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May 26, 2023

The 4 Best Bluetooth Wireless Headphones of 2023

After completing new testing, we’ve got three new picks: JBL Tour One M2 (top pick), 1More SonoFlow (budget pick), and Sony WH-1000XM5 (upgrade pick). Earbuds are discreet and convenient to use, but

After completing new testing, we’ve got three new picks: JBL Tour One M2 (top pick), 1More SonoFlow (budget pick), and Sony WH-1000XM5 (upgrade pick).

Earbuds are discreet and convenient to use, but if you want to get the best wireless sound for the money, choose over-ear Bluetooth headphones.

Although no single headphones set is a perfect match for everyone, the JBL Tour One M2 comes darn close. We love this pair’s customizable sound, stellar call clarity, and days-long battery life—plus, it includes some bonus features usually reserved for pricier pairs.

This versatile, over-ear pair sounds great, has a long battery life, and offers premium features at a lower price than its competitors. Some controls are a bit sensitive, though.

This affordable pair sounds good, is comfortable to wear, and has an impressively long battery life. Unfortunately, the noise cancellation does not work in wired mode.

These headphones are well made and feature-packed, and they can sound wonderful. But to get them sounding their best, some setup effort is required.

This pair provides the convenience of Bluetooth while still prioritizing sound quality. But these headphones lack features like noise cancellation and water resistance, so they aren’t ideal for commuters.

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Our audio experts test for detailed, lifelike sound and clear microphone quality for phone and video calls.

A well-designed pair should fit most head sizes, and the controls should be easy to use. We have a variety of people try out our top contenders.

Batteries should last at least eight to 10 hours and ideally have an analog cable for situations where you need to listen wired.

We pair contenders with several different devices and test wireless reliability indoors, outdoors, and at a distance.

This versatile, over-ear pair sounds great, has a long battery life, and offers premium features at a lower price than its competitors. Some controls are a bit sensitive, though.

JBL’s Tour One M2 is a comfortable, feature-rich Bluetooth set that does most everything well. The sound is good right out of the box, and it can be further improved with the use of the EQ settings in JBL’s app. The battery life, rated at 30 to 50 hours, is excellent, and the battery recharges quickly.

Voice control is available via the always-listening Alexa and Google Assistant functions, and Apple users can access Siri via a simple button push. The M2 supports dual-device connectivity, and the built-in microphones reduce wind and background noise remarkably well, ensuring clear phone calls—even on the go. Plus, this pair is water-resistant (with an IPX5 rating), so your gear won’t be ruined by rainy-day splashes.

Flaws are minimal: Though we like the combination of touch-based and physical control buttons, the touchpad can be a bit over-sensitive. Also, the active noise cancellation (ANC) is good but not as effective as that of our favorite noise-cancelling headphones.

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This affordable pair sounds good, is comfortable to wear, and has an impressively long battery life. Unfortunately, the noise cancellation does not work in wired mode.

If you want a solid set of wireless headphones in the $100 range, we recommend the 1More SonoFlow. The sound is adjustable to your preference, and this set is lightweight, with foam earcups that are soft and comfortable.

The battery life of 50 to 70 hours is especially impressive for a pair at this price. The five microphones ensure that your voice sounds clear over calls, and the dual-device connectivity lets you swap audio between two devices without touching the Bluetooth settings.

The noise cancellation is effective, though not as superb as that of our pick for the best noise-cancelling headphones. However, the ANC does not work when you use the supplied cable. So if you’re using an audio device that requires a wired connection, you’ll either have to go without ANC or pick up a Bluetooth transmitter.

These headphones are well made and feature-packed, and they can sound wonderful. But to get them sounding their best, some setup effort is required.

If you’re willing to pay more to get a premium experience, the well-constructed Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones are extremely comfortable, can sound great, and have a nice assortment of features that suit them for a variety of uses.

