Head-to-head test
Goal Zero Sherpa 100AC vs Goal Zero Yeti 500X
Real-world runtimes, scenario verdicts, and ownership costs compared — which wins for your use case.
Full profiles: Goal Zero Sherpa 100AC → · Goal Zero Yeti 500X →
Written by Wenny ZhengUpdated
Portable Power Tester, Station Arena Test Desk
Spec deltas
Both carry the Goal Zero name, but they're built for different buyers. The Sherpa 100AC (95Wh, 100W) and the Yeti 500X (497Wh, 300W) come from different product lines with different engineering priorities and a $250 price gap. The Yeti 500X has a slight edge, but the margin is close enough that your use case should break the tie.
The Yeti 500X holds 402Wh more than the Sherpa 100AC — about 3 hours on a fridge against 1 — a real but modest edge that shows up mainly on longer outages. For camping, tailgating, or keeping devices charged, both have the headroom, so price, weight, and longevity lead the decision instead.
Pick the Yeti 500X if your primary use is cpap overnight or afternoon off-grid. Go with the Sherpa 100AC if its specific strengths below line up better with your use. Most buyers stop at the sticker price and miss this: over a full lifespan the Yeti 500X works out to about $2.01/kWh against the Sherpa 100AC's $5.28, a gap that compounds in the Yeti 500X's favor the more you cycle it. Keep scrolling for the full breakdown. The scenario verdicts below hold a few surprises.
Bench Notes
What each unit does well, where it falls short, and the trade-offs that matter.
Goal Zero Sherpa 100AC
At 100W, this unit is strictly for personal electronics (phones, laptops) and small CPAP machines. Do not expect to run kitchen appliances. At only 2.1 lbs, it is exceptionally portable. You can easily carry it one-handed to a campsite or tailgating party.
Strengths
- +Costs $250 less
- +Lighter by 10.8 lb
Trade-offs
- –Lacks smartphone app control for remote monitoring.
Goal Zero Yeti 500X
At 300W, this unit is strictly for personal electronics (phones, laptops) and small CPAP machines. Do not expect to run kitchen appliances. At only 12.9 lbs, it is exceptionally portable. You can easily carry it one-handed to a campsite or tailgating party.
Strengths
- +Larger battery capacity
- +Higher AC output
- +Faster solar charging
Trade-offs
- –Substantially more expensive (+$250) than the Sherpa 100AC.
- –Significantly heavier (+10.8 lbs), making it harder to move.
- –Lacks smartphone app control for remote monitoring.
Will It Power Your Gear?
Scenario math and per-appliance runtimes, modeled from the spec record.
Scenario verdicts
We ran the math on seven real-world scenarios. Here's which unit survives your actual life.
SCN-01 · 2 nights · needs 2,100Wh
Weekend Camping
Two nights off-grid with essential comfort
Neither unit
Neither unit covers this scenario's 2,100Wh: the Sherpa 100AC comes up 2,020Wh short (about 4% covered), the Yeti 500X 1,678Wh (20%). This is well outside what either unit is for; the right answer here is a larger station, not a choice between these two.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Phone Charger 15W×6h · LED Lights 40W×8h · Box Fan 75W×14h · CPAP Machine 40W×16h
SCN-02 · 8 hours · needs 1,645Wh
8-Hour Blackout
Keep the essentials running through a night without power
Neither unit
The Sherpa 100AC can start the 150W peak but not hold it — 150W of surge gets it going, then the 100W continuous rating takes over, so capacity never gets a say. This is the wrong size of unit for the job rather than a close call. The Yeti 500X doesn't have the energy either — 422Wh usable against 1,645Wh, 1,223Wh short — so neither route works.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Fridge 150W×8h · Router + Modem 20W×8h · LED Lights (4 bulbs) 40W×6h · Phone Charger 15W×3h
SCN-03 · 8 hours · needs 320Wh
CPAP Overnight
Sleep therapy without interruption — the #1 medical use case
Yeti 500X
The Sherpa 100AC doesn't finish — 80Wh usable against the 320Wh this needs leaves it 240Wh short, about 25% of the scenario covered. The Yeti 500X covers it with 102Wh to spare.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD CPAP Machine 40W×8h
SCN-04 · 8 hours · needs 910Wh
Remote Workday
Full work day off-grid without power anxiety
Neither unit
Neither unit covers this scenario's 910Wh: the Sherpa 100AC comes up 830Wh short (about 9% covered), the Yeti 500X 488Wh (47%). This is well outside what either unit is for; the right answer here is a larger station, not a choice between these two.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Laptop 60W×8h · External Monitor 30W×8h · Router + Modem 20W×8h · Phone Charger 15W×2h
SCN-05 · 4 hours · needs 670Wh
Tailgate Party
Game day power for the crew
Neither unit
Neither unit can hold the 400W peak this scenario needs — the Sherpa 100AC on its 100W continuous rating, the Yeti 500X on its 300W, so capacity never gets a say. This is the wrong size of unit for the job rather than a close call.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Blender 400W×0.5h · LED TV (55") 80W×4h · Bluetooth Speaker 15W×4h · Phone Charger (×3) 45W×2h
SCN-06 · 24 hours · needs 4,685Wh
Van Life Daily
A full day of mobile living — the ultimate endurance test
Neither unit
The Sherpa 100AC can start the 150W peak but not hold it — 150W of surge gets it going, then the 100W continuous rating takes over, so capacity never gets a say. This is the wrong size of unit for the job rather than a close call. The Yeti 500X doesn't have the energy either — 422Wh usable against 4,685Wh, 4,263Wh short — so neither route works.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Mini-Fridge 150W×24h · Laptop 60W×4h · Phone Charger 15W×3h · LED Lights 40W×5h · Fan 75W×8h
SCN-07 · an afternoon · needs 100Wh
Afternoon Off-Grid
Phones and a speaker at the park, beach, or campsite — the small-unit job description
Yeti 500X
The Sherpa 100AC doesn't finish — 80Wh usable against the 100Wh this needs leaves it 20Wh short, about 81% of the scenario covered. The Yeti 500X covers it with 322Wh to spare.
