Eneloop fan here as well but I've had ok lifespan with the green Duracell (from 4-5 years ago) and Fujitsu if you can still find those. I'll put in a big thumbs up for the Powerex cells as well (formerly known as Imedion). They've been toe to toe with any version of Eneloops I've had and they're a little less expensive. You can get them on amazon but check pricing on their main website as well because they usually have sale prices and free shipping at a low entry point ($25 I think)...sometimes cheaper there because they don't have to incorporate amazon's seller or prime fees, etc.
Charger is important if you want good cells to last as long as they can and give good performance along the way. Get a charger/analyzer if you don't mind a little fiddling - those will have programmed cycles and various settings that give you some control over your batteries and you can really maximize their lifespan. "Dumb" chargers just put juice in, usually quite slowly, and that often leads to a shortened lifespan before the cells don't charge as much or last as long in use. I have the older Powerex/Maha MH-C9000 and have very little to complain about with it other than the fact that it can't do lithium. They just replaced it with a newer model which is essentially the same. There are some good chargers from LaCrosse and Opus, too, and the MiBoxer C4-12 that I have and am very happy with for lithium will also do the NiMH cells (I like the Maha better but the MiBoxer is absolutely good and useable).
Powerex site (and the better batteries they have are now labeled "precharge"...the "pro" are ok but not as good in some ways): https://mahaenergy.com/
For cheap-all from china:
ebl
bonai
I watched a video from Project Farm that rates 10 batteries. Powerex is rated number 7 on the list.
Harbor freight aa and aaa nimh are decent for china cells.
So if you are in a pinch they are an option.eneloops they are not.
But not crap either.
Let us not overlook the fact that there are now some rechargable Li-Ion 1.5 volt batteries now hitting the market. That may prove to be a game changer, or a flop. One thing is certain, with Nimh, and both 3.7v AA and AAA, and 1.5 volts, we better get used to checking the lable prior to charging. Most chargers will not charge 1.5 volt Li-Ion, so they come with a charger just for those that will not work with NIMH or 3.7 volt 14500 batteries. Is it just a matter of time till flashlights are designed to take advantage of the high discharge rates of the lithium ions.
It is hard enough to get 1 use out of alkaleaks without them leaking and ruining a device. Recharging them would be a hard NO from me.
The rechargeable 1.5v lithiums are hit or miss, not to mention that they have horrendous self discharge rates (regular Li-ion self discharge rate + the buck circuit parasitic losses). They are just 3.7v batteries with a buck on it that steps the voltage down to 1.5v.
I did not have the EBL “alkaline charger” but I had another one. IMO, it’s a scam and a disaster. It does boost them, IF you don’t discharge them too badly. But what’s the benefit of that over NiMh which can go longer and not be damaged with the same relative use? Plus, you are severely limited in how many times you can do it.
The kicker is EVERY time you charge it, the likelihood of a leak goes up. The deeper the discharge, the worse the problem.
Don’t go there.
Project farm is very misleading.
Depends who the oem for powerex is at the time you get yours.
And i need to mention aacycler.com again.
Project farm did ok with his tests.
Aacycler tells you the cycle life.
Seen some of his stuff. What he can’t show is the white eneloops last forever
Them’s fightin’ words brother. 
I love Project Farm. What in particular was misleading?
Hate to be the doubter, but made in japan energizer rechargeable’s are crap compared to Eneloops. I’ve bought dozens of Energizer recharg batts. I used to think they were pretty good until my son’s wireless X-box controllers ate them for lunch. I’ve thrown most of them away. They are nothing compared to the Eneloop AA
Project farm does great tests, but he can’t do all tests. Such as cycle life longevity
Also those batteries aren’t really all in the same category either.
Eneloops are optimized for high cycle life and “good” capacity.
2700mah Powerex AAs you could say are optimized for “max” capacity without regard for cycle life.
Please explain what in the world is “misleading”.
Inquiring minds want to know.
I like his videos and generally he has a really great approach and methodology for testing...it varies, though, and there are some products/tests where his information is not accurate or reliable for one reason or another. I think that applies to his battery tests here as well, after viewing the three about rechargeables. Sometimes he falls short on the tech aspects that are important. For this series just off the bat he's using an imprecise piece of equipment that in no way substitutes for a proper bench test with the usual equipment, but it was cool that he took the approach he did and his results are not totally without merit. If I didn't already know what I do about cells, his information would be easy to swallow hook, line, and sinker, and there would seem to be no reason to question it really. But. I think for not being able or willing to try to duplicate the factory test methods/specs for a more true test of all of the cells, he still did a good job with it overall. He's a pretty smart guy...and he's gotta be making a killing on Youtube revenue at this point, wow.
Another small point to consider is his reliance on Amazon usually...sometimes that matters, and it certainly could for batteries as far as storage conditions or date of manufacture, but in this case he also dinged the Powerex for being the most expensive at $4 each. That tells me he grossly overpaid for them, but also didn't compare the prices of comparable Eneloop Pro (Powerex usually being considerably less expensive). But he bought those around the holidays/new year's as well, which is generally the time where pricing on Amazon is almost guaranteed to be higher than usual for many items.
I can say for both the old Imedion label and the newer Powerex labels that they really have been right up there with my other great cells including the Sanyo-branded Eneloops. Generally with the Powerex the AA has been within about 5% either direction and the AAA are usually 5%-10% low, except for the most recent 1000mAh "precharged" ones where 10 of the 12 were about 1100mAh in the first couple cycles and the others were I think 980 and 995 or so. That does indicate that whoever the Taiwanese factory is may have some QC issues, but they're still great cells. (The "pro" cells are made in Japan, AA only from them, and seem to handle higher current a little better but a little more self drain and if memory serves I think the tech charts showed them dropping a little more voltage under lower current compared to the precharge.)
Very good summary on the Project Farm AA test. I think his tests are damn good for the most part and often far more creative and superior to other tests. Great guy, great service.
The problem with any kind of battery test is the difference between ‘real world use’ and laboratory conditions (PF created a kind of real world laboratory). Real world can be all over the place with use/abuse patterns, and charging methods. That can make a significant difference in the performance and longevity of any battery.
It’s almost impossible to do meaningful real world longevity tests. By the time you get them done……the battery being tested may no longer exist, even if it might have the same skin.
Project Farm retested the batteries after a year in solar lights -
It means if you buy what the test show is the best one, you will be buying the wrong one.
Batteries have a 5+ year life. You cannot determine in a 2 hour test how the battery will behave over the course of 5+ years. Some batteries may die after a year. Some may die after 50 charge cycles. Some may lose significant run time after 50 charge cycles. His tests would never show that. His tests are objective but they dont mimic the real world.
He measures many things so you get the feeling he is thorough but his tests are really inconclusive.
He also claims a chainsaw is better if it cuts wood faster. Total nonsense.
He is a YouTube entertainer.
Then just take our word for it. I actively use white Enelооp, and some of them are already more than 7-8 years old. Yes, the capacity of the oldest is not the same, but they still work well.