Out of the box, this pair’s sound quality is just okay. But if you put effort into adjusting the equalizer settings in Sony’s app, the WH-1000XM5 can sound better than our top pick and many other wireless competitors. The battery life is a solid 24 hours, and the combination of physical and touch-based controls works more intuitively on this pair than on our top pick, the JBL Tour One M2.

The XM5 set is particularly well suited for use in a loud office environment, since it passively blocks out human voices but has a natural-sounding awareness mode to let in sounds as needed. Plus, the speak-to-chat function will sense your voice, turn on the awareness mode, and pause your music automatically. And the built-in microphones are effective at reducing background noise during phone or video calls.

The noise cancellation isn’t as effective as that of our top pick, and this set isn’t built for water resistance, though it can handle a light spritzing rain. Sony’s one-year limited warranty covers manufacturing defects but not water damage, so we don’t recommend that you take this pair to the gym or out for a stroll in a deluge.

This pair provides the convenience of Bluetooth while still prioritizing sound quality. But these headphones lack features like noise cancellation and water resistance, so they aren’t ideal for commuters.

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If your priority is to find wireless over-ear headphones that sound fantastic, the Edifier Stax Spirit S3 is for you. This pair is among the best-sounding under-$500 headphones we’ve ever tested, including those in our guide to wired audiophile headphones.

This portable pair uses planar-magnetic drivers, which are capable of reproducing delicate detail and powerful bass notes. The S3 sounds amazing in both wired and wireless mode, largely due to the built-in headphone amplifier, which provides consistent driving power. Edifier includes two types of earpads (isolating pleather and cooling, breathable mesh), and the sound quality remains consistent when you swap between them.

Though this pair has to be powered on to work, the 80-hour battery life means you won’t need to charge frequently, and there’s a quick-charge feature when you do. The built-in microphones sound clear, even in a light breeze, and the dual-device connectivity works well, for easy transition between phone and laptop use.

Though this pair is portable, the lack of water resistance means you need to be careful when commuting in inclement weather, and you should choose a different pair for working out. Plus, this pair lacks active noise cancellation.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in both music performance and audio production from Ithaca College, and my reviews of audio gear have been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, the Los Angeles Times, and Time, as well as on Good Morning America, the BBC World Service, and NBC Nightly News.

I also spent several years in terrestrial radio before becoming a professional voice actor in Los Angeles—so I’ve been in and out of recording studios for over a decade.

While working for Wirecutter, I’ve tested over 1,700 pairs of headphones. In addition to my own testing, at Wirecutter we seek input from a rotating roster of audio experts, including session musicians, a sound editor, and experienced AV reviewers.

Over-ear and on-ear Bluetooth headphones are excellent for anyone who wants the best wireless sound for the money and/or doesn’t like the feel of earbuds in their ears. Compared with similarly priced earbuds, this headphones style has more bass response and a better sense of three-dimensionality in the sound.

Going cordless does come at a price, though. You should expect to pay more for Bluetooth headphones, to get sound comparable to that from the best wired headphones.

Although many of the sets in this guide offer active noise cancellation, we prioritized sound quality, comfort, and ease of use in our evaluations for this guide. If noise cancellation is your top priority, check out our noise-cancelling headphones guide instead.

If you’re looking for a pair of over-ear headphones to use for work, and your tasks include a lot of video chatting, phone calls, or work with dictation software, you may want to consider an office headset with a boom mic. You can find wireless options—even a few that sound pretty good while playing music—in our guide to office headsets.

Whether you prefer over-ear or in-ear noise-cancelling headphones, we have recommendations to help bring peace to your next trip.

Audiophile headphones focus on delivering the best sound quality, period. We’ve tested hundreds of them and selected our favorites for specific uses.

For this guide, we’ve considered hundreds of headphone sets. To help us decide which ones are the best, we used the following criteria:

To test over-ear headphones, our expert panelists first evaluate each pair’s sound, fit, and ease of use. The sets that perform well in those categories move on to round two, in which we test battery life, Bluetooth signal strength, and microphone quality. We evaluate call clarity in environments that are quiet, noisy, and windy.

