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Buying guide · Audio

How to choose headphones and speakers

The biggest variable in audio isn't the driver — it's your ears, your fit and your room. Settle the setting first, then pick from the pairs and speakers we'd spend our own money on.

Updated October 2026 · 8 min read · 8 picks

Audio is the category where reviews help least, because the biggest variables are your ears, your fit and your room. Two people hear the same pair differently, and a headphone built for a plane is overkill in a quiet office. Decide the setting first: commute, open office, desk, or studio.

Fit matters more than tuning. An earbud that doesn't seal loses most of its bass and nearly all of its noise cancelling, however good the driver behind it. Buy from somewhere with a return window, and give any pair a week before you judge it — first impressions mostly measure the seal, not the sound.

What matters

Settle these first.

Nothing on a spec sheet helps until these are decided. They're the same questions we ask before anything earns a place on the list.

  1. 01 — Earbuds or over-ear?

    Over-ear wins on comfort over long sessions, battery life, and noise cancelling per dollar. Earbuds win on portability and staying cool. If you fly more than twice a year, over-ear is the better spend.

  2. 02 — Buy noise cancelling for your worst room

    The best ANC is worth paying for only if you're regularly on planes or a busy train. In a quiet office, a good passive seal gets you most of the way for much less money.

  3. 03 — Codecs matter less than they claim

    LDAC and 'hi-res' badges only mean something once the fit is right. Bluetooth compresses the signal whatever it advertises; a wired pair and a decent DAC is the real upgrade.

  4. 04 — Battery in real use, not on the box

    A pair rated at eight hours gives you five or six with noise cancelling on at real volume. If you wear earbuds all day at work, count the case figure too — it's usually the number that matters.

  5. 05 — Microphones, if you're on calls daily

    Beamforming mic arrays and a wind-resistant mode separate a good call from an average one, and that gap is bigger than any tuning difference between two flagship pairs.

Our picks

The audio we'd buy.

Prices are checked monthly against Amazon. Where a newer model exists, it's here — not a footnote.

Best headphones overall

Sony WH-1000XM5

4.7 · 41,200 reviews
$288

The pair to buy if you want one set for flights, offices and long days. Noise cancelling is close enough to Bose that the difference shows mainly on a plane, battery runs around 30 hours with ANC on, and they're comfortable enough to forget you're wearing them. Sound is neutral with a touch of extra bass — likeable rather than clinical.

  • Around 30 h battery with ANC
  • Top-tier noise cancelling
  • Comfortable all-day wear
  • Multipoint pairing
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best on a plane

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

4.5 · 15,600 reviews
$325

Bose still owns low-frequency noise. Engine drone and air-conditioning disappear in a way no other pair quite matches, which is worth the price difference if you fly often. Sound is warm and easy to listen to for hours. For everyone else, the Sony pair above is the better value.

  • Best-in-class low-frequency ANC
  • Immersive spatial audio mode
  • Warm, forgiving sound
  • Around 24 h battery
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best earbuds

Sony WF-1000XM6 Wireless Earbuds

4.6 · 1,120 reviews
$298

The quietest in-ears you can buy right now, with a warmer and more detailed sound than the model they replace. Buy them if you want one pair for flights, offices and the gym. Fit takes a little tip-swapping to settle, and they're expensive — the WF-C710N below covers most of the same ground for well under half the price.

  • Class-leading noise cancelling
  • 8 h per charge, 30 h with case
  • LDAC over Bluetooth
  • IPX4 splash resistance
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best for iPhone

Apple AirPods Pro 3

4.7 · 12,450 reviews
$249

If you carry an iPhone and a Mac, nothing else is this frictionless: they pair without a menu, hand calls between devices mid-sentence, track heart rate during workouts and translate conversations live. Buy something else only if you're on Android or want hi-res codecs — and if you are, the Sony pair above is the one.

  • Instant pairing across Apple devices
  • Heart-rate sensing
  • Live translation
  • IP54 dust and water resistance
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best earbuds under $150

Sony WF-C710N Wireless Earbuds

4.4 · 2,105 reviews
$128

Most of what makes Sony's flagship pair good, at less than half the price. Dual-mic noise cancelling handles trains and cafés, multipoint keeps a laptop and a phone connected at once, and battery runs 30 hours with the case. You give up hi-res codecs and a little call clarity — nothing you'll miss on a commute.

  • 8.5 h, 30 h with case
  • Dual-mic noise cancelling
  • Multipoint connection
  • Under $150
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best desk speakers

Audioengine A2+ Desktop Speakers

4.6 · 1,930 reviews
$299

The single best upgrade for a desk that has only ever had laptop speakers. They're powered with a DAC built in and connect over USB, so there's no amplifier to buy and no receiver to find space for. Bass is honest rather than thumping — add a subwoofer later if you want more.

  • Powered — no amplifier needed
  • USB DAC built in
  • Desk-sized footprint
  • USB and RCA inputs
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best studio headphones

Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO 80 Ohm

4.7 · 12,450 reviews
$200

The reference pair that has lived in studios for decades, for unglamorous reasons: comfortable for eight-hour sessions, every part replaceable, and honest rather than flattering to a mix. The 80-ohm version runs fine straight from a laptop; a cheap headphone amp makes them better still.

  • Closed-back — isolates sound
  • 80 ohm, works from a laptop
  • Every part replaceable
  • Built for long sessions
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Best gaming headset

SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Wireless

4.4 · 5,680 reviews
$160

Comfortable enough for a long session, wireless on 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth at the same time, and with a chat-mix dial that fixes the problem every headset has — game too loud, friends too quiet. Microphone quality is fine rather than broadcast-grade; for that, look at the Shure MV7+ in accessories.

  • 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth at once
  • Chat mix control
  • Around 38 h battery
  • Comfortable for long sessions
Check price on AmazonRead the full verdict

Where money gets wasted

What we'd skip.

The mistakes that cost the most, and how to avoid them.

  • Hi-res over Bluetooth is mostly a label

    Bluetooth compresses the signal whatever codec it advertises. On a wireless pair, fit and tuning decide what you hear; a wired pair with a decent DAC is the real upgrade.

  • Paying for noise cancelling you'll never use

    In a quiet room you're buying a premium feature for nothing. A pair with a good passive seal is most of the benefit at a fraction of the price.

  • Ignoring comfort for a small tuning win

    If a pair hurts after an hour, it doesn't matter how it measures. Ear fatigue ends more listening sessions than poor sound quality ever does.

  • Forgetting that the battery dies first

    Earbuds and headphones fail by battery long before drivers do. Treat battery life and replaceable parts as longevity features, not spec-sheet padding.

  • Replacing the pair instead of the pads

    Fresh earpads cost $20-30 and restore most of what a three-year-old pair has lost. Do that before you spend on anything new.

Two pairs, one decision?

Add them to the comparison bar and we'll put the specs side by side so you can weigh battery, fit and codec support in one view. Or browse the full audio list, ordered by what each pair is actually worth.

Browse every audio

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