Best Wireless Earbuds to Buy Right Now - IGN (2024)

The best wireless earbuds fit neatly in your ears and don’t require you to be tethered to wires to enjoy exceptional audio quality. Many wireless earbuds also come with their own wireless cases and chargers, much like our top pick the Jabra Elite 5.

TL;DR – These are the Best Wireless Earbuds:

• Jabra Elite 5
• Apple AirPods (3rd Generation)
• Sony LinkBuds S
• Razer Hammerhead True Wireless (Gen 2)
• Beats Fit Pro
• Jabra Elite 7 Pro
• Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)
• Sony WF-1000XM5
• 1More Evo
• OnePlus Buds Pro 2

Whether you’re looking for some cheap wireless headphones, or high-end noise-canceling earbuds that connect to any device, we’re here to show you what’s available.

The Best Wireless Earbuds

1. Jabra Elite 5

Best Wireless Earbuds

• See it on Jabra

For a perfectly balanced, expressive audio experience in a comfortable and sturdy pair of earbuds, you can’t go wrong with the Jabra Elite 5. Pair with up to two devices using Bluetooth Multipoint, and once connected, Jabra’s intuitive Sound+ app lets you play around with EQ settings and ANC sound modes. That hybrid noise cancellation does a decent job of drowning out an airplane’s engine or muffling voices at a coffee shop, though it does struggle with high-pitched sounds.

While you enjoy a pleasant listening experience similar to some of the best headphones, others will appreciate the six microphones that make your voice super clear on calls, even on windy days. Answering those calls is simple thanks to the button control on each earbud, which also gives you access to playback and Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, along with some other functions that can be assigned using the app. And you won’t need to worry about breaking a sweat or getting stuck in the rain thanks to the earbud's IP55 dust and water resistance.

2. Apple AirPods (3rd Generation)

Best Budget Wireless Earbuds

You can’t go wrong with Apple’s AirPods (3rd generation) when you want a pair of affordable, dependable AirPods that easily connect to the best iPhones or really any smartphone. To start, these earbuds sound spectacular, delivering virtually flawless, rich, detailed audio. You even get Adaptive EQ to customize the sound to your ears, while spatial audio with head tracking makes it feel like the sound is wrapping around you.

However, you won’t get ANC like the Pro model, and you’ll notice some sound leakage due to the open-back design. But that open-back makes these AirPods wicked comfortable, lightly resting in your ear and remaining in place. Add in some sweat- and water-resistant, and you’re sure to have an easy-going listening experience wherever you wear these great iPhone earbuds.

3. Sony LinkBuds S

Best Noise-Cancelling Wireless Earbuds

Sony’s exceptional WH-1000XM series of over-ear headphones has set the high bar for noise-cancelling technology for years. And with the Sony LinkBuds S Wireless Earbuds, the same great noise-cancellation in a light, compact form factor. Its ANC eliminates sounds like an airplane engine or noisy air conditioner. But you’re probably still going to notice incidental sounds like a car horn or dog barking, though it’ll definitely come through more muffled thanks to the impressive passive sound isolation due to the tight fit of the earbuds. An ambient sound mode is also supported, which gives you 20 different options on what external sounds you can hear, providing an ideal listening experience catered to you.

In addition to being excellent noise cancelling headphones, these earbuds offer up to six hours of battery life even with noise-cancelling running, and there’s an extra 14 hours of charge out of the carrying case. That means you take advantage of these earbuds on the longest work and travel days. It’s even possible to enjoy higher resolution audio with LDAC and AAC codec support over Bluetooth 5.2. You also get on-ear controls to adjust volume, skip tracks, answer calls and activate voice assistants. And thanks to modest water resistance, you can use these earbuds to tune into your music while you’re working out and tune out everything else.

4. Razer Hammerhead True Wireless (Gen 2)

Best Wireless Earbuds for Gaming

The Razer Hammerhead True Wireless (Gen 2) Bluetooth earbuds are a great choice for gamers, with a visual nod to the inclusion of Razer Chroma RGB. This allows users to personalize their gaming earbuds with 16.8 million colors and various effects. This not only adds a stylish flair but also ensures that users can stand out from the crowd with the ultimate wireless earbud flex.