Next, we tinker with the apps and any bonus features (like location services, voice activation, dual-device connection, and control customization). If applicable, we mist the headphones with water to see how moisture might impact the touch controls. We try each pair on with glasses and consider how head shape or hairstyles could affect the fit. And if the headphones have active noise cancellation that sounds subjectively effective, we measure it.

Finally, to suss out long-term listening comfort, as well as any potential flaws we may have missed in the initial testing, we spend time using each pair during daily activities for about a week.

A couple of notes: We do not prioritize specific Bluetooth formats, or codecs, and we explain why in this article. Though many over-ear headphones support dual-device connectivity, the manufacturers often say that computer connection is not supported. This is not entirely true, but here’s why they say it.

Bluetooth headphones should work reliably with most newer computers and laptops. If yours don’t, here are some possible reasons why.

This versatile, over-ear pair sounds great, has a long battery life, and offers premium features at a lower price than its competitors. Some controls are a bit sensitive, though.

The JBL Tour One M2 is a versatile and adaptable pair of Bluetooth headphones. This set sounds great, is comfortable to wear, and provides days-long battery life. Also, there’s an impressive array of customization options in the JBL app, so you can fine-tune the headphones to suit your needs.

Adjustable EQ ensures you’ll love the sound. Though the Tour One M2 set sounds pretty good right out of the box (just a bit bass-heavy), the JBL app’s nimble EQ interface makes it easy to tweak the frequency response to your liking. Alternatively, you can choose to use the app’s hearing-test-based EQ to adjust the sound to match your individual hearing needs. And if you’re concerned with protecting your hearing health, the app allows you to limit the volume to 85 decibels.

If you’re a fan of a broad soundstage (where the music has a real sense of space), you’ll love this pair. But overall, this set’s highs aren’t as delicate and crisp, and the upper bass isn’t as defined, as what you can get with our upgrade pick.

Phone calls sound great. The Tour One M2’s four-microphone array ensures that your voice will sound clear to others, and in our testing, we were impressed with how well the mics reduced wind noise and background sounds.

This set is light, comfortable to wear, and easy to use. The deep, oblong-shaped earcups are roomy enough to encircle your ears without squishing them, and the memory-foam-like earpads and headband padding make this pair pleasant to wear for extended periods. The headband’s moderate clamping force will hold the Tour One M2 in place on smaller heads, but it flexes enough to accommodate larger sizes without pinching.

The combination of physical buttons and a touch panel allows you to control playback, phone calls, volume, digital-assistant callup, and ANC/awareness mode toggling. Amazon and Android users can also opt to use a wake word to activate Alexa or Google Assistant.

A long battery life means less-frequent charging. JBL claims the battery life can be as high as 50 hours per charge or as low as 30, depending on how often you take calls and use noise cancellation. When we used them daily, we needed to charge batteries every other week or so.

If you do run out of juice, though, thanks to the Tour One M2’s quick-charge capabilities, you’ll get five hours of playback from just 10 minutes plugged in. You can maximize battery life by turning on the app’s auto-power-off option, which powers the headphones down when they’re idle.

The adaptive noise cancellation effectively blocks distractions. Though this pair isn’t the absolute best we’ve tested when it comes to noise cancellation (see our ANC headphones guide to compare), it’s effective nonetheless. In our tests, when wearing this set, we were oblivious to knocks on the door and garbage trucks passing, and 75 dB plane cabin noise was greatly reduced. If you’re sensitive to eardrum suck, the JBL app provides a slider to adjust the ANC intensity.

When you want to hear what’s going on around you, JBL’s Ambient Aware setting mixes the outside world in with your music. For conversations, the TalkThru mode dips music volume and amplifies your surroundings—this can be accomplished via a button push or automatically when you speak.

The set’s dual-device capability lets you connect to two devices simultaneously, without having to fuss with Bluetooth settings.

