The battery a Honda key fob takes is printed on the battery already inside it. That stamp is a better answer than a model-year chart, because Honda used more than one remote in the same year, and a replacement fob bought later may not match the car’s build.
For a fast shopping list: proximity smart keys from roughly 2013 onward are usually CR2032. Flip keys and separate remote heads from the 2000s and early 2010s are usually CR1616. A smaller group of compact remotes uses CR2025. All three are 3-volt lithium coin cells.
The battery, stated plainly
| What this page covers | what battery does a honda key fob take |
|---|---|
| Battery to buy | CR2032, CR1616, or CR2025 |
| Fob you are likely holding | Smart keys and older remote heads |
| Cell type | 3-volt lithium coin cell. Do not use a rechargeable LIR cell. |
| Programming after the swap | Not required when you only change the battery. |
CR2032 is the cell you will buy for a Civic, Accord, CR-V, Pilot, Odyssey, HR-V, Passport, or Ridgeline that lets you walk up and press a start button with the fob in a pocket. The cell is 20 millimeters across and 3.2 millimeters thick. It is the same size used in a lot of other car fobs, computer motherboards, and kitchen scales. The Honda part is not special. The holder is.
CR1616 is thinner and smaller in diameter. It shows up in older Civic, Accord, Element, and early Ridgeline remotes, and in plenty of flip keys where the remote is the head of the metal key. People buy CR2032 for these by mistake because the number is more famous. The larger cell will not sit in the cup.
CR2025 shares the 20 millimeter width of a CR2032 and is only 2.5 millimeters thick. A few older Honda remotes use it. If you drop a CR2032 into a CR2025 slot, the cover will bulge or refuse to close. If you drop a CR2025 into a CR2032 slot, the contact finger barely touches and the fob works on the table, then dies in a coat pocket.
There is no Honda-only battery chemistry. Panasonic, Murata, Energizer, and Duracell CR cells of the correct number are the right purchase. The car does not detect the brand. It detects voltage and whether both faces of the cell meet the contacts.
Trims matter less than the shell in your hand. A Touring car and an LX from the same year sometimes shipped with different keys, especially in the middle 2010s when proximity entry was still a package. Europe, the UK, Australia, and the Middle East also received different button layouts. None of that changes the rule: open the fob and read the code.
Changing the cell
You only need to open the fob far enough to see the stamp. On a smart key, remove the emergency key and twist a coin in the notch. On a flip key, back out the small screw or slide the door. Photograph the cell before you lever it out, so the plus face is recorded.
Write the code down. Buy that code. Put the new cell back the same way the photograph shows. If the photograph and the molded diagram disagree, believe the molded diagram and the old orientation together. They almost always agree.
If the fob still misbehaves
A fob that takes CR2032 and has been fed a CR2032 will still fail if the cell is backward or the contact finger is bent. That is not a sizing problem. The page on a fob that does not work after a battery change walks through those cases.
If the old cell’s stamp is rubbed away, match the diameter with a ruler or with a fresh cell held against it in the store, and look at the diagram inside the shell. Do not guess from the year painted on the registration.
What to spend, and what not to buy
Buy one or two cells, not a jar of anonymous imports. A quality CR2032 is cheap enough that the expensive choice is the dealer labor charge, not the part. Keep one spare in the glove box, in the plastic it came in, not loose against coins. A loose coin cell in a tray of change can short itself flat before you ever need it.
Related guides
- Honda Key Fob Battery Size Chart
- Honda Key Fob CR2032 Battery
- Honda Key Fob CR1616 Battery
- How to Replace a Honda Key Fob Battery
Questions people ask
Is every Honda key fob a CR2032?
No. Smart proximity fobs usually are. Many older flip keys and remote heads are CR1616, and some are CR2025.
Are Honda key fob batteries different in Europe or Canada?
The IEC number is the same worldwide. The shell and the button count change by market. Read the cell in your fob.
What does the number on the battery mean?
CR means lithium manganese dioxide. The first two digits are diameter in millimeters. The last two are thickness in tenths of a millimeter.
Honda is a trademark of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Honda Key Fob Battery is an independent guide and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Honda. The code printed on the cell already in your fob overrides any chart. A fob bought later, or a car sold in another country, can use a different shell.