CR2025 vs CR2016
The CR2025 and CR2016 are 3 volt lithium coin cells sharing a 20 mm diameter and differing by less than a millimeter of thickness: 2.5 against 1.6 mm. That sliver of height nearly doubles the capacity, 165 mAh versus 90, and determines which fits your device.
| CR2025 | CR2016 | |
|---|---|---|
| Chemistry | Lithium manganese dioxide (Li/MnO2) | Lithium manganese dioxide (Li/MnO2) |
| Voltage | 3 V | 3 V |
| Diameter | 20 mm | 20 mm |
| Height | 2.5 mm | 1.6 mm |
| Capacity | 160-170 mAh | 85-90 mAh |
| Also sold as | DL2025, ECR2025, BR2025 (wide-temp variant), 5003LC | DL2016, ECR2016, BR2016 (wide-temp variant), 5000LC |
From above these cells are indistinguishable, which is why so many get bought wrong. The height difference is only 0.9 mm, small enough that a CR2025 will sometimes squeeze into a CR2016 compartment and a CR2016 will sometimes make contact in a CR2025 holder. Sometimes is the problem: marginal fits produce fobs that work on the counter and die in a pocket, and remotes that need a smack to respond.
Both sizes are staples in car key fobs, and the same fob model can take either across different years, so folklore is unreliable; the marking on the cell you remove is the only trustworthy reference. Where a compartment genuinely accepts both, the CR2025's extra capacity makes it the better fill.
The stacking caveat applies here too: some devices pair two CR2016s for 6 volts. A single CR2025 cannot substitute for that pair electrically, and two CR2025s will not fit in a stack built for 3.2 mm. Replace pairs with identical pairs.