And if anything goes awry, JBL covers the Tour One M2 with a one-year warranty.

The controls are more sensitive than we’d like. An unintended brush of the large touchpad on the right earcup caused our music to play and pause accidentally, which was annoying. We also wish the physical volume buttons were larger.

Likewise, we found the optional speak-to-enable TalkThru feature to be sensitive. Maybe I am just prone to sighing too loudly, but sniffs, sneezes, and throat clearing caused the awareness mode to turn on.

The auto ANC setting can bother sensitive ears. JBL has included an automatic ANC setting, which adjusts the noise-cancellation levels based on your surroundings or how much sound is leaking in (this is great for those who wear glasses). Unfortunately, we found the real-time changes to be disconcerting. This felt similar to ears popping when a plane lands, so we chose to turn off that feature.

This affordable pair sounds good, is comfortable to wear, and has an impressively long battery life. Unfortunately, the noise cancellation does not work in wired mode.

If you want a solid pair of wireless headphones for around $100, we recommend the 1More SonoFlow because this pair sounds good, has a long battery life, and seems better made than most headphones for around the same price.

This set’s sound is quite good, from the initial power-up. We appreciate that the full bass re-creates low pitches, rather than the overtone or formless whomp we frequently hear from inexpensive headphones. Highs have clarity and crisp attack and decay, handling even delicate little sounds with ease. If you want to adjust the tuning, the 1More app offers presets and manual EQ capabilities to fine-tune the sound.

However, this pair lacks the sense of space you get with our top pick, and the tone of guitars and vocals sounds comparatively recessed, even after EQ adjustment.

This set is lightweight, comfortable, and durable. Though this pair is made primarily of plastic, its chassis doesn’t feel brittle or creaky, as those of many competitors in this price range do. The headband is secure but doesn’t pinch or squeeze painfully.

The soft earpads are filled with a squishy, memory-foam-like material that can mold around thinner eyeglasses frames, though folks who wear glasses that have thicker arms may notice more sound leakage.

Sadly the earpads aren’t replaceable—which is a bummer, since earpads are notoriously the first part of over-ear headphones to degrade. Be sure to keep your pair clean and out of direct sunlight or extreme temperatures. 1More includes a nice hard-sided carrying case, which should help protect your headphones a little longer.

The battery life—50 to 70 hours—is excellent. Long-haul flights and long days spent at a desk are no problem for this pair. And when the headphones do finally run out of battery power, the quick-charge feature provides five hours of runtime from just five minutes of charging.

The SonoFlow set has physical control buttons. We hear from many readers who prefer physical buttons over touch-based ones, and the SonoFlow’s buttons offer the full complement of controls: track skip, volume, phone calls, digital-assistant callup, and ANC/hear-through functions.

The buttons were smaller than we’d like, though. This could be a drawback if dexterity is a concern.

The ANC is modestly effective but doesn’t work in wired mode. So if you’re on a plane and want to connect to an in-flight entertainment system that requires a cable, you need to either go without noise cancellation or get a Bluetooth transmitter.

A hear-through mode is available to allow for conversations. Although the sound of this mode isn’t natural enough to leave it on for the long term (in our tests, it overemphasized higher pitches like keyboard clicks and consonants), it’s still helpful for brief periods of situational awareness.

Five microphones do a good job of picking up your voice for phone calls. And the SonoFlow set offers dual-device connectivity, so you can pair it with two devices at once and easily switch between them. (You need to turn the feature on in the app; it’s located under the Experimental Features menu option.)

Lastly, the cable does not use a standard ⅛-inch jack; it uses a 1/16-inch connector, which means it will be trickier (though not impossible) to replace if you lose yours. 1More covers the SonoFlow with a one-year warranty.

These headphones are well made and feature-packed, and they can sound wonderful. But to get them sounding their best, some setup effort is required.

If you’re willing to pay more for a step up in both performance and comfort, consider the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones. They aren’t perfect out of the box, but those willing to do a bit of tinkering will be rewarded with some of the best-sounding wireless headphones available.

