TIANQIUAn LR43 is not a hard cell to understand — it is the middle one of four button cells that all measure 11.6 mm across, and the confusion comes from the name printed on the pack rather than from the battery. Buyers meet it as an AG12, a 186, an L1142, a V12GA, or as a silver-oxide 386 or 301 in the same slot, and one digit away sits the AG13, which is a different cell altogether.
This page sets out what the LR43 is, every code the same size travels under, the two substitutions that are sound and the two that are not, and what an OEM order for the cell has to state.
What is an LR43 battery?
An LR43 is a 1.5 V alkaline zinc-manganese dioxide button cell, 11.6 mm in diameter and 4.2 mm high. IEC designates the alkaline cell LR43 and the silver-oxide cell in the same can SR43. In our own range the model is printed LR43/LR43H, the H suffix being a second designation for the identical cell.
The chemistry is what fixes the voltage and the shape of the discharge curve; the can is what fixes whether the cell fits. Because the LR43 is an alkaline cell it holds 1.5 V nominal and delivers its capacity over a gradually falling curve, which is why it is the economical choice in devices that are expected to run down and be replaced rather than measured against a precision reference.
Our declared figures for the cell are on the model page and on the data sheet behind it:
| Property | Our LR43 / LR43H |
|---|---|
| IEC designation | LR43 |
| Chemistry | Alkaline zinc-manganese dioxide (Zn-MnO₂), non-rechargeable |
| Nominal voltage | 1.5 V |
| Size | 11.6 mm diameter × 4.2 mm high |
| Declared capacity | 86 mAh |
| Approx. weight | 1.48 g (only for reference) |
| Declared discharge time | 640 hours to a 1.2 V cut-off at 10 kΩ, 24 h/day, 20 ± 2 °C |
| Declared storage | One year under normal storage conditions |
| EU declaration | TQ-EUDOC-LR43-20260701 (alkaline button family) |
Every row is taken from our own documentation for the models we manufacture. Weight is given as approximate because it varies with the seal and the can lot; capacity is declared for the test condition printed beside it, not as a guaranteed figure for every load. Ask for the data sheet of the exact model before you quote a number onwards.
What is an LR43 battery equivalent to?
An LR43 is equivalent to any 11.6 × 4.2 mm button cell of the same chemistry: the cell sold as AG12, L1142 or LR1142 and GP186, and the maker codes V12GA (Varta) and 186 (one maker’s miniature alkaline line). The silver-oxide cell in the same footprint is the SR43, sold in the watch trade as 386 or 301 at 1.55 V.
Those names come from four different systems stacked on one cell, and a buyer holding any one of them needs the others. The table below separates the designations by what they actually are, because a trade name, a maker code and an IEC code do not carry the same information.
| Code | What it is | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|
| LR43 | IEC designation for the 1.5 V alkaline cell in this size | Standards and data sheets; our own model designation |
| LR43H | Second designation for the same cell, used alongside LR43 | Our product name (LR43/LR43H) and our packaging |
| AG12 | Trade name for this size; the A and G prefixes are catalogue conventions | Retail packs and our own blister code AG12SP10 |
| L1142 / LR1142 | Another trade designation for the same alkaline size | Trade catalogues and cross-reference lists |
| 186 | One maker's own code for its alkaline cell in this size | That maker's miniature alkaline product line |
| V12GA | Varta's own code for its LR43 | Varta alkaline button-cell range |
| GP186 | GP's own code for this size | Trade cross-reference lists — single source, treat as unconfirmed |
| D186A / D186 | A brand code printed for the same size in trade listings | Third-party equivalent lists — single source, treat as unconfirmed |
| SR43 / SR43SW | IEC designation for the 1.55 V silver-oxide cell in the same can | Watch and instrument data sheets |
| 386 / 301 | Watch-trade numbers for the 11.6 × 4.2 mm silver-oxide cell | Watch-cell charts; our own watch battery data |
Rows marked single source are listed so you recognise the number if it is printed on a pack in front of you; we could not confirm them in a second independent manufacturer document, so treat them as unconfirmed and check the cell physically. The AG12 and 186 names also appear in our own packaging and product-line data for this size.
The lesson worth keeping from that table is that a code identifies a size and a system, and only sometimes a capacity. Two cells can both be 11.6 × 4.2 mm and still differ in what they deliver, which is why the next two sections matter more than the list itself.
Is an LR43 the same as an LR44?
No — the LR44 is 1.2 mm taller. Both are 1.5 V alkaline cells with an 11.6 mm diameter, but the LR43 is 4.2 mm high and the LR44 is 5.4 mm, and that 1.2 mm decides whether a device’s cover closes. The trade names are one digit apart as well: AG12 is the LR43, AG13 is the LR44.
The four cells that share this 11.6 mm diameter differ only in height, and height decides both the fit and, broadly, the capacity, because a taller can holds more active material.
| Cell | Trade name | Diameter | Height | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LR1120 | AG8 | 11.6 mm | 2.1 mm | Very slim housings |
| LR1130 | AG10 | 11.6 mm | 3.1 mm | Low-profile housings |
| LR43 | AG12 | 11.6 mm | 4.2 mm | Mid-height button compartments |
| LR44 | AG13 | 11.6 mm | 5.4 mm | Standard button compartments |
The dimensions are the ones our own packing data carries for these four sizes, and they agree with the maker data sheets for the same cells. Because only the height changes, a mixed tray of 11.6 mm cells looks uniform at a glance — which is how the wrong one ends up in a device. Check the height, not just the diameter.
A cell that is too short does not fail cleanly. It sits in the holder, the spring or the clip reaches it only part of the time, and the device behaves as if the cell were flat: it works when you tap it and stops when you set it down. That is a worse failure mode than a cell that obviously does not fit, because it sends people looking for a fault in the device.
