Best Solar Generators for Home Backup in 2026: EcoFlow vs. Jackery vs. Anker SOLIX

The lights flicker, the fridge goes quiet, and the question hits: what can you actually keep running, and for how long? If you're shopping for a solar generator for home backup this fall, that's the question to answer first — before brand, before color, before the spec sheet's biggest number.

The three flagship units most homeowners compare — the EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra, the Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus, and the Anker SOLIX F3800 — look similar in photos. They aren't. One is a modular whole-home system that lives in your garage, one is the most approachable way to protect essential circuits, and one puts 240V output and EV charging into a single wheeled unit. Choosing the wrong one usually means paying for capability you'll never use, or discovering during an outage that your well pump needs 240V and your unit can't deliver it alone.

This guide compares all three on the specs that matter for home backup power, explains who each is really for, and adds one option for homeowners ready to move beyond portable units entirely.

Quick Picks

Four Specs That Decide What You Can Run

Before comparing brands, it helps to know which numbers actually matter for backup power. Here are the four that separate a good fit from an expensive mistake.

1. Watt-hours (capacity) — how long

Capacity, measured in watt-hours (Wh) or kilowatt-hours (kWh), determines runtime. For perspective, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reports the average residential customer bought about 899 kWh of electricity per month in 2022 — roughly 30 kWh a day. A single 3.5–4kWh unit won't run a typical whole house for long, but it can keep a refrigerator, lights, Wi-Fi, and a few essentials going through a multi-day outage. Our guide to sizing a whole-home battery backup system walks through the math.

2. Watts (output) — how much at once

Continuous output (and surge) determines what you can run simultaneously and whether motor-driven appliances like well pumps and compressors will start. Sump pumps are a classic trap here — our sump pump sizing guide explains why.

3. 120V vs. 240V — which appliances qualify

Most household outlets are 120V, but well pumps, electric dryers, some central air systems, and EV chargers often need 240V. This is the biggest real-world difference between our three picks: two of them deliver 240V from a single unit, and one needs a second unit to get there.

4. How it connects to your home

You can plug appliances straight into any of these units. To power hardwired circuits (a furnace blower, a well pump, lighting circuits), you need a transfer switch or smart panel installed by a licensed electrician. Never backfeed a home through a wall outlet — it's dangerous for you and for utility workers.

EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra: Best for Whole-Home Integration

The EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra isn't really a portable power station — it's a modular home energy system made of a separate inverter and stackable 6kWh batteries. That design is exactly why it tops this list for homeowners who want their backup to feel like the grid never left.

• Capacity: 6kWh per battery; up to 5 batteries (30kWh) on one inverter, and up to 90kWh across three inverters paired with EcoFlow's Smart Home Panel 2
• Output: 7.2kW per inverter at 120/240V; up to 21.6kW with three inverters
• Solar input: up to 5.6kW per inverter
• Switchover: 0 ms in online UPS mode (under 20 ms in backup UPS mode, per EcoFlow's manual)
• Battery life: LiFePO4 rated for 3,500+ cycles
• Environment: IP54 rating; operates from -4°F to 113°F; rated noise under 30 dB

Who it's for: Homeowners who want to back up most of the house — including 240V appliances — with automatic switchover through a smart panel, and who want room to grow into a larger solar-plus-storage system over time.

Trade-offs: It's the largest starting investment of the three, and it's heavy (EcoFlow lists the inverter at about 70 lb and each battery at about 112 lb). It's designed to be installed in a garage or utility space, not rolled room to room, and getting the most out of it means professional panel integration.

Browse the full EcoFlow lineup →

Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus: Best Entry Point for Essential Circuits

The Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus is the most approachable way into serious home backup: an all-in-one unit with integrated wheels that you can use plugged-in on day one and connect to a manual transfer switch when you're ready.

• Capacity: 3,584Wh, expandable to about 21kWh with Jackery battery packs
• Output: 3,600W rated, 7,200W surge, including a 120V 30A outlet
• 240V: requires pairing two units — a single unit is 120V only
• Charging: full AC recharge in about 2.5 hours; DC/solar input up to 1,000W combined
• Battery life: LiFePO4 rated for 6,000 cycles to 70%+ capacity
• Weight & warranty: 77 lb; 3+2-year (5-year total) warranty

Who it's for: Households that want to protect essentials — refrigerator, freezer, lights, internet, medical devices, a portable AC — without committing to a permanent installation. At 77 lb, it's also the lightest all-in-one unit here and the easiest to move.

Trade-offs: No 240V from a single unit, so a well pump or dryer means buying a second unit. Solar input is the lowest here, which matters if you're counting on solar to recharge during a long outage.

