Anyone who’s ever been on a long road trip knows how bad the fights can get over charging ports. For frequent RV enthusiasts or full timers, this is an even more pressing concern. Modern 12V splitters allow you to take that ol’ cigarette lighter socket on the dash and turn it into multiple charging ports. Today we’ll be covering the best 12V splitters to find the best ones for different scenarios and users.
Table of Contents
- 1 Best 12 Volt Splitters
- 1.1 NOCO 12V 2-Way Splitter
- 1.2 BESTEK 3-Socket 12V Cigarette Lighter Splitter
- 1.3 Otium 2-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
- 1.4 Rocketek 2-Socket 3-Port Car Charger
- 1.5 HiGoing 3-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
- 1.6 Yantu Cigarette Lighter Splitter with USB Charger
- 1.7 Taasingeer 12V Splitter
- 1.8 Skyocean 3 Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
- 2 Buyers Guide to Buying the Best 12V Cigarette Lighter Splitter
- 3 Top 12V Splitters Video
- 4 Final Thoughts
Best 12 Volt Splitters
- Noco 12-volt Lighter Splitter
Buy from AmazonRead Our Review - Bestek 3 Socket Cigarette Lighter SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- Otium 12v Cigarette Lighter SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- Rocketek Car Charger Cigarette Lighter SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- HiGoing Car Cigarette Lighter SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- Yantu Cigarette Socket SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- Taasingeer 12v Splitter for CarsBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
- Skyocean 3 Socket Lighter SplitterBuy from AmazonRead Our Review
12V outlets have been in cars for decades. Until very recently though they were only used for internal cigarette lighters. One downside of this fact is that many cars and RVs only have one or two such 12V sockets for everyone to use.
With the number of smartphones, tablets, laptops, and DC appliances available now that’s a recipe for disaster. A 12V splitter lets you take that single outlet and multiply it.
Because most devices don’t need the full draw of a cigarette style socket you can power three or four times as much stuff from the same socket.
We picked out some of the best 12V splitters across a range of different styles, sizes, and functions. Check out our list and let us know what you think.
NOCO 12V 2-Way Splitter
The NOCO 12V 2-Way Splitter is a dual socket splitter designed for car and RV use. It uses a series of flexible cables to provide you with a lot more usable space.
It’s made from 16 AWG copper wire with a built in fuse connection. This allows it to safely carry up to a 15 Amp load safely.
Every connection point has a molded strain relief to help protect the most commonly bent points. This prevents the protective coating from cracking or splitting and allows you to use the splitter in a lot more locations.
Overall the NOCO 12V Splitter is a durable and well made splitter. It doesn’t offer extra features like USB ports, but is a very high-quality product nonetheless.
BESTEK 3-Socket 12V Cigarette Lighter Splitter
The BESTEK 12V Splitter is a 3-socket splitter with a flexible attachment cable. It offers three cigarette style sockets and four USB ports for a variety of different devices.
The USB ports have up to 6 amps of power and use an intelligent charging system. This allows them to charge even delicate electronics like smartphones.
It has a built in 10A fuse and socket lids that help protect from shorts and other damage.
The BESTEK 12V 3-Socket Splitter offers significant charging capability from a single DC port. It gives you the ability to charge your phones and other devices while still leaving sockets open for other uses.
Otium 2-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
The Otium 2-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter offers multiple port options for charging different devices. It uses a rigid body design with 5 total ports.
The first thing we noticed about the Otium was the layout of the front surface. The cigarette style sockets are on either end like large eyes, with a pair of USB-A ports above them and a USB-C port in the center.
This gives you everything you need to charge smartphones, tablets, and even modern laptops with USB-C charging cords. You can be sure that they’ll be protected with the built-in 10A fuse and smart recognition chip.
This ensures that your device will charge at exactly the correct voltage and current. Even better, Otium provides a pair of fuses so you already have a backup.
If you’re looking for a 12V splitter for a car or the front of your RV the Otium 2-Socket Splitter is definitely a good choice.
Rocketek 2-Socket 3-Port Car Charger
The Rocketek 2-Socket car charger adaptor is a compact and adjustable 12V splitter. It provides you with a pair of cigarette style ports plus three QC3.0 USB ports.
Combined together these give you the capability to charge almost any device while driving. The USB ports can provide 3.1A of power together, or about 1A individually.
It includes many important safety features, but lacks an integrated fuse. This limits the protection against overdrawing from the original socket.
It’s not a serious issue unless you stack a lot of power hungry devices on the outlet, but is definitely something to think about.
If you’re looking for an inexpensive and easy to work with 12V splitter, the Rocketek isn’t a bad option at all.
HiGoing 3-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
The HiGoing 3-Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter is a robust multi port charger offering substantial capabilities. It provides you with a total of seven different USB and cigarette style charging ports.
It includes important features like a built-in 7A fuse, overload shutoff, and low voltage warning. Other features include a voltmeter, and smart charging circuit. All of these combine to better protect your devices and make sure they’re charging correctly.
One thing we really loved about this charge was the inclusion of reusable adhesive tape. It made it really easy to secure the charger at different points around your RV without worrying about it bumping loose or falling.
About the only downside we found with the HiGoing was the size of its fuse. At just 7A it’s honestly too small for how many ports it has.
So long as you’re only charging lower draw devices, the HiGoing 3-socket 12V Splitter is a reasonable choice.
Yantu Cigarette Lighter Splitter with USB Charger
The Yantu USB Splitter offers a good mix of ports and performance in a convenient form. It has three cigarette style sockets plus a pair of USB ports.
