The Best Headphones for 2025

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Headphones and earphones come in many sizes and shapes with a wide variety of features and sound signatures. Finding the right pair for you is not just a challenge; it's a personal science that requires weighing your preferred style, desired features, chosen listening environment, and budget. PCMag has been reviewing headphones and earphones for over three decades and can tell you authoritatively that our recommendations are among the best available on the market. If you want the top noise-cancelling headphones, opt for the Bose QuietComfort Ultras, or if you prefer water-resistant earphones for working out, check out the Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2. Whatever your preference, PCMag's headphone reviews provide all the details you need to make an informed decision. And be sure to read beyond our top picks for a guide to understanding all the jargon while researching your choice.

Should You Pick Earphones or Headphones?

Earbuds do not seal off the ear canal and typically offer the worst audio performance. Earphones do seal off the ear canal and, therefore, offer better bass response, a more balanced stereo mix, and a more secure fit.

On-ear headphones (also called supra-aural headphones) typically have smaller earcups that rest directly on your ears. Over-ear headphones (or circumaural headphones) have larger ear cups that rest around your ears.

Over-ear headphones typically provide a more immersive experience than on-ear headphones, but this isn't a rule—plenty of on-ear models sound amazing and can even offer a little bit of passive noise isolation with the use of well-cushioned earpads. The main reasons to consider one over the other are comfort (this varies from person to person) and portability (on-ear models are often smaller and more travel-friendly).

Are Wired or Wireless Headphones Better?

Ever since Apple eliminated the headphone jack on the iPhone, wired headphones and earphones have faded from the forefront of this category in favor of Bluetooth models that require no cable at all. And true wireless headphones don't even have a wire connecting the two earpieces.

Audiophiles probably still prefer a cable, particularly for home listening (small cable adapters are available for Android and iOS devices with no headphone jack). If you prefer wired headphones, there are still lots of options available, but it's also worth noting that plenty of wireless headphones come with a cable that lets you use them in a passive mode. That use case doesn't drain the battery and gives you the best of both worlds.

The sonic advantage of wired headphones is still quite significant, even if Bluetooth audio has improved dramatically in recent years. No matter how much better Bluetooth has gotten, it is still based on a lossy codec stream, making it inherently inferior to a wired audio connection. If sonics are important to you and you want to go wireless, make sure your headphones have the right high-end Bluetooth codecs that work with your phone, like AAC and LDAC, and don't simply use the lower-quality SBC codec. Our guide to Bluetooth codecs explains everything you need to know.

What Are the Different Types of Headphone Drivers?

Headphones most typically have dynamic drivers, whereas earphones might have dynamic drivers or balanced armature drivers. Especially in headphones, dynamic drivers are the most common because a larger dynamic driver—which the ear enclosure for a pair of headphones can accommodate—can get louder and produce more bass depth than alternatives. In earphones, the dynamic drivers have to be much smaller; this can often affect bass response.

Many manufacturers, especially those in the business of making custom-molded in-ear monitors for musicians and engineers, turn to balanced armature drivers instead. Balanced armatures have the advantage of being tiny, which allows the earpieces to be smaller. Or, in the case of the aforementioned custom in-ear monitors, the earpieces can be quite large—freeing up room internally for several balanced armatures per ear, with each driver handling a specific frequency range. Generally speaking, it's possible to get excellent audio—or poor audio—from both dynamic and balanced armature drivers, although the two styles have dedicated fan bases.

Planar magnetic drivers continue to gain ground slowly in headphones and earphones. Headphones with these drivers are typically (much) more expensive. But the advantage of planar magnetic drivers is that they ostensibly produce a more precise sound because of the flat, larger-than-a-dynamic-driver film that vibrates between two magnets to create sound.

Electrostatic speakers and headphones are similar to planar magnetic models in that they use a large, thin surface area to deliver the audio. But we see far fewer electrostatic headphones than any other type—they are typically through-the-roof expensive and best for home use.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) tech is also starting to appear in the form of silicon-based, solid-state drivers. These can produce faster transients and are very precise. Additionally, manufacturers can ensure a more consistent driver-to-driver build since they don’t rely on multiple moving parts.

What Is Active Noise Cancellation?

Noise cancellation used to be one of the most expensive features you could find in headphones, but it's now mainstream in both the headphone and earphone realms. Not only that, but the shift from wired to wireless headphones in terms of popularity has meant that most of the active noise cancellation (ANC) headphones we see are now wireless.

That's excellent for convenience, but never assume that all ANC is the same. Bose still leads this category, though plenty of other manufacturers like Apple and Sony also offer top-notch options. See how we test noise cancellation to understand how it works.

When ANC goes wrong, there are three main ways to tell. One, it's just not very effective—it doesn't tamp down low-frequency rumble as it should, or the overall reduction in surrounding noise isn't profound enough to make it compelling. Two, the ANC circuitry creates a faint hiss—not necessarily unpleasant, but certainly audible (similar to white noise or tape hiss). This is often to mask the fact that the ANC circuitry can't effectively remove some higher-frequency sounds. Third, lower-quality wireless headphones often have ANC modes that affect the sound signature.

When we describe headphones with excellent noise cancellation, it's more or less the opposite. They squash the low frequencies effectively, tamp down surrounding chatter and common environmental noises, and don't produce much of a high-frequency hiss (if any). The sound signature also shouldn't sound wildly different when this mode is active. Beyond that, a growing number of manufacturers, like Bose, offer apps that let you adjust the intensity of the noise cancellation mode.

An increasing number of noise-cancelling headphones now include mics that power ambient listening modes. The point is to allow you to hear your surroundings as if you didn't have your headphones on so you can talk to others without removing them. This feature has become popular enough that plenty of non-ANC models now have it, too. Apple's Adaptive Audio mode is one of the best implementations. That said, open-style earbuds are still much better at letting you hear your music and environment simultaneously.

For more, see the best noise-cancelling true wireless earbuds and the best headphones for your home office.

What Are the Best Headphones for Exercise?

Aside from sometimes offering ambient mics for hearing your surroundings, exercise-focused headphones and earphones typically offer water-resistant builds and extra accessories for a secure fit.

The most important feature of any exercise-focused headphones remains the IP rating. IP stands for ingress protection, and you often see ratings such as IPX7 or IP65. The first number represents protection against solids like dust (X acts as a placeholder, usually because the manufacturer didn't officially test against dust or solids), while the second number describes protection against fluids like water and sweat. For more, see our guide to IP ratings.

As mentioned, another consideration is in-ear fit. We all have different ears, and some earphones fit better than others. If you've had trouble getting in-ears to stay in place in the past, consider a pair that comes with multiple eartips or earfins that sit against the ear to help aid stability. It's also worth considering foam eartips (which sometimes ship with earphones but are less common than silicone) because they expand in the canal to create a stronger seal, much like earplugs. They also often have the benefit of increasing the bass response.

For more, see our picks for the best true wireless earbuds for running.

Do Headphones Work With Voice Assistants?

Most wireless headphones now include a button or action that summons your phone's built-in voice assistant. But some, like smart speakers, are always listening. Of course, you don't have to use either option.

How Much Should You Spend on Headphones?

Quality and performance can certainly cost money, though that isn't always the case, and they aren't the only factors that dictate the price of headphones. Currently, certain technologies—active noise cancellation and spatial audio are the two most obvious examples—tend to drive up the price. That doesn't mean you can't find affordable true wireless earphones, but the higher-quality options tend to kick in around $150, while most excellent noise-cancelling headphones start around $300. Iconic branding—think Apple, Beats, and Bose, to name a few—also impact pricing.

In short, you can pay as little as $50 for good earphones or headphones and several hundred dollars for audiophile models. Generally speaking, most quality options fall between $100 and $400, but plenty of strong in-ear, over-ear, and on-ear models are available in the $100 to $200 bracket.

Once you find the pair that's right for you, make sure to take good care of them with our five easy tips to extend the life of your headphones. We also have an article on the eight ways you're using your headphones wrong.

Ben Moore contributed to this report.