NOCO Boost Plus GB50 review

Every range has a model that exists mainly to fill a gap in a price list, and in NOCO's Boost line that unit is the GB50. It is not a bad jump starter — on NOCO's own numbers it is a genuinely capable one. But it sits between a cheaper model that covers most cars and a newer model that does the same work with better conveniences, and understanding that position is most of what you need to decide.

Two of those rows do most of the work. The 7.0 liter gas rating is what you are actually buying, and the 35 watt-hour battery is what makes that rating repeatable rather than a single-shot claim.

Peak amps is the number printed largest on the box and the least useful one on the sheet. It describes a brief current spike under ideal conditions, not the sustained current that turns an engine over, and there is no industry test standard behind it the way there is behind a battery's cold cranking amps. Peak amps versus cranking amps explains why two packs advertising the same peak figure can behave completely differently.

NOCO's engine displacement ratings are the more honest guide, because the manufacturer is staking a specific claim about a specific job. For the GB50 that claim is gas engines up to 7.0 liters and diesels up to 4.5. Against the GB40's published 6.0 liter gas and 3.0 liter diesel ratings, the GB50 buys you a full liter of gas headroom and a liter and a half of diesel headroom for a published weight difference of 0.26 lb.

That is the GB50's genuine argument, and it is a good one. If you drive a 5.3 or 5.7 liter V8 pickup, the GB40 is close to its published ceiling and the GB50 is comfortably inside its own. What size jump starter do I need works through that sizing properly, and the right answer is usually one step above the number that merely matches your engine.

Watt-hours describe how much energy is stored, which determines how many attempts you get and how long the pack holds a useful charge sitting in a glovebox. The GB50's published 35 watt-hours against the GB40's 24 is a 46% increase, and it is the reason the GB50 feels different in use rather than merely stronger on paper.

It also matters for travel. The limit that governs a lithium pack in airline carry-on baggage is watt-hours, not amps, and 35 watt-hours is comfortably inside the 100 watt-hour threshold that applies without airline approval. Flying with a jump starter covers the rules and what to expect at the checkpoint, and milliamp-hours versus watt-hours explains why packs advertised in mAh obscure exactly this figure.

The problem is not the GB50. It is the GBX45, which NOCO introduced later in the same part of the range and which beats the GB50 on the things most owners actually notice.

• Recharging. The GBX45 takes USB-C Power Delivery, so it charges from a laptop charger or a phone brick. The GB50 uses NOCO's older micro-USB arrangement, which is slower and means carrying a second cable.
• Weight. The GBX45 is lighter, which matters for a device whose whole point is living in a bag or a glovebox.
• Overlap, not advantage. The two sit close enough in capability that the GB50's edge is largely raw current, which — see above — is the least meaningful row on the sheet.

So the honest recommendation is to read the GBX45 review and GBX45 versus GB40 before committing to the GB50. If the two are priced similarly when you look — and prices in this range move constantly — the GBX45 is the easier device to live with.

IP65 means protected against dust and low-pressure water jets. For a device used on a roadside shoulder in weather, that is the rating you want, and it is the same rating NOCO publishes across the Boost line.

A 200-lumen flashlight, double the GB40's published output. This sounds like a throwaway feature and is not. Most jump starts happen in the dark, on a shoulder, and 200 lumens is enough to actually find the terminals rather than merely prove the light works. How to use a jump starter covers the connection order, which is the part worth getting right in poor light.

A one-year hassle-free warranty, which is shorter than NOCO's three years on the GENIUS charger line and the one row where the Boost range is unremarkable. It is the category norm rather than a shortfall.

A modern diesel pickup. NOCO's published 4.5 liter diesel rating does not cover a 6.6 or 6.7 liter diesel, and a pack bought one size short of a diesel is a pack that fails on the coldest morning of the year. The best jump starters for diesel trucks covers what those engines actually require.

Replace a charger. A jump starter gets the engine running; it does not fix the battery, and a battery that needed jumping once will usually need it again. Jump starter versus battery charger is the distinction, and if the battery itself is the problem, how to tell if a car battery is bad comes first.

Sit in a hot car for a year and still work. No lithium pack will. Heat is the enemy of the chemistry and self-discharge is real, which is why jump starter storage and heat exists and why how to charge a jump starter recommends a recharge schedule rather than trusting the pack to be ready.

On NOCO's published numbers the GB50 is a well-specified jump starter and the cheapest way to get a 7.0 liter gas rating out of the Boost range. The 35 watt-hour battery is the row that justifies it over the GB40, the 1,500 peak amps figure is the row to ignore, and the 0.26 lb weight penalty against the GB40 is nothing.