Is an LR43 the same as an SR43 or a 386?
They fit the same holder but they are not the same cell. SR43, SR43SW, 386 and 301 all describe an 11.6 × 4.2 mm button cell in silver oxide, rated 1.55 V, and the LR43 is the same can in alkaline chemistry at 1.5 V. Same body, different chemistry inside it.
The practical consequence is a flatness difference rather than a size difference. A silver-oxide cell holds its voltage closer to its nominal value across the discharge, so a watch or an instrument that judges the state of the battery from its voltage stays accurate for longer on silver oxide than on alkaline. An alkaline LR43 in the same slot is a cheaper cell that runs down on a more gradual curve.
| Property | LR43 (alkaline) | SR43 / 386 / 301 (silver oxide) |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal voltage | 1.5 V | 1.55 V |
| Chemistries side by side | Zinc-manganese dioxide | Silver oxide |
| Body | 11.6 × 4.2 mm | 11.6 × 4.2 mm |
| Discharge curve | Falls gradually through life | Holds closer to nominal until the end |
| Typical use | Economical everyday button-cell devices | Watches, instruments, precision work |
Fitting one holder is not the same as being electrically equivalent. This is the distinction the term equivalent hides, and it is worth stating explicitly whenever a buyer is cross-referencing a part number: the can decides whether the cell goes in, and the chemistry decides how the device behaves once it is in.
There is one further trap in the same family. The numbers 386 and 301 both describe 11.6 × 4.2 mm silver-oxide cells, but they are different products with different drain characteristics, and the trade uses them for different applications. If a device names one of them, fit that one rather than whichever happens to be in stock, and check the number printed on the cell you are replacing.
Why does the same cell have so many numbers?
Because four numbering systems meet in one battery. IEC assigns the chemistry-and-size designations, national standards bodies added their own codes, and each large manufacturer catalogued the size under its own part number — and all of them end up printed in the same online equivalent lists. None of the systems is wrong; they answer different questions.
The clearest example of the duplication inside one manufacturer is our own. The model is named LR43/LR43H because both spellings are in commercial use for the identical cell, and the retail pack for it is coded AG12SP10, which carries the trade name, the pack convention and the piece count in nine characters. A buyer ordering against any one of those strings is ordering the same product, and the button cell guide walks through how the letters in front of a code map to the chemistry behind them.
Which devices take an LR43?
The size suits small devices with a low to medium drain. Our own LR43 page names toys, torches, meters and thermometers for the alkaline cell, and the silver-oxide version of the same footprint covers the precision end of the market — watches, small calculators and instruments, where the flatter discharge curve is worth the difference in cost.
Two ordering habits prevent most of the mistakes. First, read the number off the old cell rather than off the device’s manual, because manuals are reprinted across model years and the cell can change while the manual does not. Second, if a device names a silver-oxide cell, buy silver oxide; the alkaline cell fits, but it will not hold the accuracy the device was designed around. The cell cross-reference tool resolves a code you already have to the standard size, and the voltage guide covers what the 1.5 V and 1.55 V labels mean in practice.
How is an LR43 stored, and how long does it last?
Our data sheet declares one year of storage under normal conditions for this model, with capacity quoted at 86 mAh for the test condition printed beside it. Storage life is declared per model, not fixed for button cells in general, so ask for the data sheet of the cell you are buying.
Where the cells are held before they are used, three things decide how much capacity arrives at the device. Keep them in the original packaging, because the pack is the short-circuit protection; keep them out of damp and direct heat; and rotate stock by the production date rather than by the delivery date. Our cells carry a production date code printed on the body in the format you specify for the order, so a retail programme can print a replace-before line on the pack that agrees with the cell inside — the mechanics are set out in the packaging guide.
What does an LR43 order have to state?
For an OEM or wholesale order the cell specification, the packing format and the market are the three things that have to be pinned down before production, and the answers change what is printed and what documentation ships with the goods.
We produce the LR43 / LR43H on our own lines with 0% mercury added, and ship it as a bare cell or in a retail format — blister card, strip or box — with the cell, the card and the box printed in the same plant, so the artwork proof and the cell specification move together. First orders start from 50 cartons per product line, and mixed-SKU cartons are possible for retail programmes, as set out in the MOQ guide.
Documentation follows the chemistry. The LR43 is an alkaline cell, so it ships with the EU Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 paperwork for the models in the order — our declaration for this model is TQ-EUDOC-LR43-20260701 — and UN38.3, the lithium transport test, does not apply to it. Tell us the market you are selling into and we return the current file for the models you are ordering; the certification matrix shows which document answers which question.
Where the figures on this page come from
Every number above is quoted from a document you can check, and none of it is estimated. Where a figure is a maker’s declared value rather than a standard dimension, the source is named so you can verify it or ask us for the file.
- Dimensions, voltage and chemistry — the IEC system for the LR and SR designations, and the size data our own packing files carry for the 11.6 mm button-cell family (AG8, AG10, AG12, AG13).
- Capacity, weight, discharge time and storage — our own published data for the LR43 / LR43H we manufacture, on the LR43 model page and the data sheet behind it, tested at 20 ± 2 °C.
- Maker codes and trade names — the Varta alkaline special V12GA/LR43 product data (11.6 × 4.2 mm, 1.5 V, alkali-manganese) and one maker’s miniature alkaline line for its 186 code (size LR43, 11.6 × 4.2 mm, 1.5 V). The remaining aliases come from trade cross-reference lists and are marked single source in the table above where they could not be confirmed in a second manufacturer document.
- The silver-oxide footprint — the watch-cell cross-reference material behind our own watch battery data, which lists the 11.6 × 4.2 mm silver-oxide cell as 386 / SR43W.