LOST MARY WAVI vs ELFBAR Elfa Pro: Which Pod System Is Better? The 2026 Test

LOST MARY and ELFBAR come from the same group but compete in Switzerland as separate brands. Since 21 September 2026 the LOST MARY WAVI has been available in Switzerland, and it goes head to head with the established ELFBAR Elfa Pro, the brand's best-selling pod system. We used the devices side by side, measured and did the maths. Here is the direct comparison, point by point, with a clear result at the end.

The short version

• Test winner: LOST MARY WAVI. Bigger battery (800 mAh instead of 500), stronger draw, denser vapour, around 1000 puffs per pod instead of 600, and roughly a third cheaper per puff.
• ELFBAR Elfa Pro remains the slimmer, lighter device with the wider flavour range and three nicotine strengths (0, 10 and 20 mg/ml).

The key specs compared

Prices as of September 2026, always current on the product pages. Puff counts are manufacturer figures and depend on how long you draw.

Battery and runtime: the clearest difference

This is where it is decided. Most 2 ml pod systems on the market have 400 to 500 mAh, and the Elfa Pro with its 500 mAh sits right in that range. The WAVI arrives with 800 mAh, 60 per cent more capacity in a device that is only marginally bigger.

In everyday terms: the Elfa Pro gets through a working day with normal use, then wants the cable. The WAVI comfortably goes beyond the day with the same use; for us it usually only reached the middle level of the three-level indicator on the second evening. Anyone who dislikes charging every evening feels this difference daily.

There is also a detail you only notice in comparison: with the smaller battery of the Elfa Pro, output drops noticeably towards the end of the charge, the draw gets softer and the vapour thinner. The WAVI holds its output steady until shortly before the charge runs out.

The two handle the charge indicator differently. The WAVI shows three levels, so you know when it is time to charge. The Elfa Pro lights up an LED ring when you draw, without a real level indicator. More on this in the guide How to charge your vape properly.

Point: WAVI.

Vapour and draw: stronger, denser, more consistent

Both are pure mouth-to-lung devices with draw activation, so no button. The draw is tight on both, the way switchers from cigarettes like it. In direct comparison the WAVI draws noticeably stronger and produces denser vapour. The mesh coil in the WAVI pod is fed consistently by the stronger battery, so the draw stays the same from the first to the last puff of the pod.

The Elfa Pro vapes cleanly and, for a device this size, respectably, but seems a little more restrained next to it. If you like it subtle, that is not a drawback. If you are coming from a 600-puff disposable, the Elfa Pro gives you exactly what you are used to, the WAVI a bit more.

Point: WAVI.

Build quality and feel: almost a tie

The WAVI has a matte soft-touch body that feels soft, sits securely in the hand and shows no fingerprints. The pod sits snugly and does not wobble. The device feels more premium than the price suggests.

The Elfa Pro relies on a metal body with magnetically docking pods. That is slim, cool and robust, and at 16 mm in diameter and 91 mm long it is the most discreet device in the test. You barely notice it in a trouser pocket. The metal shows small signs of use over time, which hardly happens with the WAVI's soft-touch surface.

Honestly, this is a matter of taste. Build quality is high on both; we give the WAVI a wafer-thin edge for the nicer feel and the firmer pod fit, nothing more.

Point: tie, with a slight edge to the WAVI.

Price and running costs: the WAVI wins clearly per puff

At the start, the Elfa Pro kit at CHF 9.90 is two francs below the WAVI kit at CHF 11.90. Both kits contain the battery and one pod. But that is only half the calculation, because the WAVI pod lasts around 1000 puffs and the Elfa Pro pod around 600.

On running costs the picture flips:

• WAVI Pods: CHF 9.90 for two pods, around 2000 puffs. That is about CHF 4.95 per 1000 puffs.
• Elfa Pro pods: CHF 8.90 for two pods, around 1200 puffs. That is about CHF 7.40 per 1000 puffs. With volume pricing from 5 packs the price drops to CHF 7.90 per pack, about CHF 6.60 per 1000 puffs.