This set sounds amazing—with some help from EQ. Out of the box, this wasn’t our favorite-sounding pair. The boosted lower frequencies give the sound a clouded quality—like hearing a TV subwoofer from one room over. But by using the advanced EQ feature in Sony’s app, we could bring down the lows and boost the range at 1 and 2.5 kilohertz. Then it was as if the shroud had been lifted, and the XM5 rendered clear, delicate, detailed highs and deep bass notes with pitch, rather than just punch.

If you know going in that you’ll never touch the EQ settings, this isn’t the pair for you—our top pick sounds better right out of the box (though it, too, can benefit from some EQ adjustment). This means you’ll need to use a smartphone and download an app at least once to make adjustments and save your EQ profile to the headphones.

This pair is ultra-comfortable. We loved the lightweight build, soft memory-foam padding, and ergonomically shaped earcups. The XM5 has the perfect ratio of clamping force to earpad squish, for a fit that hugs your head rather than squeezing it. The earpads should accommodate all but the most thickly armed glasses, and the earpads are replaceable (but doing so is tricky, so keep the XM5 clean and in the included hard-sided case, to make the foam last as long as possible).

The XM5’s combination of physical and touch-based controls works a bit more effectively than on our top pick. We didn’t find the Sony controls to be overly sensitive to inadvertent bumps, humidity, or cold. The physical multifunction button on the left earcup can be customized to either toggle noise-cancellation modes or activate Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.

The battery will last 24 hours or more per charge. Sony claims up to 38 hours, but in our real-world testing, we were able to eke out only 24 hours. That’s lower than for our other picks but still sufficient, especially when the quick-charge function provides three to five hours of use from a 10-minute charge.

The headphones will warn you when battery power is low, but when you’re given the warning, you should plug in your headphones. The percent is measured in increments of 10, so 10% battery life can mean anywhere from 1% to 10% is remaining. The XM5 also comes with an analog cable for corded listening, but it has no remote and mic.

The XM5 is especially great for office use. This pair blocks voices better than most noise-cancelling sets—and that can be very helpful in cafés and open-plan offices or when you’re working from a noisy home. You’ll also hear a dip in low-frequency hums, like noise from planes and air conditioners. But this pair isn’t as effective in this respect as our picks for the best noise-cancelling headphones. Plus, the ANC isn’t adjustable, so if you’re prone to eardrum suck, you may find the XM5’s noise cancellation to be uncomfortable.

The microphones pick up speech clearly and reduce background noise on calls. While testing, we noticed that the XM5 seemed to use internal sensors to detect when the wearer was speaking. So when we weren’t talking, callers weren’t subjected to wind or background noise. When we resumed speaking, callers could tell there was wind, but they were able to easily understand what we were saying. The reduction software somewhat compresses your vocal tone, but not so much that it becomes distracting.

The XM5 has a voice-activated hear-through mode; this can detect when you’re speaking, pause your music, and turn on the external microphones so you can hear your conversation partner clearly. When you stop talking, the hear-through mode turns off, and your music resumes. But if the feature isn’t to your liking, no worries; as with many of the XM5’s features, it can be turned off in the app.

The XM5 doesn’t have water resistance. This pair can handle a light spritzing rain, but it’s not IP-rated like our top pick. Sony offers a one-year limited warranty that covers manufacturing defects but not water damage.

The XM5’s predecessor, the WH-1000XM4, needs more EQ adjustment, but it’s also a great option if you can still find it, especially on sale.

This pair provides the convenience of Bluetooth while still prioritizing sound quality. But these headphones lack features like noise cancellation and water resistance, so they aren’t ideal for commuters.

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If sound quality supersedes all other factors, the Edifier Stax Spirit S3 is the first pair of wireless headphones we’ve tried that can compete sonically with the wired picks in our audiophile headphones guide. But this set lacks some features, such as noise cancellation and water resistance, that you’ll get with our other picks.