The USB ports have a combined 3.1A charging capacity, plenty to power modern high performance electronics. They use a Smart IC charging chip that intelligently detects and directs the optimum charging current to your devices.
The Yantu has a 2.3 foot long cable that connects it to the main port. This allows it to reach people in the front or backseat of a vehicle or conveniently stretch to the dash of an RV.
All the most important safety features were present on the Yantu, as were some nice extras. These included a built-in voltmeter and a glowing blue light that indicates when it’s live.
The Yantu Splitter is inexpensive, versatile, and well-sized for the amount of power it provides. Each of the 5 available ports provide a workable amount of power and are easy to place right where you need them.
Taasingeer 12V Splitter
The Taasingeer 12V Splitter is a stripped-down splitter designed for basic devices. It offers a pair of cigarette style ports, each on the end of a 16AWG copper wire.
While the design itself is basic the execution of it is excellent. It has a built-in 15A fuse and uses copper contacts for every socket. All of these features help protect you and your devices from damage.
You can use this to plug in a phone charger or to directly power things like a car fridge or electric blanket. Its high rated current allows it to power things other splitters can’t handle.
While not the best choice if you’re looking to power a lot of delicate electronics, the Taasingeer 12V Splitter is a really good option for powering a few higher draw DC appliances.
Skyocean 3 Socket Cigarette Lighter Splitter
The Skyocean 3-Socket 12V Splitter takes the basic design of the splitter and flips it on its head. Instead of a single module that contains all the ports, it splits them in two.
On the actual plug itself are three USB ports capable of providing up to 5.1A of 5V power. They use a smart charging chip that modulates the power provided.
Where the Skyocean really breaks from the herd is the three cigarette style sockets. They’re located in a rounded module designed to fit into a standard car, truck, or RV cup holder. Even better, each port can be turned on or off independently of the rest.
This allows you to activate only the sockets you need, without having the others draining off any power. We thought this was honestly one of the coolest innovations we’ve seen in this space.
The Skyocean is perfect for those of you who have and extra cup holder and really want to charge more devices.
Buyers Guide to Buying the Best 12V Cigarette Lighter Splitter
Finding the best 12V splitters really comes down to safety, style, and capability. You should never compromise safety for any other feature, which we go into below.
Style and capability really depends on just what type of use you plan to put a splitter to and where you need to use it.
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Price
With advances in technology and manufacturing prices DC splitters have never been more affordable. Entry level models cost literally a few dollars, and even higher end versions will rarely break $20.
You can get a great 12V splitter with lots of bells and whistles for very little money.
Safety
When 12V splitters were first released there were an unfortunate number of low quality and poorly made versions. In some cases these even led to dangerous shorts or even fires.
Thankfully modern 12V splitters have safety as their number one priority. The most important safety features they include are properly sized fuses and smart charging chips.
The fuses protect the splitter itself from overloading and shorting out. This also helps prevent it from overheating and causing a potential fire risk.
The smart charging chip reads your device and properly meters the power being sent to it. This protects your expensive electronics from damage and also keeps things like battery overheating and explosions from happening.
Number of Sockets
While you can get 12V splitters with almost any number of sockets, there isn’t much point in going above three. Remember, the splitter only allows you to plug additional devices in. It does nothing to increase or amplify the power provided by the initial socket.
Most RV or car 12V cigarette style can provide at most 10 Amps of power. Modern smartphones generally charge at around 2.1 Amps, with other electronics having a similar draw.
Three sockets and a few USB’s are the maximum you’ll be able to effectively use.
USB Ports
USB ports are a great value add for a 12V splitter. They allow you to directly plug phones, tablets, GPS devices, and other electronics into the splitter.
This saves the actual cigarette style sockets for other uses. One thing to keep in mind is what type of USB ports are offered and how much power they’re able to provide.
Some of the best 12V splitters actually offer a USB type C port. They can charge everything from your smartphone up to a laptop if properly sized.
Modern smartphones need very stable power sources at specific voltages and Amp ranges. If you have any doubt as to the power provided by USB ports we recommend you use a manufacturer’s DC car charge plugged into one of the sockets.
Quality of Materials
With 12V splitters the materials used are pretty standard across the board. How they’re put together, and especially the craftsmanship, isn’t though.
Some are little more than cheap plastic and low quality metals, while others use durable polymers with excellent conductors. Any with articulating plugs and ports with covers will also have a more solid feel to them.
We’ve all felt low-quality vs. well made electronics before. You can usually tell at a glance when the plastic just doesn’t look right.
Intended Use
If you’re more of a boondocker than a constant traveler there are different 12V splitters available. When you’re on generator power or a solar power system you have to monitor your energy usage more stringently.
Larger 12V splitters with multiple sockets, USB ports, and accessories are great when the engines are running and you have unlimited power. For times when you’re on battery power a smaller unit with a lower draw is key.
They help extend your power supply while still letting you charge up important devices.
Top 12V Splitters Video
Final Thoughts
With the vast number of 12V splitters available it’s important you keep your basic needs in mind. Remember how many ports you actually need, what kind of devices you’re charging, and what the situation with your dash and sitting space is like.
For most RVers the demand for sockets is robust and the front cab area large. You can choose the largest capacity splitters with three or even more sockets plus USB ports.
For regular car drivers or to use in your tow behind vehicle you should keep the available space in mind. Smaller models with integrated phone or tablet chargers may be the way to go.