If you use a pod system daily, you recoup the higher WAVI kit price with the second twin pack. After that you save roughly a third every month compared with the Elfa Pro. What vaping costs in Switzerland overall is worked out in the guide What does vaping cost?.

Point: WAVI.

Flavour: both good, the WAVI a touch more intense

The flavour lists overlap heavily, which is no surprise given the shared origin: Blueberry, Cola, Strawberry Ice, Watermelon Ice or Triple Mango exist on both. If you are after a particular standard flavour, you will find it in both systems.

The differences are in the detail. WAVI Pods taste more intense and a little rounder, especially the berry flavours. Triple Berry is the flavour that won everyone over in the test: three berries, clearly separated, not too sweet and without the perfumed undertone you know from some disposables. Golden Peach and Fizzy Cherry also have a character of their own that ELFBAR does not offer in this form. LOST MARY says it tailored the selection to the Swiss market, and you can tell: less sugar bomb, more fruit.

Elfa Pro pods are clean and reliable, the flavours a little milder. In return ELFBAR has the wider range with more than 20 flavours, including classics like Spearmint, Lemon Mint, Snoow Tobacco or Watermelon Mojito, and, unlike LOST MARY, also pods at 0 and 10 mg/ml. If you want to cut down on nicotine or vape without it, only the Elfa Pro offers that path within the same system. How to pick the right strength is covered in the nicotine strength guide.

Point for flavour: WAVI, narrowly. Point for range and nicotine strengths: Elfa Pro.

Size, weight, everyday use

The Elfa Pro is the smallest and lightest device in the test and disappears into any pocket. The WAVI is marginally thicker but sits more comfortably in the hand. Both take pods without tools: pull out the empty pod, insert the new one, done, with no refilling and no coil change.

Point: Elfa Pro for compactness.

Compatibility and spare parts

WAVI Pods fit exclusively in the WAVI battery. Elfa Pro pods fit the Elfa Pro and the older Elfa. Nothing can be swapped between the brands, even though both come from the same manufacturer.

A replacement battery is only available as a kit with a pod for both systems, which is bearable given kit prices of CHF 9.90 and 11.90. Both systems ship from iVape's Swiss warehouse; the overview is in the pod systems category.

The result

Test winner: LOST MARY WAVI. It wins the categories that matter most in daily use: battery, vapour, costs and flavour. The Elfa Pro remains a good choice if you want the smallest possible device, vape at less than 20 mg/ml or are after a flavour the WAVI does not have.

Why the WAVI replaces the BM6000

Until autumn 2026 the LOST MARY BM6000 was the brand's best-selling device in Switzerland. The WAVI takes over that role with a different concept: instead of the large refill container it relies on classic prefilled 2 ml pods with 20 mg/ml nicotine salt, exactly the format the Swiss Tobacco Products Act provides for. If you liked the BM6000 for its long runtime, the WAVI gives you the biggest battery currently available in a 2 ml pod system of this size.

All details on the kit, colours and pods are on the model page LOST MARY WAVI, the ELFBAR counterpart on the page ELFBAR Elfa Pro. For an overview of all models from both brands, see the guides LOST MARY models compared and ELFBAR models compared.

Our recommendation

• Take the LOST MARY WAVI if you want the more complete package: long runtime, strong draw, low cost per puff. To start, we recommend the kit in Blue with Triple Berry, and for refills the WAVI Pods twin pack.
• Take the ELFBAR Elfa Pro if you want the smallest device, vape at 0 or 10 mg/ml or do not want to give up an ELFBAR flavour like Spearmint or Snoow Tobacco. Pods come as the Elfa Pro pods twin pack.

How to look after the device day to day and when a pod is really empty is explained in the pod system guide for Switzerland.

Both systems contain nicotine (up to 20 mg/ml); nicotine is highly addictive. Sold to adults aged 18 and over only.