Battery budget usedlower = more headroom
LOAD Phone Charger (×2) 30W×2h · Bluetooth Speaker 10W×4h
The Load Test
RUNTIME = (Wh × 0.85) ÷ LOAD
None of the scenarios above exactly yours? Build it. Toggle what you'd plug in; both units are tested against the combined draw.
Essentials
Comfort & Convenience
High-Draw Appliances
Test duration
8h
Continuous draw
205W
Projected runtime
Only the Yeti 500X can start this 205W load.
$499.95 list · direct from Goal Zero
Planning for more than this? Describe your whole setup and get it sized →
Modeled from the spec record — same math as the tables below. Methodology
Runtime by appliance
Real-world runtime estimates for common appliances, modeled at 85% inverter efficiency.¹
Essentials
The basics you need runningscale 0–28.2hComfort & Convenience
Makes off-grid life actually enjoyablescale 0–5.6hHigh-Draw Appliances
These reveal the real limits¹ Runtime = (capacity × 0.85) ÷ appliance watts. Within each group, all bars share one time scale (the group's longest runtime), so lengths are comparable across appliances; identical runtimes collapse into a single blue/orange bar. Actual runtime varies with battery age, temperature, and simultaneous loads — see methodology.
Conclusion
July 10, 2026
Verdict: the Yeti 500X, on Power Score margin
These two units are closely matched on individual specs, but our Power Score analysis gives the Yeti 500X the edge with a composite score of 1,181 vs 682.
Overall score margin: 682 vs 1,181 (−73.2%)
List prices as of July 10, 2026. The links below open Goal Zero's current price.
$499.95 · direct from Goal Zero
Last checked 28 days ago. Prices move — check before you buy.
or check the Sherpa 100AC price$249.95 list
Written by Wenny Zheng, Portable Power Tester · Station Arena Test Desk · Updated July 10, 2026
Black Friday · 26 days out
Prices to beat:Sherpa 100AC $250Yeti 500X $500
We have never seen either discounted, so any real cut would be a first.
Measured Data
Benchmark scores and the full spec record, side by side.
Benchmark scores
Not rated for both units (minimum threshold unmet): Tailgating, Apartment Balcony, Camping.
Full specifications
ᵈ Derived: price ÷ rated capacity. See the data behind our comparisons →
Comparison ToolAdd more power stations, side by sideOpen Tool →How these numbers are produced
Numeric verification
Every figure on this page traces to our spec database or arithmetic on it — no estimated numbers.
Owner claims
Statements about owner experience are cited to published reviews.
Runtime model
Runtime = (rated capacity × 0.85 inverter efficiency) ÷ device wattage. Solar recharge estimates assume panels deliver 70% of rated output. Cold weather, battery age, and stacked loads reduce real-world results.
Power Score
Computed from 14 published spec dimensions, weighted per use-case bench. Higher is better; a unit must meet a bench's minimum threshold to be rated.
See the full weight table and data sourcing on our methodology page →Class ranking (the star rating)
Each unit's star score is a category ranking, not customer reviews — no buyer opinions feed it. We score every station on size-independent quality (value, output, portability, endurance, ports, warranty, and more), then percentile-rank it against the other units in its capacity class, so a class-leading compact unit and a class-leading whole-home unit can both earn 5★. Here, Sherpa 100AC rates 3.3/5 (1st percentile of 25 Personal-class units), and Yeti 500X rates 3.6/5 (17th percentile of 25 Personal-class units).
How the class ranking is computed →Test Notes & Caveats
Hidden gotchas and advantages we spotted that you won't find on the product page.
