AGM means absorbed glass mat, and it means the battery acid inside is absorbed into fiberglass mats instead of sitting as a free-flowing liquid.

More than half of new vehicles sold after 2019 require an AGM battery because of their electrical power needs. As of 2022, more than 50 million vehicles on the road require an AGM battery.

Also, every time the engine cuts off, the AGM battery steps in to run your air conditioning, fuel sensor, transmission, radio and all the other electronics that keep your car running smoothly.

Even a car without auto start stop can strain its car battery because of all the electronics onboard. With collision sensors, fuel sensors and air conditioning to run, an alternator has fewer amps to give your car battery. Unless you’re traveling at highway speeds, recharging your car battery isn’t a priority for your alternator. In that case, a regular car battery might go for a while between recharges, and that’s not good for it.