Canon R5 Battery & Charger Guide

The Canon R5 includes one Canon LP-E6NH Lithium-Ion Battery (7.2V, 2130mAh) in the box, well it does if you have purchased it from a genuine Canon retailer.

The Canon LP-E6N and LP-E6 batteries are also supported. However, only the LP-E6NH and LP-E6N support charging over USB.

In this guide you’ll find all of the supported batteries and chargers for the R5, battery grips and third-party battery options.

Official Canon Batteries

The official battery for the Canon R5 is the Canon LP-E6NH Lithium-Ion Battery (7.2V, 2130mAh). Providing you purchased your Canon R5 from an authorized Canon retailer, then you should find one Canon LP-E6NH battery in the box with your R5.

The older and now discontinued Canon LP-E6N and LP-E6 batteries are also supported in the R5. However, only the LP-E6NH and LP-E6N support charging over USB.

The older Canon LP-E6 battery along with third-party batteries do not support charging over USB with the R5.

Canon LP-E6NH

The Canon LP-E6NH Lithium-Ion Battery (7.2V, 2130mAh) is the battery that you will find included with your R5. This battery from Canon is the official supported battery for the R5.

If you require an extra battery then we would strongly recommend purchasing one of these over third-party options. This battery is also compatible with the Canon R5C, R6, R7 and R mirrorless cameras.

This battery can also be charged in-camera via USB.

For shooting stills we would strongly recommend a minimum of two batteries, three batteries should get you through an entire day of shooting unless you are shooting video in which case you might want a few more.

Canon LP-E6N

The Canon LP-E6N Lithium-Ion Battery (7.2V, 1865mAh) is an older battery that has been replaced by the newer LP-E6NH battery.

This battery has been discontinued so isn’t very easy to purchase. But you may already have some of these batteries if you have an older SLR camera like the Canon EOS 5D.

The capacity is slightly smaller than the new LP-E6NH battery (1865mAh vs 2130mAh) but it is supported in the R5 and can also be charged in-camera via USB.

Canon LP-E6

The Canon LP-E6 Lithium-Ion Battery (7.2V, 1800mAh) is again an older battery that has since been discontinued. If you do have some of these batteries then you’ll be glad to know that they are still supported in the R5.

Unfortunately the Canon LP-E6 does not support in-camera charging via USB like both the LP-E6NH and LP-E6N batteries do.

Official Canon Battery Chargers

The Canon EOS R5 includes one LC-E6 (US) / LC-E6E (Europe) battery charger in the box when purchased from new, providing you purchase your camera from an authorized Canon retailer.

Canon LC-E6 / LC-E6E Battery Charger

The Canon LC-E6 (US) / LC-E6E (Europe) battery charger can be used to charge a single LP-E6NH, LP-E6N, LP-EL or LP-E6 battery.

It’s a pretty fast charger and takes approximately 2 hours to fully charge one LP-E6NH lithium-ion battery.

If you wish to charge multiple batteries simultaneously then adding an extra one of these chargers to your gear bag might be a good idea.

Third-Party Batteries

We typically only recommend using genuine Canon batteries in your R5 and any other camera because there is always a risk involved when using third-party batteries.

If you have spent close to $4000 on a camera then it’s not really worth potentially damaging your R5 just to save a few dollars.

With that said, if you still don’t mind taking the risk then these are the better third-party battery options available.

Watson LP-E6NH

When it comes to third-party batteries Watson at-least have a good reputation and have been producing batteries for quite some time.

Their LP-E6NH battery is known to work well in the Canon R5 but an R5 Firmware Update could potentially change this in the future and render the battery useless.

Third-Party Battery Chargers

Just like with batteries, we would recommend only using the official Canon battery chargers, but if you don’t mind going third-party then these are your options for the R5.

Watson Mini Duo Charger

The Watson Mini Duo Charger supports simultaneous charging of two third-party LP-E6NH / LP-E6N / LP-E6 batteries via an included USB adapter.

This is not the fastest of battery chargers and a full charge of two batteries will take approximately 5-6 hours.