Browse the full Jackery lineup →

Anker SOLIX F3800: Best for 240V Loads and EV Charging

The Anker SOLIX F3800 sits between the other two: still a single wheeled unit, but with split-phase 240V output and outlets that most portable power stations simply don't have.

• Capacity: 3,840Wh, expandable to 26.9kWh with up to six BP3800 expansion batteries
• Output: 6,000W continuous (9,000W surge) at 120/240V split-phase from one unit; two units can reach 12kW
• Outlets: NEMA 14-50 and L14-30 built in, for direct EV and RV charging
• Charging: up to 2,400W solar input (Anker rates 0–80% in about 1.5 hours under full solar); 1,800W AC input
• Battery life: LiFePO4 rated for 3,000+ cycles to 80% capacity
• Weight & warranty: about 132 lb; 5-year warranty

Who it's for: Homes with 240V essentials — well pumps, electric dryers, some HVAC — and EV owners who want an emergency charging option, all from a single unit.

Trade-offs: At around 132 lb it's the heaviest single unit here. Also know how its UPS mode works: according to Anker, only the three 120V ports labeled "UPS" operate in UPS mode, and the 240V outlets aren't available while the unit is recharging from 120V AC. Plan your critical loads around that.

Browse the full Anker SOLIX lineup →

Side-by-Side Comparison

Specifications from manufacturer and PowerGen Store product listings as of September 2026. Cycle-life ratings use different end-of-life thresholds, so compare them with that in mind.

Which One Should You Buy?

• You want to keep essentials running and may move the unit around: Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus.
• You have a well pump, electric dryer, or EV and want one unit to handle it: Anker SOLIX F3800.
• You want most of the house backed up automatically, with room to scale into a solar-plus-storage system: EcoFlow DELTA Pro Ultra.
• You're not sure how much capacity you need: start with our Portable Power Station Size Calculator.

Thinking about adding a second unit from a different brand later? Read Daisy-Chaining Power Stations: Can You Combine Two Different Brands? first — expansion generally only works within one brand's ecosystem, so your first purchase shapes your upgrade path.

Also Worth a Look: RUiXU for a Permanently Installed System

If your sizing math points well beyond what a portable unit can deliver, a component-based home battery system may be the better fit. RUiXU builds the pieces separately — battery and inverter — for professional installation.

• RUiXU Lithi2-16 battery: 16.07kWh at 51.2V, rated for 9,500+ cycles at 80% depth of discharge, with built-in self-heating for cold climates. Up to 32 units can run in parallel, and it communicates with many major inverter brands.
• RUiXU RX-12K hybrid inverter: 12kW rated (up to 11.4kW usable) at 120/240V split-phase, with an integrated 200A transfer relay, UL1741 certification, and UPS switchover of 20 ms or less.

Trade-offs: This isn't plug-and-play. A single Lithi2-16 weighs about 320 lb, and the system needs to be designed and installed by a qualified electrician. For homeowners planning a long-term solar-plus-storage build, though, it scales well past what stacking portable units can practically reach. Our RUiXU buying guide covers the lineup in more depth.

Solar Generators vs. Gas Generators Indoors

One practical advantage of battery-based backup: there's no engine and no combustion exhaust. Gas generators are a different story — the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission warns never to run a portable generator inside a home or garage, and to keep it at least 20 feet from the house with the exhaust pointed away. Battery units still need proper ventilation and placement per each manufacturer's instructions, but they remove the carbon monoxide risk from the equation.

Weighing the long-term costs of each approach? See Generator vs. Battery Backup: Total Cost of Ownership Over 10 Years.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a solar generator run central air conditioning?

Sometimes — it depends on your system's voltage, running wattage, and especially its starting surge. Units with single-unit 240V output (the DELTA Pro Ultra and F3800) are the only realistic candidates here, and EcoFlow rates the DELTA Pro Ultra for up to a 3-ton central AC. Runtime is the bigger constraint: a central AC can consume a unit's full capacity in a few hours. Check your AC's nameplate and talk to an electrician before planning around it.

How long do these batteries last?

All three use LiFePO4 chemistry. Rated cycle life ranges from 3,000+ (Anker SOLIX F3800, to 80% capacity) to 6,000 (Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus, to 70%+ capacity). For a backup unit that's cycled occasionally, that's many years of service with proper storage and care.

Do I need a transfer switch?

Only if you want to power hardwired circuits. For plug-in appliances, you can connect them directly to the unit with properly rated cords. For anything wired into your panel, a transfer switch or smart panel installed by a licensed electrician is the safe way to do it.

Can I expand later?

Yes — all three accept same-brand expansion batteries, and all three can be paired with a second unit of the same model for more output (for the Jackery, that's also how you get 240V). Mixing brands generally isn't supported, so choose the ecosystem you'd be happy growing into.

Shop all home backup power systems at PowerGen Store.