Surge Power: Inverter Quality Indicator
The Yeti 500X has a 4× surge-to-continuous ratio vs the Sherpa 100AC's 1.5×, and the higher absolute ceiling with it — 1,200W against 150W. At 4× it clears the 2× rule of thumb for absorbing motor startups — fridges, AC compressors and power tools briefly draw 2-3× their rated wattage. What decides whether a given motor starts is the ceiling, not the ratio: the Sherpa 100AC still surges to 150W, so check the startup draw of the heaviest thing you plan to run against that figure rather than assuming it trips.
Warranty: No Difference
Both units carry the same 2-year warranty, so coverage isn't a tiebreaker here. Worth saying because the per-dollar framing can suggest otherwise: the Sherpa 100AC works out at 8 years of cover per $1,000 spent against the Yeti 500X's 4, but that spread is the price gap, not the terms.
Full record above — the Test Desk pick is the Yeti 500X.
Check Yeti 500X price →or check the Sherpa 100AC priceOwnership Analysis
What happens after you buy — true cost of ownership, brand trust, and growth potential.
Lifetime value
Service lifeyears at one full cycle per day
Lifetime energy delivered
Cost per delivered kWh
│ warranty ends · Reaching the cycle rating means ~80% capacity remains — degraded, not dead.
Analyst note
The Sherpa 100AC is cheaper to buy, but the Yeti 500X is cheaper to own. At $2.01/kWh over its lifetime vs $5.28/kWh, the Yeti 500X's higher cycle life and capacity make each dollar go further over the years. One thing to know reading the table: both carry the same 500-cycle rating, so the lifetime rows are sticker price and capacity in disguise — the wear horizon is identical and decides nothing here.
Delivers each lifetime kWh for $3.27 less — check the Yeti 500X price →
Growth path
Sherpa 100AC
FIXED CAPACITYFixed at 95Wh, with no expansion — so size it for your needs up front rather than planning to add capacity later.
Accepts up to 60W of solar. Limited to a single portable panel.
Limited ports. You'll likely need a power strip or splitter.
Yeti 500X
FIXED CAPACITYFixed at 497Wh, with no expansion — so size it for your needs up front rather than planning to add capacity later.
Accepts up to 120W of solar. Limited to a single portable panel.
Adequate ports for most setups, but heavy users may want a power strip.
Realistic full solar rechargeat 70% of rated panel output — see methodology
Analyst note
Neither expands, and that's no knock on either — each is a complete unit at a fixed size. Buy the capacity that covers your needs now (the Yeti 500X gives you the larger ceiling); you can't add to either later.
The Bottom Line
The full picture comes down to this. The Yeti 500X edges ahead on our overall analysis, but the margin is narrow enough that your specific use case should drive the decision. Review the scenario verdicts above — if the Sherpa 100AC wins in the scenarios that match your life, it's the right choice regardless of aggregate scores.
If neither the Sherpa 100AC nor the Yeti 500X feels like the right fit, your power needs probably sit outside what these two target. If you're planning whole-home backup or running power-hungry appliances (electric heaters, window AC), you'll want a larger system in the 3,000–5,000Wh range with expansion battery support. Prices on portable power stations fluctuate frequently. Both Goal Zero discount regularly, so check the current price before committing. Prime Day and Black Friday pricing typically drops 20-30%.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers drawn from the spec record and cited owner research.
Is the Yeti 500X worth $250 more than the Sherpa 100AC?
The short answer: yes, if you'll actually use the extra capability. The Yeti 500X costs $250 more, but that premium buys you 402.3Wh more battery capacity (that's 2 extra hours of running a mini-fridge); 200W higher AC output (opening the door to more demanding appliances); 60W faster solar charging for quicker off-grid recovery. On a cost-per-watt-hour basis, you're paying $1.01/Wh vs $2.64/Wh. Factor in cycle life and the math flips: the Yeti 500X costs $2.01/kWh over its lifetime vs $5.28/kWh. The "expensive" unit is actually cheaper to own. For regular use, we'd pay the premium.
Can I actually carry the Yeti 500X, or is the Sherpa 100AC the only portable option?
The Sherpa 100AC at 2.1 lbs is genuinely grab-and-go. Toss it in a backpack, carry it one-handed to a picnic, take it on a boat. The Yeti 500X at 12.9 lbs is a different story. It's like carrying a large suitcase full of books. If you're setting up and breaking down camp frequently, this weight difference will exhaust you by day two.
Bottom line: should I buy the Sherpa 100AC or the Yeti 500X?
We'd pay the premium for the Yeti 500X. Yes, it costs more. The capability jump is real: you're stepping into a tier that handles appliances the base model can't start. The Sherpa 100AC is still solid if budget is the priority, but the Yeti 500X will leave you less likely to wish you'd "gone bigger" six months from now. That regret costs more than the price difference.
Where to buy
Goal Zero Sherpa 100AC
$249.95
$249.95 · direct from Goal Zero
Last checked 28 days ago. Prices move — check before you buy.
Goal Zero Yeti 500XPick
$499.95
$499.95 · direct from Goal Zero
Last checked 28 days ago. Prices move — check before you buy.
Prices may vary by retailer and are subject to change.