With an omnidirectional microphone pick-up pattern, Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity, and a 64dB signal-to-noise ratio, the Razer Hammerhead True Wireless (Gen 2) guarantees a clear and immersive audio experience during calls and gameplay. The integration of ANC further enhances the user experience by eliminating unwanted ambient noise, ensuring users can fully immerse themselves in their favorite tunes or games without disruptions.

For gamers, the 60ms Low Latency Gaming Mode is a game-changer. Activating this mode optimizes the earbuds' performance, providing a seamless and lag-free gaming experience on Bluetooth devices.

5. Beats Fit Pro

Best Wireless Earbuds for Sports

If you’re looking for a solid pair of earbuds that you can sweat out at the gym with or take along on a jog, then the Beats Fit Pro are for you. These headphones are designed to stay in your ears no matter what you’re doing thanks to wingtips that tuck into your upper ear and three different ear tip options to ensure a snug fit. There’s no need to worry about accidentally knocking one into the dirt during a trail run or interrupting a lifting session to put the device back in your ear. Plus, the IPX4 rating means it’ll hold up great against sweat and rain, just maybe don’t bring the earbuds along for a swim.

Not only are the Beats Fit Pro designed to stay in your ear making them some one of the best earbuds for running, but they also sound great, too. Spatial audio and active noise cancellation are supported, so you’ll be fully immersed in your music no matter the environment you find yourself in. And, the six hours of battery life with ANC on plus 18 additional hours with the compact charging case means these wireless headphones are the perfect travel companion, as well. With on-device controls, you won’t need to worry about taking out your phone to change songs or answer calls, either. The earbuds even rock an Apple H1 chip for hands-free help from Siri.

6. Jabra Elite 7 Pro

Best Premium Wireless Earbuds

If you want a pair of wireless earbuds that offers it all – great sound, noise-cancellation, long battery life, and more – the Jabra Elite 7 Pro is it. These are some of the smallest earbuds on the market, but they pack an incredible audio punch you can tweak to your specific hearing profile. The noise-canceling is also excellent and they specifically do a fantastic job of drowning out the sound of engines or train wheels, making them perfect for commuters. On the flip side, the Jabra Elite 7 Pro has the most natural HearThrough mode we've ever heard, making it feel as if we weren't wearing earbuds at all and had naturally heightened hearing.

You get a decently long battery life of eight hours, but the real treat is the four extra charges in the case. Plus popping them into the case for five minutes gives you back an hour of charge. The case also works with Qi charging so juicing up the whole package is easy as plopping it onto a wireless charger. At $200, it's one of the more expensive wireless earbud options on your list, but it doesn't reach into the upper stratosphere of cost the way the Sony or Master & Dynamic options do.

7. Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

Best Wireless Earbuds for iPhones

Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro looks the same as its predecessor, but almost everything inside has been re-engineered and runs on the H2 chip to amp up performance. For starters, the active noise cancellation has improved at dampening sounds in your environment, while a new adaptive transparency mode does a solid job at minimizing louder sudden sounds like a plate breaking at a restaurant or a loud siren passing by. The audio on these earbuds is also more dynamic, bringing you a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience, though you still don’t get the support for higher-res audio files.

There’s plenty of other tech going on with these wireless earbuds, including Spatial Audio which uses head tracking to create a sound profile tailored to you. Apple also makes it easy to adjust the media you’re listening to on your iPhone with voice control using “hey, Siri” or tap controls on the earbuds that feature a new swipe functionality to adjust the volume. The AirPods offer good battery life, too, with up to six hours on the buds and another 24 hours in the MagSafe charging case, and that case even has tracking for those prone to misplacing it. These AirPods also charge via USB-C, making them slightly more universal.

8. Sony WF-1000XM5

Best Wireless Earbuds for Android Phones

• See it on Best Buy

Sony’s feature full WF-1000XM5 earbuds may just me worth the splurge. With them comes rich and well-balanced audio in a lightweight, compact form factor. Spatial audio and head tracking allow the earbuds to automatically adjust what you’re listening to for a more realistic, immersive sound experience. Bluetooth 5.3 provides a strong link between the headphones and your Android phone or other devices. It even comes with multipoint connectivity to listen on more than one device, like your laptop and tablet.