This pair’s sound competes with that of vastly pricier wired options. Listening to this pair is a delight. The planar-magnetic drivers and built-in amplifier ensure excellent sound, whether you’re streaming wirelessly or connected with a cable.

High frequencies sounded delicate, providing detail without excessive hiss or piercing. The low end also sounded fantastic. Bass notes had real pitch, as well as clear attack and decay. No matter how intensely the bass bumps on a track, you won’t lose other musical elements in a fog of smeared subwoofer bloat. You can read how its sound compares with that of other excellent wired options in our audiophile headphones guide.

Unlike most Bluetooth headphones, the Stax Spirit S3 sounds fantastic in wired or wireless mode. For many audio fans, being able to connect via a cable and get great sound is essential. Many older audio sources lack Bluetooth capabilities, and until Qualcomm’s aptX Lossless is widely adopted, you can’t listen to CD-quality music wirelessly. The Stax Spirit S3’s internal amplifier helps the set’s tuning stay consistent regardless of the connection method.

This pair is smaller and lighter than most audiophile sets, so you can wear it all day. Though the earcups extend farther out from the head than those of our other picks, the Stax Spirit S3 won’t look out of place at an office. This pair folds up into an included carrying case that’s compact enough to fit in a messenger bag. Also included is a fabric-wrapped 3.5-mm cable and a 3.5-mm-to-6.3-mm plug adapter.

You can easily swap between isolating pleather and “cooling” mesh earpads. The pleather pair blocks some external noise and is soft enough to smoosh around thinner glasses arms. The mesh pair allows in more air (and noise) and is made of a “cooling” material, which we found feels cooler in the same way mint is cooling. Whichever pads you prefer, the sound remains largely the same. Edifier cleverly designed EQ presets in the app that adjust the sound to suit the earpads’ distinct acoustic environments.

The 80-hour battery life is most impressive. It’s especially important because even though these headphones can work with a cable, they are not passive and must always be powered on to function. That’s a downside, as is this pair’s inability to play music while charging. But the quick-charge capabilities prevent this from being a dealbreaker, since a 10-minute charge will get you 11 hours of listening time.

The microphone quality is very good. Though the built-in microphone isn’t noise-reducing, it won’t be overloaded by a light wind, so you should be able to take calls while walking. A downside is that the microphone doesn’t function when you are connected to a device via cable. You’ll still hear your caller, but the job of capturing your voice will default to the internal mic of your device (phone, laptop, etc.).

The Stax Spirit S3’s dual-device connectivity works well for easy transition between phone and laptop use.

The app’s “hard sell” for the Edifier store is very annoying. Both the “mail” and “discover” tabs within the app lead to Edifier’s store, and escaping those sections isn’t intuitive. Rather than offering the universal X to close, there’s a small circle with a dot in it—at the top right of the app screen—that lets you exit the area. To avoid the hassle, we suggest that you stick to the “headphones” tab.

If anything goes wrong, the Stax Spirit S3 is covered by Edifier’s one-year warranty.

If you’re a committed Apple fan: The Apple AirPods Max is a very good pair of wireless headphones. This set sounds and looks great, pairs easily with Apple devices, and offers the best noise cancellation we’ve ever measured in the airplane band of frequencies. These headphones would be tough competition if they were lighter and less expensive, and if the active noise cancellation were more adjustable to account for eardrum suck. The Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones are lighter and less expensive, have a longer battery life, and block more noise in the human vocal range (if that’s the type of noise isolation you desire). You can read our full writeup on Apple’s over-ear headphones in our guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones.

