Low battery icon
The meter’s own battery is low. The battery icon on the display is the warning; some meters show bAtt when the battery is too low for the meter to work.
Easily confused with
How to read it
Fluke’s 114, 115 and 117 manual lists the battery symbol as a low battery warning when shown on the display, and bAtt as a message meaning the battery has to be replaced before the meter will operate. Klein Tools’ MM400, Extech’s EX330 and Mastech’s MAS838 all list a low battery icon among their display symbols. On the EX330 it appears in the lower left-hand corner of the display when the battery voltage becomes low; its specifications say it shows when the voltage is critically low.
Also searched as: BAT, bAtt, battery symbol on a multimeter, low battery indicator.
These pages describe what each setting, marking and reading means. They are not instructions for measuring anything. Meters differ between makers and models: the meter’s own manual says what each of its symbols means, which measurements it is rated for, and how to use it safely.
Why the manuals take it seriously
Klein’s manual says a low battery can cause false readings that lead to electrical shock, and says to replace the batteries when the indicator appears. Extech’s manual says not to use the EX330’s non-contact voltage detector if the battery is weak or bad.
Look-alikes
A battery outline with plus and minus at its ends, printed on a product or in a battery compartment, is the battery polarity mark. OL on the display is a reading, not the battery.
Read next
- Next in Multimeter symbolsDC voltage symbol (V⎓)The DC voltage setting. A V with a solid line over three dashes (⎓) measures direct current volts; the line and dashes are the standard mark for direct current.
- The same shape in Dashboard warning lightsLow fuel indicatorA yellow light that shows the fuel level is low.
More multimeter symbols
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with squares and rectangles.
Sources
- 114, 115, and 117 True-rms Multimeters: Users Manual, PN 2572573, July 2006, Rev. 1, 2/07, Fluke Corporation (copy hosted by UCL Electronic and Electrical Engineering), Symbols; Display; Error messages
- Multimeter Symbols, Buttons, Dials, and Display, Fluke learning centre article, Fluke Corporation, Digital multimeter display
- MM400 Auto-Ranging Digital Multimeter: Instruction Manual, MM400 instruction manual, Klein Tools (copy hosted by UBC Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences), Symbols on LCD; Warnings
- Mini Multimeter with Non-Contact Voltage Detector, Model EX330: User’s Guide, EX330-EU-ENG V4.2 1/08, Extech Instruments (copy hosted by Core Electronics), Low battery indication; General specifications; Non-contact voltage detector
- MAS838 Digital Multimeter: Operator’s Instruction Manual, MAS838 manual, Mastech (copy hosted by Akizuki Denshi), Specifications
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 9, 2026. How we research
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