Best Wireless (Bluetooth) Headphones and Earbuds
Wireless headphones free you from the cords that tether you to your music. And now that smartphones are ditching the headphone jack, they're more useful than ever. But with a plethora of wireless headphones available, which are worth a spot on your ears? Is it the Jabra Elite 65t, our current favorite wireless earbuds, the Bowers & Wilkens PX, our choice for best over-ear headphones or the Smartomi Q5 Wireless Earphones our choice for best truly wireless earbuds for under $60? We tested the most popular and well-known wireless headphones to find the ones that are best for you.
What Wireless Headphones Cost
Features like active noise cancelling can affect your headphones' price just as much as the design. For instance, you can snag a solid pair of wireless headphones for as little as $8 while mid-range cans and buds can range between $150-$250 while audiophile-grade headphones can cost upwards of $1,000.
News and Updates (March 2018)
- The Jabra Elite 65t just became our favorite truly wireless earbud thanks to its sleek, durable design, functionality and great audio quality.
- The Bowers & Wilkens PX headphones earned an Editor's Choice award for its stunning design, great audio and adjustable active noise cancelling technology.
- We just reviewed the Beyerdynamic Aventho Wireless headphones which give you a quick hearing test to deliver the optimal audio quality for your unique ears with 30 hours of untethered listening time.
- The new Bragi Dash Pro earphones can translate over 40 languages in real time. The buds will also track your heart rate and steps, store up 1,000 songs and last five hours on a charge.
If you're looking for a pair of truly wireless earbuds that are smart, comfortable and durable, with just the right touch of feature customization, the Jabra Elite 65t should be at the top of your list. The buds are sleek and unassuming, deliver great sound and last up to 5 hours on a charge. Thanks to Bluetooth 5.0 technology, the earbuds consume less power or longer battery life, can pair with two separate devices simultaneously and has a signal range up to 800 feet.
Editor's choice
Jabra Elite 65t
Best Truly Wireless Earbuds
Bose has once again raised the bar for headphones by combining its best-in-class active-noise cancellation technology with Google Assistant. The Bose QuietComfort 35 II feature a liberating and comfy wireless design and a dedicated button to summon Google’s A.I. without skimping on the powerful ANC. The volume-optimized EQ feature makes your tunes sound great even when you crank your phone to 11, while the 20 hours of battery life ensures you'll have plenty of juice for a couple of cross-country flights.
Editor's choice
Bose QuietComfort 35 II
Best Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones
The Smartomi Q5 earphones provide responsive bass, clean highs and solid mids typically found in more costly wireless earphones. Battery life came in around 4 hours, making these buds a good choice for anyone who endures long commutes to work or who wants to enjoy extended jam sessions. Phone conversations came through clearly as well, providing limited background noise.
Editor's choice
Smartomi Q5 Wireless Earphones
Best Truly Wireless Earphones Under $60
Out of all the wireless earbuds we've tested, the Sol Republic Shadow Wireless Earphones have the best combination of features and style. They offer great audio quality, a super-stylish design and strong battery life. Also, you can connect two devices to these earbuds, letting you seamlessly switch the source of your music. At just $99, you can't go wrong with these earbuds.
Editor's choice
Sol Republic Shadow Wireless
Best Wireless Earbuds
You get what you pay for. And in the case of the Bowers & Wilkins PX Wireless headphones, you're paying for quality. They're pricey at $399, but the headphones offer a gorgeous, sturdy design with great audio quality, solid active noise-cancelling technology and long battery life. When the headphones are paired with its free app, listeners have the ability to tweak what they hear and how much so listeners can control how much of the outside world gets in.
Editor's choice
Bowers & Wilkins PX Headphones
Best Wireless Headphones
The Beyerdynamic Aventho Wireless headphones deliver warm, rich audio while keeping the volume at safe levels. Thanks to the companion app, the headphones can adjust the sound profile based on your age or provide an in-depth hearing test for a more personalized listening experience. Outfitted with a capacitive touch controls, the cans provide smooth command inputs and lasts 30 hours on a charge.
Editor's choice
Beyerdynamic Aventho Wireless Headphones
Best Hearing Protection
The Jabra Sport Coach isn't just a great pair of wireless workout earbuds -- it also doubles as a personal trainer. Thanks to the Jabra Sport Life app, these earbuds deliver audible workout tips that help you get through a variety of demanding CrossFit activities. On top of its useful coaching features, the Sport Coach offers comfortable ear inserts and enough booming sound to keep you pumped up during any workout.
Editor's choice
Jabra Sport Coach
Best Sport Wireless Headphones
What to Look For
- The most important thing to look for in a pair of wireless headphones is battery life. Most devices have an expected battery life, or the number of hours the company says the device can last on a charge. Most wireless earbuds are rated for 6 to 8 hours, while wireless headphones can last about 25 hours.
- Another important factor is design — depending on how you like to wear them, you may want to go with on-ear, over-ear or in-ear wireless headphones.
- If you're interested in a pair of truly wireless buds, makes sure they come with a charging case. Since they have shorter battery life, there's a great likelihood you'll have to charge them on the go.
How We Test Wireless Headphones and Earbuds
To help you separate the wheat from the chaff when shopping for headphones, Tom's Guide evaluates the following criteria: design, comfort, features, performance and value. We employ a rigorous review process, comparing products with similar fit, features and pricing.
Each pair is worn over the course of a week for 2 hours at a time. During this testing period, the staff is evaluating comfort, ease of use and, of course, audio quality. We listen to several predetermined sample tracks that span a number of genres, including hip-hop, rock, jazz, classical and R&B, and we evaluate the volume, clarity and fullness.
In terms of features, we test the effectiveness of active noise cancelling, Bluetooth range and battery life. For the fitness-focused models, we test to see how they stand up to vigorous workouts, evaluating both how securely they fit while we exercise and how well they handle ambient noise from things like falling weights and gym machines. We test every feature for app-enabled headphones along with ease of setup.
Once we complete our testing, we rate headphones based on our ten-point system (1 = worst, 10 = best). If a product is truly exemplary, it's awarded an Editors' Choice.
And now that more streaming music services are offering high-resolution resolution audio, be sure to read our audio codec FAQ for everything you need to know about FLAC files, MP3s and everything in between.
See Also : 20 Best Music Apps
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Summary
About the author
Companies should be looking at these as the bar to beat. Not something 3 times bigger with no added benefits or even less options. I know when I read these articles to see what is the newest best thing, I just skim it to see if I see the bullet of one of the knockoffs. If I don't see it I just move along assuming they didn't do their homework.
And heads up. I have bought a few versions of these. One brand starts with an S and runs like 300+ for the pair and charger, Rowkin makes the same for just under half that and there are a few versions under 100 for a pair of 2 and the same bigger pocket charger. There is no real difference. I have the first 2 mentioned and one total knockoff for sure. All 3 kick butt. The cheapest I didn't like as much because the button to turn on and off is flush and not as easy to push because of that. Since the whole bud is so small it does make a difference. If the button looks round and not a bar, then that is the one I didn't like. Overall quality was the same though.
Also, I have seen these up to bluetooth 4.2 and not 5 yet.
Anyway, want me to take an article serious, include these so I know where your limits of good are at.
Oh, you can find multiple versions of these on eBay from the expensive to the cheaper version. I think they are on Amazon too. If you feel more pride in something the more you pay, knock yourself out and go for it. I thought they were all 3 very comparable. There are more than 3 brands though. I just wouldn't do the 340 price tag again. Seriouly no difference justifying that