of the battery. It also indicates if the battery is charging or draining, and how much time remains to fully charge or drain the battery. Lastly, it may provide a list of programs that are consuming high amounts of battery power.
To configure the power consumption of your laptop, select Open Energy Saver Preferences to view the Energy Saver options. These options are also accessible from your System Preferences.
These options give you fine-grained control over how your laptop uses power. Use the Battery / Power Adapter buttons to create separate configurations for when the laptop is plugged in and using battery power.
Linux: GUI
Operating systems that use the Linux kernel can have many different types of GUI. Every Linux GUI is a little different, but most of them have a system tray and a menu bar with a battery icon.
For instance, in Ubuntu, the battery icon looks similar to the icon in macOS. Click the icon to view specific information about the battery's status, and access Energy Saver options.
If your OS has a different GUI and you cannot locate the battery meter or power management options, consult your documentation, or the official website of your OS.
Linux: command line
From the Linux command line, use the acpi utility to display information about your battery provided by the ACPI (advanced configuration and power interface) daemon. The acpi utility is a quick and easy way to check how much charge your battery has left.
It is usually not installed by default, but it can be installed using most Linux package managers. For instance, on Ubuntu or Debian systems, the acpi utility can be installed with APT, using the command below.
Once installed, run the command without any options to display how much power your battery has left.
Coconut Battery 3 1 – Displays Info About Your Laptop Battery Backup
For more options, view the acpi manual using the command below.
Coconut Battery 3 1 – Displays Info About Your Laptop Battery OperatedViewing battery life on the battery itself
Some laptops have a power indicator on the physical battery itself. In the example shown above, pressing the button marked with the finger symbol would illuminate the lights to indicate the percentage of battery charge remaining.
Note
To access this type of battery function, you may have to remove the battery from the computer. See, How do I remove the battery from my laptop computer?
Coconut Battery 3 1 – Displays Info About Your Laptop Battery ReplacementAdditional informationCoconut Battery 3 1 – Displays Info About Your Laptop Battery Life
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