But the stand-out feature of Sony’s WF-1000XM5 is the AI-driven ANC. It does a great job of eliminating sounds like a leaf blower and air conditioner. Design changes from the Sony WF-1000XM4 mean the ear tips are more secure—and comfortable—for better sound isolation to block out incidental noise like a car horn or dog barking. And if you want to take a phone call, there’s even a special voice pickup technology that uses AI to detect a user’s voice, so you come across clearly during calls, dampening sound in noisier environments.

9. 1More Evo

Best Audiophile-Grade Wireless Earbuds

The fact that they're small doesn't mean earbuds are doomed to have poor sound quality, and the 1More Evo earbuds are a testament to that. These combine quality, well-balanced sound with some active noise-cancelling goodness, so you can really drown out your surroundings and enjoy your audio. Now, the four different modes of ANC won’t be as impressive as the Sony WF-1000XM5, but you’re still eliminating some outside noise distractions. And if you need to hear the world around you, they also feature two handy transparency modes.

The 1More Evo earbuds offer an accurate, rich sound with crisp highs and deep bass using a combination of 10mm hybrid dynamic drivers and support for higher quality audio codecs. The result is a slightly heavier and bulkier earbud than most others on this list, but there are always tradeoffs for greatness. Beyond that, the earbuds can run for an impressive 8 hours, and the charging case can extend that by an extra 20 hours. And, if you have a wireless charger, it'll be easy to remember to keep the case topped up, as it supports Qi wireless charging.

10. OnePlus Buds Pro 2

Best AirPods Alternative

• See it on OnePlus

Picture Apple’s AirPods, but make them look and sound better. That’s what you’ll get with the OnePlus Buds Pro 2. These earbuds have a chic, minimalist aesthetic accented with a classy metallic stem, so they don’t exactly look like Airpods. However, all the touch controls are almost identical, making them one of the best AirPods alternatives. And, where you’d have to upgrade to the AirPods Pro for many features, OnePlus offers them up at a $180 price, but you'll often find them for less.

The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 feature 11mm dynamic drivers to pump out the audio coming in, and ANC helps keep unwanted noise out—albeit not as well as the AirPods Pro. You even get spatial audio with Dolby Head Tracking and support for high-res codecs, ensuring a more immersive listening experience. Battery life is also on par with the AirPods Pro, delivering 6 hours of listening time with ANC on or 9 hours with it off.

What to Look for In Wireless Earbuds

When shopping for a pair of wireless earbuds, there are a few things you should consider:

1. The first is in regards to Bluetooth. It has improved dramatically with every iteration, however, Bluetooth still can't carry a strong signal through objects such as walls, people, or your own pants, which in turn leads to interference and the signal being dropped. The Bluetooth signal can also be scrambled by intense areas wireless signals you might encounter in the city. If the music, podcast, or video you're listening to starts cutting in and out, simply move your source (likely a smartphone or tablet) closer to your earbuds, and that should clear things up in most cases.
2. The second thing you should look for is decent battery life, which in this case means six hours and above. Currently, eight hours or more is the high benchmark for the best battery life on wireless earbuds and 10 hours is the absolute best we've seen thus far. It might seem short, but unless you're flying on a cross-country or international flight, you probably won't be wearing your wireless earbuds for extremely long stretches of time.
3. Planning to exercise with your wireless earbuds? Be sure to find something with at least some level of water-resistance. You'll typically see an IP rating attached to the specifications of any wireless earbuds you're looking at. Breaking down IP ratings, like IPX5 or IP55, is simple. The first number denotes how dust-resistant an object is while the later digit refers to how water-resistant a product is. Most wireless earbuds aren't rated for dust-resistance, so they'll have an IPX rating where you only have to focus on the last number.

For working out, you'll want to find something with at least an IPX4 that certifies protection from water splashes for at least 5 minutes. IPX6 gives you even better protection from splashing and rain. Once you reach IPX7, it means your wireless earbuds are safe to submerge if you decide to go swimming with them, just know they'll only survive in up to three feet of water for 30 minutes. Also, if you're taking them under underwater, be sure that the charging port is fully sealed shut.

Feel like we missed anything? Throw down your own suggestions for wireless earbuds in the comments below. We'll check them out and consider nominating them in our list.

Kevin Lee is IGN's Hardware and Roundups Editor. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam