Best Headphones 2021

After a new set of headphones? There are plenty of different styles in different sizes that come with all types of features. If it’s an on-ear you’re after, perhaps an over-ear or maybe even an in-ear; our selection of headphones represent the very best we’ve tested.

From budget cans to the latest premium efforts, there’s enough variety to suit not only your needs but your budget.

We’ve put these headphones through our tests with a variety of music to suit any interest, as well as being compared to similar priced and feature sets so you can be confident that you’re getting exactly what you need.

If you’re after something specific, why not have a look at our best wireless earbuds? If you’re in need of something more sporty, we have our best running headphones and if you want to block the world out, then our selection of the best noise cancelling headphones will hep achieve just that.



FAQs

How we test headphones Not just anybody can review a pair of headphones. You don’t need superhuman hearing to tell what’s good, but you do need to know what to listen out for.Our headphone tests are done by some of the best and most prolific reviewers in the industry, with years of experience listening to everything from the plasticky freebie earbuds that come with your smartphone, to five-figure beasts of glass and marble. We love music and we want your tunes to sound good, too.So we listen every pair of headphones we can get on or in our ears. We use a variety of sources, from basic MP3s playing on a laptop to high-quality tracks on dedicated hi-res audio players.Our test tracks are wide-ranging to give headphones a thorough challenge. They’re also familiar, so we know every track backwards, and we know which bits might trouble the lesser performers.We listen again and again, and we do that for weeks in case the sound changes – because it usually does. Then we’ll listen to similarly priced rivals and come up with a verdict that reflects the performance and features for the money.








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Audeze LCD-1



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Pros


Lavishly detailed and explicit sound
Light, portable and robust design




Cons


Sound leakage makes them anti-social
Not exactly feature-rich




£399$399







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Bose QuietComfort Earbuds



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Pros


Tremendous noise cancelling
Neutral sound quality
Comfortable fit
Excellent transparency mode




Cons


Rather average battery life
No higher quality Bluetooth codecs






£249$279







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Bowers & Wilkins PX7



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Pros


Big, textured sound
30 hour battery
Effective wear sensor technology
Impressive Ambient pass-through mode




Cons


ANC ought to be stronger
Wireless connectivity gets choppy in busy areas






£349$399







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Philips PH805



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Pros


Well made from good materials
Decent spec
Punchy, full-fat and subtle sound




Cons


Ho-hum noise-cancelling
Could sound more dynamic





£160$199







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Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2



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Pros


Expressive, lush sound
Reasonable good ANC
Good fit
Robust feature set




Cons


Pricey
Battery taxed by heavy ANC and Transparency Mode usage






£279$299







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Sennheiser Momentum Wireless 3



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Pros


Rapid, forceful and detailed sound
Fit comfortably
Look and feel the money’s-worth




Cons


Quite big
Others cancel noise even more effectively





£349$399







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Shure Aonic 215



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Pros


Open, balanced, detailed, punchy and all-around splendid sound
Decent battery life
Robust wireless connection




Cons


Flat-out odd looks
App updates can’t come soon enough





£259$279







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Sony WF-1000XM4



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Pros


Astonishingly good sound
Excellent noise cancellation
Improved design
IPX4 rating
Smaller case
Comprehensive feature set




Cons


Is the noise cancelling the best?
More expensive than before
Call quality suffers in noisy areas







£250







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Sony WH-1000XM4



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Pros


Superb audio
Impressive noise cancellation
Comfortable fit
Smart features are useful




Cons


Drops aptX/aptX-HD from the specification
No IP resistance






£349$349













Sony WH-1000XM4

Raises the bar for over-ear headphones



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Pros

Superb audio Impressive noise cancellationComfortable fitSmart features are useful

Cons

Drops aptX/aptX-HD from the specificationNo IP resistance

The XM4 knocks off the XM3 from top spot on this list, and it does so with an improvement in all areas. Some improvements are rather subtle, such as the design, but they reap dividends with cushier, more comfortable wearing experience. More obvious are the new smart features in Speak-to-Chat and improvements to Ambient smart Control that personalise your audio experience without getting in the way.ANC is again terrific, suppressing noise for an even smoother and quieter noise-cancelling experience, and the sound is terrific, taking the performance of the previous over-ears and refining it in a way that makes the XM3 sound rather dated. The XM4 are Sony’s best noise-cancellers yet.Reviewer: Kob MonneyFull Review: Sony WF-1000XM4













Sony WF-1000XM4

Another brilliant true wireless pair



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Pros

Astonishingly good soundExcellent noise cancellationImproved designIPX4 ratingSmaller case Comprehensive feature set

Cons

Is the noise cancelling the best? More expensive than beforeCall quality suffers in noisy areas

The WF-1000XM4 are more ergonomic in shape and smaller in size than the previous models and this helps them sit in the ear better and stay seated, with the new polyurethane noise isolation ear-tips helping to dissipate noise within the ear. 













Bose QuietComfort Earbuds

The best earbuds for noise cancellation



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Pros

Tremendous noise cancelling Neutral sound Comfortable fit Excellent transparency mode

Cons

Rather average battery life No aptX

The QuietComfort Earbuds look is a bit kidney bean-like but we like the svelte appearance. The StayHear Max tip ensures that they stay rooted in the ear, with the only parts touching your ear being silicone for what proves to be a comfortable fit. At launch the Bose didn’t have onboard volume control, but subsequent updates have added the feature.The noise-cancelling is superb – the best we’ve heard from a wireless earbud. There are a range of ANC levels to cycle through, with the Earbuds’ Transparency Mode giving the listener excellent situational awareness of what’s around them.The sound quality just as good. They deliver lots of power and energy, the handling of highs, mids and lows are well judged and the tone is not just neutral but natural. They are one of the best, if not the best ANC wireless earbuds available.Reviewer: Kob MonneyFull Review: Bose QuietComfort Earbuds













Bowers & Wilkins PX7

Fantastic over-ear sound from the British audio brand



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Pros

Big, textured sound 30 hour battery Effective wear sensor technology Impressive Ambient pass-through mode

Cons

ANC ought to be stronger Wireless connectivity gets choppy in busy areas

With the PX7, B&W has crafted another entertaining pair of headphones. The active noise cancellation isn’t as strong as others, but fends off most distractions. Wireless connectivity can get choppy in busy areas, though, despite the presence of aptX adaptive audio.The audio is fantastic; delivering a big, textured and sumptuous listening experience that make the PX7 one of the finest-sounding ANC headphones on the market.Reviewer: Kob MonneyFull Review: Bowers & Wilkins PX7













Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2

Another top-notch headphone from the German audio brand



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Pros

Expressive sound Reasonable good ANC Good fit Robust feature set

Cons

Pricey Battery taxed by heavy ANC and Transparency Mode usage

The Momentum True Wireless 2 refine areas the original were lacking and bump up the feature set for a a great true wireless experience.The introduction of ANC is welcome, and even though it’s not particularly vigorous, it suppress a good amount of surrounding noise. Sennheiser has excelled yet again in the audio department, delivering a warm, lush and expressive sound that we can’t get enough of.Reviewer: Kob MonneyFull Review: Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2













Sennheiser Momentum Wireless 3

Big, powerful sound from Sennheiser



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Pros

Rapid, forceful and detailed sound Fit comfortably Look and feel the money’s-worth

Cons

Quite big Others cancel noise even more effectively

The Momentum Wireless 3 is a monster of a headphone, both in size and in sound.The noise cancelling is lighter than you’d expect, but as a overall package they’re up there with the best. Build quality is great; features are plentiful though battery life is just 17 hours. The sound is outstanding with well-controlled bass, plenty of clarity and a midrange that is laced with detail and nuance.Reviewer: Simon LucasFull review: Sennheiser Momentum Wireless 3













Audeze LCD-1

An uncompromising performance from a non-wireless pair



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Pros

Lavishly detailed and explicit sound Light, portable and robust design

Cons

Sound leakage makes them anti-social Not exactly feature-rich

At £399, the Audeze (pronounced Aw-dee-zee) LCD-1 are the company’s most affordable headphones. Yes, most affordable.The design is open-backed so they’re not commuter-friendly, and the feature list is small – the LCD-1 is all about the audio performance. And the LCD-1 serve up a detailed and dynamic sound that aims for neutrality and hits it. If offending fellow passengers with your music tastes appeals, these headphones produce a thrilling sound while doing so.Reviewer: Simon LucasFull review: Audeze LCD-1













Shure Aonic 215

Weird looks but great sound



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Pros

Open, balanced, detailed, punchy and all-around splendid sound Decent battery life Robust wireless connection

Cons

Flat-out odd looks App updates can’t come soon enough

The Aonic 215 are one of the stranger looking true wireless around with their huge antennae, but Shure’s first stab at a wireless earbud is a resounding success.On the feature front they hit nearly every mark – Bluetooth 5.0, aptX and long battery life – but no ANC is disappointing for the price. Nevertheless, thanks to the weird antennae, the fit offered is great; noise isolation is robust and the sound quality is very satisfying: well-defined, well-balanced and never less than convincing.Reviewer: Simon LucasFull review: Shure Aonic 215













Philips PH805

An affordable noise cancelling pair



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Pros

Well made from good materials Decent spec Punchy, full-fat and subtle sound

Cons

Ho-hum noise-cancelling Could sound more dynamic

The PH805 aren’t the most effective noise-cancellers, but offer a decent noise-zapping experience for its £150 price.Bluetooth 5.0 is supported and battery life reaches 30 hours (with noise cancellation toggled off). Dynamically they could be better, but otherwise there’s little to complain about, with a sound that’s a faithful-enough reproduction of what you’re listening to.Reviewer: Simon LucasFull review: Philips PH805







FAQs

What are the best budget headphones? The Philips PH805 are a fair shout. You can currently find them for less than £100 and they feature active noise cancellation. What are the best Bluetooth headphones The Sony WH-1000XM4 would get vote for the best overall headphones. The feature set is comprehensive, the wireless connection reliable, and of course, they sound excellent for the money, too. What are the best headphone earbuds? Again, we’d have to give that to another pair of Sony headphones. The Sony WF-1000XM4 may not be class-leading in terms of noise cancellation, in pretty much every other category they excel.




We also considered…







Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700

An improvement on the QC 35 II, with great looks and excellent sound










Shure Aonic 50

You may not find a better-sounding pair of wireless headphones than the Aonic 50










Final Audio E500

Among the most effective pound-for-pound in-ears you’re likely to hear








We’ve reviewed
1,170
Headphones
See all reviews





Specs compared


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UK RRP


USA RRP


EU RRP


CA RRP


AUD RRP


Manufacturer


IP rating


Battery Hours


Wirless charging?


Fast charging


Size (Dimensions)


Weight


ASIN


Release Date


First Reviewed Date


Model Number


Audio Resolution


Driver (s)


Noise Cancellation?


Connectivity


Colours


Frequency Range


Headphone Type


Sensitivity


Voice Assistant






Audeze LCD-1


£399


$399


–


CA$549


AU$649


Audeze


No


–


–


–


–


250 G


B07YMGS432


2019


–


210-L1-1200-00


–


90mm Planar drivers


–


–


Black


10 50000 – Hz


Over-ear


99 dB


–




Bose QuietComfort Earbuds


£249


$279


€279


CA$349


AU$399


Bose


IPX4


18


Yes


Yes


–