Buy it if your engine is a V6 or a small V8, you want more headroom than the GB40 offers, and it is cheaper than the GBX45 when you look. Buy the GBX45 instead if the prices are close, because USB-C charging and less weight are worth more in practice than extra peak amps you will never use. And buy the GB40 if the car is a four-cylinder, where the larger packs are headroom you are paying for and will not need.

1. Best for V6 and small V8 gas engines

NOCO Boost Plus GB50

NOCO · Best for v6 and small v8 gas engines

The middle rung: 1,500 peak amps and 35 watt-hours for a quarter-pound more than the GB40, which is the cheapest headroom in the range.

Published specifications

Peak amps

1,500 A source

Internal battery

35 Wh lithium-ion source

Gas engine rating

Up to 7.0 liters source

Diesel engine rating

Up to 4.5 liters source

Weight

2.71 lb (1.22 kg) source

Water resistance

IP65 source

Flashlight

200 lumens source

Warranty

1-year hassle-free source

What works

• +A full liter more gas headroom than the GB40 for 0.26 lb more weight
• +35 Wh still clears the 100 Wh carry-on limit with room to spare
• +Doubles the flashlight output over the GB40 at 200 lumens

What does not

• −Overlaps awkwardly with the GBX45, which is lighter and charges over USB-C
• −Still short of the 6.0 L diesel rating a modern diesel pickup wants

Skip it if

Skip it if convenience matters more than amps — the GBX45 is lighter and takes USB-C Power Delivery, and the GB50's edge is raw current.

$149.95·View on Amazon→

#ad Affiliate link · Price as of November 10, 2026

Raw specifications: NOCO’s own page for the NOCO Boost Plus GB50.

2. The one to buy instead, for most people

NOCO Boost X GBX45

NOCO · Best for travel and carry-on use

The travel pick: 1,250 peak amps at 2.16 lb with USB-C Power Delivery in and out, so it recharges from the same brick as your laptop.

Published specifications

Peak amps

1,250 A source

Internal battery

31 Wh lithium-ion source

Gas engine rating

Up to 6.5 liters source

Diesel engine rating

Up to 4.0 liters source

Weight

2.16 lb (0.98 kg) source

USB-C output

Up to 20 V / 3 A Power Delivery source

Water resistance

IP65 with ports closed source

Warranty

1-year hassle-free source

What works

• +Lightest pack in the range at 2.16 lb, and 31 Wh means no airline paperwork
• +USB-C Power Delivery both directions — one cable covers the pack, phone and laptop
• +More gas headroom than the GB40 (6.5 L against 6.0 L) in a lighter body

What does not

• −The IP65 rating only holds with the port covers closed — worth remembering in the rain
• −The 4.0 L diesel ceiling is not enough for a full-size diesel pickup

Skip it if

Not the right pack for a diesel truck, and not the cheapest way to cover a small commuter — its premium buys packability, not amps.

$124.95·View on Amazon→

#ad Affiliate link · Price as of November 10, 2026

Raw specifications: NOCO’s own page for the NOCO Boost X GBX45.

3. Best if the engine is genuinely small

NOCO Boost Plus GB40

NOCO · Best for most cars and small suvs

The default answer for a four- or six-cylinder car: 1,000 peak amps, 24 watt-hours, and light enough that it actually stays in the trunk.

Published specifications

Peak amps

1,000 A source

Internal battery

24 Wh lithium-ion source

Gas engine rating

Up to 6.0 liters source

Diesel engine rating

Up to 3.0 liters source

Weight

2.45 lb (1.11 kg) source

Water resistance

IP65 source

Flashlight

100 lumens source

Warranty

1-year hassle-free source

What works

• +24 Wh sits far under the 100 Wh carry-on threshold, so flying with it needs no airline approval
• +2.45 lb and pocketable — the size that decides whether a tool is still in the trunk six months later
• +IP65 enclosure, so a wet shoulder in the rain is not a problem
• +Reverse-polarity protection means a backwards clamp does not spark

What does not

• −1,000 peak amps runs out of headroom above a 6.0 L gas engine
• −The 3.0 L diesel ceiling rules out most modern diesel pickups
• −24 Wh is a small reserve — it is a jump starter, not a power bank substitute

Skip it if

Not the one to buy if you drive a diesel pickup or a big V8. You would be at the edge of its rating on a cold morning, which is exactly when you want margin.

$99.95·View on Amazon→

#ad Affiliate link · Price as of November 10, 2026

Raw specifications: NOCO’s own page for the NOCO Boost Plus GB40.