The best pair of wireless earbuds does more than sound great. They should be comfortable, easy to use, sport a good mic for calls, and have a battery that won’t leave you stranded on a plane without a podcast to pass the time. And that’s just the bare minimum. Features like active noise cancellation, spatial audio, wireless charging, or maybe an app for personalized EQ are also increasingly must-haves. Plus, it’s worth considering a growing array of open wireless earbuds and an influx of AI features.
That sounds like a lot to take into account, but don’t worry. We made the decision easy with this list of the best wireless earbuds on the market for pretty much every occasion, including exercising, lots of bass, and blocking out the maximum amount of noise.
Best overall wireless earbuds: Samsung Galaxy 4 Pro
In my review of the Samsung Galaxy 4 Pro, I wrote that these wireless earbuds are back to basics in a good way, and I stand by that assessment. You may not get all the bells and whistles that come with something like a pair of AirPods—no fancy heart rate monitoring or other groundbreaking health features—but they nail all of the categories you look for in a good pair of wireless earbuds.
I’m a big fan of the sound; the active noise cancellation (ANC) is better than lots of other pairs; and, if you’re in the Samsung ecosystem, they play especially nice with your phone. I like that Samsung ditched the blade design of previous Galaxy Pro wireless earbuds, too, opting for a flatter stem with a metallic finish. These aren’t cheap wireless earbuds by any means (we have a budget category for that), but they’re still competitively priced when you consider the cost-to-quality ratio.
The biggest downside is that you won’t be able to take full advantage of the Galaxy 4 Pro if you don’t have a Samsung phone—that includes Galaxy AI features and even things like an earbud fit test. Still, even with those caveats, these wireless earbuds are among the more well-rounded out there. Read More
https://www.samsung.com/us/audio-sound/galaxy-buds4-pro/buy/galaxy-buds4-pro-black-sku-sm-r640nzkaxar/
Best wireless earbuds for AI: Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro Max
Wireless earbuds are becoming a lot more than just a portable way to listen to Bluetooth audio. Increasingly, AI features are just as important as good sound and ANC, and for a reasonable price, the Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro Max offer an almost overwhelming number of features.
Thanks to the Soundcore companion app and/or a screen-clad charging case, the Liberty 5 Pro Max can offer quite a few AI-powered features that work better than you’d expect, including transcription and subsequent AI summaries and real-time translation. One interesting fold to the real-time translation is that you can actually use the case as a way of playing your translated audio out loud, so between the earbuds and the case, it’s an all-in-one two-way translator.
The best news is that it’s not just AI that shines on the Liberty 5 Pro Max; ANC is also stellar, and sound is decent as well. These are all-around good wireless earbuds that could be the perfect value for someone who really wants to take advantage of all the new AI features that today’s audio hardware has to offer. Read more
[https://www.soundcore.com/products/d1203-liberty-5-pro-anc-earbuds-clear-calls?variant=46723612213438]
Best wireless earbuds for running: Shokz OpenFit Pro
There are lots of running-focused wireless earbuds out there, and while some people may prefer bone conduction, I’m more of a fan of Shokz’s premium earhooks, if just for one feature that most open earbuds don’t have: noise reduction.
Sometimes, you may want to have the most “open” experience possible when running, but not every occasion warrants that, like running on a treadmill. With noise reduction, Shokz gives you both options—you can quiet down the noise when you want or leave them completely open for times when you need to hear more. I was skeptical of how well Shokz’s noise reduction feature would work, since open earbuds haven’t really ventured into that territory yet on the whole, but I was surprised by how well it actually managed to tamp down on environmental sounds even at a busy convention floor and on the New York City subway.
What makes the OpenFit Pro even better for running is the earhook design that tucks behind your ear for more stability—slightly more stable than clips. These wireless earbuds are IP55 rated, so I wouldn’t venture out and use them to run a marathon in a monsoon, but that should be more than enough for most. Read more
[https://shokz.com/products/openfit-pro]
Best budget wireless earbuds: Nothing Ear 3a
What “budget” means in the world of wireless earbuds can vary, but by most people’s standards, $100 is an accessible price point. If you’re buying from Nothing, that price feels well worth it when considering the Ear 3a, its newest “a” line wireless earbuds.
While quirky features like call recording and transcription might catch your attention, those are less likely to appeal to the masses. But you should also look in Nothing’s direction for a mix of style and substance. In addition to solid sound and serviceable (if far from the best) ANC, you get to choose from a few fun colors this time around, including pink and a similar yellow used in its last A-series wireless earbuds.
Nothing’s Ear 3a aren’t the top of every critical category in wireless earbuds, to be sure, but the quality-to-price ratio makes them an easy choice over the flagship Ear 3, especially because the Ear 3’s “Super Mic” feature doesn’t work nearly as well as advertised in my experience. Read more
https://us.nothing.tech/products/ear-3a?Colour=White
Best open wireless earbuds: Shokz OpenDots 2
Shokz makes some of the best clip earbuds out there. The OpenDots 2 are comfortable and breathable, and they do stay on your ears well, even if they’re slightly too small for mine.
