Best BMS for Lithium and LFP Batteries

So, what's the best BMS for lithium and lifepo4 batteries? As most things go, that depends on your application. There are, however, some pretty well-established BMS brands on the market that we would like to discuss. 

Battery management systems (BMS) are essential components that ensure the safe and efficient operation of battery packs. They are responsible for monitoring and managing various battery parameters, including voltage, current, temperature, and state of charge. There are a million and one BMS's on the market that will work with NMC lithium-ion or LFP cells, but there are some that will work with both. 

Also, most BMS on the market provides no way for the user to monitor the battery. It's very important to be able to see your individual cell group voltages and be able to monitor the amount of current going into and coming out of your battery. 

In this article, we will compare three leading BMS solutions—JK BMS, JBD Smart BMS, and DALY BMS—to help you choose the right BMS for your lithium-ion (Li-ion) or lithium iron phosphate (LiFePo4) batteries.

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Best Lithium And LiFePO4 BMS: My Experience

JK BMS

JK BMS is great. The BMS themselves are very well built and the app is well designed. The menus in the JK BMS app are laid out intuitively, which makes the app super easy to use. Another important thing is that I have never experienced any sort of connection issues when communicating with a JK BMS over Bluetooth. 

Setting up this BMS and getting it going was a much more simple process compared to a lot of other smart BMS. This is, in part, because the JK BMS has an app that is actually in the app store, so you don't have to go through any kind of crazy steps to get it. Having an official app makes it really easy to ensure that you have the most updated version, which generally makes everything work better. 

ANT/JBD BMS

From what I can tell, JBD and ANT are basically the same company. They are listed together on SRIKO Batteries and have a very similar look and feel. They make a really good BMS. I've used a few JBD models and I have used plenty of ANT models. For the several ANT models I have used, the BMS itself works just fine, but I was not at all happy with the app and Bluetooth reliability. The issues with the app and Bluetooth reliability do not seem to be an issue with JBD for some reason. 

The app that both JBD and ANT use is a little clunky and does not scale well on mobile devices of varying ratios. Also, the Bluetooth fails to connect pretty regularly. As I said, though, this only seems to happen on ANT models, and they may have fixed those problems since then as they seem to be newer versions of the ANT models which I haven't tried yet.

These BMS do, however, include active balancing and are known to be reliable and more than able to deliver their rated currents, which earns it the number 2 spot on the list. 

DALY

When size and/or cost are a concern, I use DALY. The main difference between DALY and the other brands is that DALY does not have active balancing built in but does support it with an add-on module.

The stock DALY BMS current without active balancing is 100 milliamps which is much higher than the 20 to 50 mA provided by non-smart BMS models, but very low compared to the ANT/JBD and JK BMS which can do 600 milliamps or more. The JK, JBD, and ANT BMS don't require an additional module to do active balancing, but those BMSs are much larger and much more expensive as well. 

Another benefit that DALY has is that they are totally sealed. You are not getting into that BMS. Nothing is exposed and it is very, very well-built. In fact, the DALY BMS has the highest build quality out of them all as they are totally sealed and even waterproof. The one downside to this is their BMSs can be rather large and clunky. 

Like JK BMS, Daly has an official app for their BMS in the app store. The DALY app is well laid out and easy to use, but does not score as high as JK in this regard but much better than my experience with ANT/JBD. 

So, What's The Best BMS For LiFePO4 And Lithium Batteries?

All three of the above-mentioned BMS companies are great and offer many different models, but we will compare three BMS of similar power levels from each company. 

JK BMS:

If you want the highest performance BMS with the most intuitive interface, then you are gonna want to go with JK BMS. For most high-end applications, the JK BMS is a great solution. It's a versatile BMS that supports a wide range of configurations, from 7S to 20S. It features active balancing and offers a balancing current of 0.6A. This means that your cell groups will be able to balance very quickly and the balance current won't be wasted, but rather put into the lowest cell group.

This BMS has a continuous discharge current of 100A and a peak current of 165A to 200A, which is simply an insane amount of power. This BMS has settings to adjust the overcharge and over-discharge protection levels, which is super nice. I cannot stress enough how easy it is to use the JK BMS app. Everything is where you expect it to be, and everything makes sense.