If you prefer an on-ear set: Because the Jabra Elite 45h offers price-defying sound quality, comfort, and call clarity, we were sad to hear it’s on the way out of production. This on-ear pair sounds better than sets that are several times the price, and using the Jabra app, you can adjust the sound to your preference. This pair is lightweight and has pillowy earpads, so it's comfortable to wear for hours. The microphone’s intelligibility is stellar for phone and video chats, and this set offers 50-plus hours of listening time per charge. Though the Elite 45h isn’t IP-rated for water resistance, Jabra provides a two-year warranty against dust and water damage. This pair does not have noise cancelling, and there is no option for listening via a cord. But if you don’t need those features, and you can find a pair before they’re all gone, the Elite 45h headphones are a great deal.

If you want the best noise-cancelling headphones: The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 is our favorite noise-cancelling set. These over-ear headphones are lightweight, have a long battery life and easy-to-use controls, and are compatible with Google, Apple, and Alexa voice assistants. Read all about them in our guide to noise-cancelling headphones.

If eco-friendly practices are important to you: House of Marley has a more environmentally minded approach than many other electronics companies. And the Positive Vibration XL ANC is a really lovely pair of Bluetooth headphones, as long as you don’t use the active noise cancellation. They fit comfortably, with a soft, padded headband and earcups. Unlike most new Bluetoooth headphones, this pair includes a cable with a single-button remote and microphone; so if the battery dies, the XL ANC is still functional and can take calls.

But the noise cancellation, though effective on very low frequencies, isn’t supported by good sound isolation, so folks who are affected by eardrum suck may find using the ANC to be uncomfortable. With the ANC off, the sound is fantastic—balanced and clear. Yet the ANC negatively impacts the sound: Bass notes sounded louder yet duller, as if someone had turned up a subwoofer and tossed a blanket over it.

If you’re looking for wireless headphones for watching TV: We recommend the Insignia NS-HAWHP2 because it uses radio frequency (RF) transmission rather than Bluetooth. You can read about this set in our guide to the best wireless TV headphones.

Over the years, we’ve tested hundreds of pairs of headphones for this guide, so we can’t include notes on every pair here. Below, we provide our thoughts on some of the most recently tested models. If there is a specific model you’re curious about that’s not listed, our full testing notes are available in this spreadsheet.

The Edifier W820NB Plus budget pair feels pretty well built for the price, with nice padding. For the price, they sound quite good, too. However, the ANC is very directional: If you turn your head, the cancellation struggles to keep up, often letting in more noise each time you move; this isn’t an issue with the 1More SonoFlow. And because this pair isn’t very isolating, it doesn’t muffle voices or higher-pitched sounds very well. We also wish the control buttons were larger.

If you are prone to eardrum suck, the Edifier WH950NB set will likely aggravate that condition. The ANC reduces a band of low frequencies quite well, but the isolation isn’t effective, so the overall experience is a mixed bag. The sound is decent but not stellar, and the buttons are small and tricky to feel, especially if you have larger fingers.

The Jabra Elite 85h is our former top pick, and sadly it’s being phased out. This pair sounds fantastic out of the box, has decent ANC, and is more intuitive to set up and use than most competitors, thanks to the automatic Bluetooth pairing process and the large, easy-to-access controls. The battery life, rated at 36 hours, is ample, and the battery charges quickly. The Elite 85h headphones work with the Amazon, Apple, and Google digital assistants, and the microphone quality is super-clear for phone calls. This pair is also water-resistant and protected by a two-year warranty against damage from rain. If you can still find them for sale, they’re a great choice.

The Skullcandy Crusher ANC XT2’s bass boost ranges from “a bit much” to “after-market car-subwoofer on full blast.” Also, the noise cancellation is minimal. Whether or not you enjoy the haptic bass feedback is a matter of preference (we think it tickles). However, if having a balanced sound profile or decent ANC is your priority, this pair isn’t for you.

This article was edited by Adrienne Maxwell and Grant Clauser.

Lauren Dragan

Lauren Dragan is a senior staff writer and has tested over 1,000 headphones for Wirecutter. She has a BA from Ithaca College in music performance and audio production. She’s been featured in Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, The New York Times, and more. Additionally, she’s a voice actor whose work includes projects for Disney and Mattel.

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