The reason I’m listing them as the top open wireless earbuds, though, has to do with the sound. While lots of clip-style earbuds struggle with low-end, Shokz includes its Bassphere technology in this pair and to great success. I find the sound in the OpenDots 2 to be much more well-rounded than cheaper clips, which can sound a bit tinny. If you want to up the audio quality even more, you can also enable Dolby Audio in the Shokz app, which widens the soundstage a bit (though you may not want to use it for every song).
The price is a tad on the premium side, but if you’re looking for a great mix of comfort, style, and excellent sound, the OpenDots 2 are worth the investment. Read more
https://shokz.com/products/opendots-2v
Best premium wireless earbuds: Sony WF-1000XM6
Sony definitely charges a premium for its flagship wireless earbuds and headphones, but when you use them, you can hear why. The WF-1000XM6 continue Sony’s great reputation in the space, making the price tag feel justifiable if you have the extra cash.
The highlight here for me is the sound quality. Sony said it tuned the WF-1000XM6 in collaboration with “Grammy winners,” and even if that’s just a bit of marketing, I think it paid off. The soundstage is spacious and well-balanced—the wireless earbuds are clear and natural-sounding, and while you can change the tuning yourself in the Sony app, they sounded great out of the box for me. Plus, they come with Sony’ DSEE Extreme, which is the company’s upscaling tech meant to polish crappy, compressed audio with software.
As great as the sound is, the ANC is almost as stellar (though not the king), and the redesigned shape makes them 11% slimmer than the WF-1000XM5. They’re on the boring side to look at as far as wireless earbuds go, but if you’re looking for something low-profile, they could speak to you. There are no fancy AI features here, but if all you’re looking for is a pair of wireless earbuds that absolutely crushes the important stuff—sound and ANC in particular—these could be the best pick for you. Read more
https://electronics.sony.com/audio/headphones/truly-wireless-earbuds/p/wf1000xm6-b
Best wireless earbuds for iPhone: AirPods Pro 3
AirPods might be some of the most ubiquitous wireless earbuds out there, but the AirPods Pro 3 aren’t resting on their laurels. In this generation of iconic Apple audio, the company expands capabilities to include a first-ever heart rate-tracking feature in AirPods, helping them toe the line between wireless earbuds and fitness wearables. Apple complements that feature with other AI tools like real-time translation.
Outside of the novel-ish AI, though, Apple executes on the things that AirPods have come to be known for, including great ANC, solid sound, and, of course, their inherent compatability with iPhones. The heart rate tracking, for example, works exclusively with the Apple Health app, and you’ll also get automatic device pairing, automatic device switching, and personalized spatial audio. Sure, they don’t have cameras in them yet, but don’t you worry, Apple is working on that. Read more
https://www.apple.com/airpods-pro/
Best noise-canceling wireless earbuds: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)
ANC isn’t always the most important aspect of wireless earbuds, but in the right situation, it could be. Having tested Bose’s second-gen QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) on an airplane and in the subway, I can confidently say that there’s no other pair that I’d rather rely on to block out screaming babies or ear-damaging train noise. In this generation, Bose also makes improvements to its ActiveSense technology for smoother adaptive ANC and adds wireless charging, which is great to have in any gadget, wireless earbuds included.
These wireless earbuds are no slouch sound-wise either, and while they aren’t as clear as true hi-fi buds, they hold it down with solid bass and plenty of features in the Bose app, including custom EQ. The design might divide some, but I think the QuietComfort Ultra 2 look pretty cool, despite being on the bigger side for wireless earbuds.
If you’re a fan of the way Bose combines minimalism with creativity, similar to its Ultra Open earbuds, then you’ll probably love the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) all the same. Read More
See Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2 at Amazon
Best wireless earbuds for Sleep: Soundcore Sleep A30
Not everyone needs or wants wireless earbuds for sleep specifically, but for those that do, the Soundcore Sleep A30 are arguably the best deal out there. Having tested the Sleep A30 at length, I can attest to their comfort—they’re designed to be flat, which is great for side sleepers like myself.
Unlike some other sleep-focused wireless earbuds out there, they also have ANC, and it’s stronger than you’d think—formidable enough to block out snoring if that’s something you need or want to do. Even with ANC on, Soundcore manages to extend battery life to more than nine hours if you’re using them in local mode, which downloads sleep sound to the earbuds instead of using Bluetooth.
Speaking of sleep sounds, Soundcore has a robust catalog of them in its companion app, which can be used for noise-masking or relaxation. While there are other new, strong competitors in this realm like Ozlo’s Sleepbuds 2, I still think the Souncore Sleep A30 give you the best proverbial bang for your buck. Read more
https://www.soundcore.com/products/d1301-sleep-a30-smart-anc-earbuds-for-sleeping?variant=45742504116414