It is important to consider that peak currents are given as a range for this BMS. So that usually means that you can do 200A for a few seconds and 165A for about a little longer, about 30 seconds. This figure lines up nicely with a high-end lithium ebike battery build. 

This is a highly configurable BMS, so it can be used with either lithium (NMC) or LiFePO4 (LFP) cells, and can be set up for 7S to 20S operation. 

Key Features of JK BMS:

• Model: JK-BD6A20S10P
• Configuration: 7S to 20S
• Balance Mode: Active Balance Equilibrium
• Balance Current: 0.6A
• Discharge Current: 100A
• Peak Current: 165 to 200A
• Bluetooth Function: Support Android and iOS

JBD Smart BMS:

If you want the absolute highest peak current and don't care so much about the user interface, then you may want to check out JBD BMSs. They dont really have model names, it is just known by their string and amp rating for example ‘JBD Smart BMS 20S 72V 100A‘. They the same configurable charge and discharge protection, and like the above BMS, also allows the user to control the current, temperature, and other settings. 

Also similar to the JK BMS, this JBD model can be configured and monitored over Bluetooth using the app. There is also a UART connection so the BMS can be hooked up to a PC using a USB to TTL adapter. 

It is designed for 20S battery packs and will only work for NMC and LFP chemistries, and will not work with LTO batteries. The JBD Smart BMS will work well for home energy and EV applications.

These BMS are pretty powerful, however, and can do 300A for 5 seconds. Also, once you get them setup and working, they are reliable. The setup process is just not the most intuitive and again, the app is not very well designed. 

Key Features of JBD Smart BMS:

• Battery Type: Li-ion (default), LiFePo4 (optional)
• Communication: Bluetooth App, UART USB Connection
• Customizable Parameters: Charge/Discharge Protection, Voltage, Temperature, Balance

DALY BMS:

If you are on a strict budget or simply don’t have a ton of room to work with and active balancing isn't important to you, then the solution is DALY BMS. It’s a common port smart BMS designed specifically for Li-ion battery packs. The charge and discharge protection current and voltage ranges are permanently programmed inside the BMS and cannot be changed.

Some people say that DALY BMS do not do balancing, but this is incorrect. DALY BMS does not do active balancing without the addition of an active balancer module. This enables DALY to provide more compact, lower-cost BMS than its competitors. If you don’t get the active balancing module, the built-in passive balance current is 100ma. 

The Daly BMS app is reliable, easy to use, and never has any problem connecting to the battery. Their BMS are suitable for up to 24S battery packs.. While it is true that a DALY BMS can work just fine for a variety of DIY lithium battery builds, including solar, RV, electric bikes, and household energy storage systems, it's best only to use a DALY BMS if size or cost is a major concern. 

Key Features of DALY BMS:

• Battery Type: Li-ion (default), LiFePo4 (optional)
• Communication: Bluetooth App, UART USB Connection
• Customizable Parameters: Charge/Discharge Protection, Voltage, Temperature, Balance

So, Which BMS Do I Choose?

The best BMS for lithium and lifepo4 batteries really does depend on your application and budget. There are plenty of cases where all of the BMS in this article are total overkill. If, however, you need the power, performance, reliability, and configurability, then you would do much better using one of the BMS on this list. You can also use are BMS picker linked below to help guide you to the best BMS for your application. 

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Conclusion

Choosing the best BMS for lithium and LiFePO4 batteries can be a challenge if you are not familiar with all the terms and with so many brands on the market that all claim to be the best. JK BMS, JBD Smart BMS, and DALY BMS are the best BMS makers out there, but this article reveals that there are levels to that, too. 

I will have to say that the JK BMS is the best. It has a high build quality, can work with 7S to 20S, and can work with both lithium (NMC) and LiFePO4 (LFP) cells. The JK BMS is the most versatile and has the widest range of configurations. It also includes active balancing. The JBD Smart BMS is just as reliable once you get it going, but setting it up is less convenient. It provides active balancing and is definitely a great BMS, but without having an official app, JBD will always be a few steps behind. 

DALY BMS has a much better app than JBD/ANT, but does not offer active balancing built in. This, however, is sometimes a feature as active balancing is not needed for every application and certainly adds expense and bulk to the BMS. 

We hope this article helped you find the best BMS for lithium (NMC) and LiFePO4 batteries. Thanks for reading!