It’s important to note that this charger does not support the charging of the official Canon LP-E6NH / LP-E6N / LP-E6 batteries, only third-party versions like Watson.

There’s an LCD screen that displays the charge status and the charger also includes built-in overcharge, short-circuit and power surge protections.

Battery Grip

If you want to double the battery life of your R5 and at the same time improve the ergonomics then adding a battery grip is an option to consider. Currently only Canon are selling a battery grip for the R5 but we might see some third-party options in the future.

Canon BG-R10 Battery Grip

The Canon BG-R10 Battery Grip holds one or two Canon LP-E6NH batteries. It also adds additional controls to make shooting vertically much more comfortable.

The grip is designed using the same materials as the R5 and the buttons also have the same tactile feedback, it’s also weather sealed just like the R5.

USB Charging

Only the Canon LP-E6NH and LP-E6N batteries support charging via the R5’s USB-C connector.

With the Canon LP-E6 or other third-party batteries, charging over USB is not supported.

Canon PD-E1 USB Power Adapter

The Canon PD-E1 USB Power Adapter is the official USB charging adapter for the R5. This allows you to charge the Canon LP-E6NH and LP-E6N batteries in-camera via USB-C.

The battery will only charge when the R5 is turned off. You can also power the R5 using this adapter but once you turn the camera on the battery will stop charging.

This is not the cheapest option for charging via USB, we’d recommend one of the following alternative options.

Anker PowerPort III 65W Pod

The Anker PowerPort III 65W Pod will allow you to either charge the R5s (LP-E6NH / LP-E6N) when the camera is turned off, or power the R5 when the camera is turned on.

I’ve tested this USB charger with the R5 and can confirm that it works perfectly for both charging and powering the R5, just not at the same time.

It takes approximately 3 hours and 8 minutes to fully charge the LP-E6NH battery in-camera with this USB charger.

Anker PowerPort III Duo

The Anker PowerPort III Duo is a 40 watt charger that charges at a maximum of 20 watts per port and supports Power Delivery (PD). There are two USB-C ports so you can also charge another device as well as your R5.

No USB-C cables are included but you can use the USB-C cable that should be included with your R5, if not Anker also sells USB-C cables (Amazon).

You may already have a USB-C charger at home that you wish to try first. You’ll know that your R5 is charging successfully as the green charge light on the rear of the camera will light-up, you’ll also see a battery displayed on the top LCD.

This will only supply enough power to charge the battery in the R5 when the camera is switched off. With the camera turned on the battery will not charge and this charger will not provide enough power for the R5, so the battery will still drain.

USB Power Banks

USB power banks can be used to charge the R5’s battery (LP-E6NH / LP-E6N) when the camera is turned off. Some more powerful power banks that support power delivery of 45 watts and above can also be used to power the R5 when it’s turned on.

Anker PowerCore III Elite 26K 60W

The Anker PowerCore III Elite 26K 60W will allow you to either charge the R5’s battery (LP-E6NH / LP-E6N) when the camera is switched off, or power the R5 when the camera is switched on.

The massive 25,600 mAh capacity battery will keep your R5 going all day long.

I’ve tested this power bank with the R5 and can confirm that it works perfectly for both charging and powering the R5 but not at the same time.

Anker PowerCore+ 26800mAh PD 45W

The Anker PowerCore+ 26800mAh PD 45W will also allow you to either charge the R5’s battery (LP-E6NH / LP-E6N) when the camera is switched off, or power the R5 when the camera is switched on.

The 26,800 mAh capacity battery will provide plenty of juice to keep your R5 going all day long.

I’ve tested this power bank with the R5 and can confirm that it works for both charging and powering the R5, just not at the same time.

Anker PowerCore Slim 10000 PD

The Anker PowerCore Slim 10000 PD supports 20 watts power delivery via its USB-C port.

This can only be used to charge the R5’s battery in-camera when the R5 is switched off, it cannot be used to power the R5 when turned on due to its limited 20 watts power delivery.

I’ve tested this power bank with the R5 and can confirm it works to charge the R5’s battery when the camera is powered off, but it will not power the R5 when turned on.

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