I've picked the best noise cancelling headphones for all budgets, based on real-world testing of nearly 20 models

Date:
Wed, 26 Nov 2025 14:09:14 +0000

Description:
We've tested and selected the best noise cancelling headphones to keep the world out and your music in.

FULL STORY ======================================================================

Welcome to TechRadar's guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones. Since you've come to this specific page, I'm going to assume that your biggest priority for your next headphones is their ability to block outside noise the most effectively using active noise cancellation (ANC) so good news, that's exactly what I've tested here, along with essentials such as sound quality, battery life, smart features and comfort levels.

At a glance: the best noise-cancelling headphones: My #1 pick: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones | See today's best price Best under $220 / 200: Bose QuietComfort Headphones | See today's best price Best under $100 / 100: 1More SonoFlow Pro HQ51 | See today's best price Best under $50 / 50: Amazon Basics Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones | See today's best prices

We've tested hundreds of pairs of noise-cancelling headphones here at TechRadar, so I've whittled the list down to 17 pairs of headphones, ranging in price from over $400 / 400 down to around $30 / 30. These are the models most likely to be worth buying for their respective prices, so I compared
them all against each other in tough real-world noise-cancellation tests.

I chose these tests to be consistent, but to still really help me see how
well these headphones work for how you'll use them at home, not how well they perform in a lab. You can read my explanation of the tests here.

One thing to note about prices in this guide: I'm going to discuss both official prices and the real-world prices you should aim to pay, which I call the 'target' price I'm mainly judging these headphones on their target prices, as there's no point giving you buying advice for a pair of Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones at their official price of $349 when they regularly
drop to $220 or lower. My target prices will be be based on price drops we've actually seen in the past, so they're real-world guidance.

I'll start with a quick run-through of the products I rate the highest at different price tiers, but read on for more depth on why I've chosen them
and later, I'll dig deeper into the features of each product I recommend (as well as the best alternatives). My history as an audio reviewer

Read more

I started testing and reviewing audio products in 2011, and at that time I
was focused mostly on iPod/iPhone dock speakers and wired earbuds. In that time, I've seen the world of wireless headphones and speakers completely take over mainstream audio.

That takeover includes the rise of the first mainstream wireless noise-cancelling headphones from the likes of Bose and Sony in 2016. (Is it just me or does it feel strange that wireless ANC headphones arrived the same year as AirPods?)

I've tested a huge range of headphones of all kinds over the year, including
a vast range of noise-cancelling models, ranging from the cheap options you find on Amazon, up to super-elite models from Dali, Bowers & Wilkins and Bang & Olufsen. Why you can trust TechRadar More than 2,400 audio products reviewed
15 years of product testing
Over 16,000 products reviewed in total
Nearly 200,000 hours testing tech

I led the development of TechRadar's process for testing headphones , including our headphones testing track list . When writing this guide, I expanded on the testing we've already done with a new set of specific noise-cancellations tests, based on my decade of experience testing these types of products.

You can read more about these tests later, but to arrive at the recommendations in this guide I performed new real-world testing and direct comparison of the headphones we identified as the best candidates. I had them all in one place, I connected them all to my phones, I swapped between them, and made frantic notes and rankings, then I changed those rankings, then I checked the headphones some more and changed the rankings again.

Oh, and if you're thinking that trying to have around 20 pairs of headphones all paired to your phone at once sounds like a recipe for chaos and frustration, you are right . My #1 pick to buy today Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (1st Gen) (Image credit: Future)

The 3 key reasons why

Noise cancellation as good as anything else, but cheaper
These scored joint-top in my noise-cancellation tests, matching the Bose
Ultra 2nd Gen and marginally beating the Sony WH-1000XM6, but can be found
for around $100 less than those models.

Comfortable and portable
I love the design of the Bose Ultras. They're very light, you can wear them for long periods without any fatigue, and they fold down small for travel.

Fun and energetic sound
These give you really punchy and dynamic audio, with big (but not overly heavy) bass, zinging treble, and great clarity through the mid-range. I've loved the sound since their launch.

2 reasons to choose something else

The battery life isn't great
The 24-hour battery life is below average. If you want 30 hours, the Sony WH-1000XM6 or Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2nd Gen will give this to you with the same level of noise cancellation.

You want a more refined sound
The Sony WH-1000XM6 offer a little more detail, a balance of bass/mid/treble that's closer to 'neutral', and a little better cohesion from bass through to mids.

See today's best prices for the alternatives:

Sony WH-1000XM6: today's best deal
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones 2nd Gen: today's best deal The best noise cancelling headphones I tested for different budgets Best under $250 Bose QuietComfort Headphones



The best under $250

I rated the noise cancellation of these headphones as being just a couple of points short of the Bose Ultras, but they can be found regularly for almost half the price. The sound quality isn't as good as that of their big brother, but the ANC and the comfort are best-in-class.

The best alternative:

Sony WH-1000XM4: see today's best price Best under $100 1More SonoFlow Pro HQ51



The best under $100

These are so strong, I don't even have an alternative to suggest they're by far the best budget noise-cancelling headphones. I scored them as being basically as strong as the Sony WH-1000XM4, which cost two to three times as much. The sound quality is less refined, but it's great for the price and they're comfortable, and the 65-hour battery life is as good as it gets. Best under $50 Amazon Basics Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones



The best under $50

These are a step down in ANC power from the 1More headphones, but can be
found for half the price, and really impressed me. They're solid with music, but weaker for podcasts or audiobooks the 1More are better for that, or the Soundcore Q30 are better at the same price.

The best alternative:

Soundcore Q30: see today's best price The headphones I tested for this guide (Image credit: Future)

Here's the list of headphones I was testing directly against each other to settle on my recommendations for this guide: Price and specs for these headphones

Model

Target price

List price

Battery life (ANC on)

Weight

1More Sonoflow HQ51

$69 / 69

$89 / 89

65 hours

246g

Amazon Basics Hybrid Noise Cancelling Headphones

$37 / 29

$42 / 31

45 hours

260g

Apple AirPods Max

$429 / 450

$549 / 499

20 hours

386g

Audio-Technica ATH-S300BT

$99 / 95

$149 / 99

60 hours

258g

Bose QuietComfort Headphones

$199 / 210

$349 / 299

24 hours

240g

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

$329 / 299

$429 / 449

24 hours

250g

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen)

$449 / 449

$449 / 449

30 hours

250g

Cambridge Audio P100 SE

$279 / 249

$299 / 249

60 hours

330g

Nothing Headphone (1)

$254 / 199

$299 / 299

35 hours

329g

Runolim WH301A

$19 / 23

$23 / 29

40 hours

230g

Sennheiser Accentum Plus

$170 / 119

$249 / 199

50 hours

227g

Sonos Ace

$299 / 269

$399 / 399

30 hours

312g

Sony WH-1000XM4

$199 / 179

$349 / 349

30 hours

254g

Sony WH-1000XM5

$249 / 219

$399 / 379

30 hours

250g

Sony WH-1000XM6

$428 / 375

$449 / 399

30 hours

254g

Soundcore Q20i

$39 / 32

$69 / 49

40 hours

245g

Soundcore Q30

$53 / 53

$79 / 79

40 hours

260g

Why only these headphones?

Obviously, there are a lot more headphones than these in the world and not only that, there are a lot of good headphones that are not in this list.
There are even entries in our list of the best headphones that have active noise noise cancellation, but that I didn't put through this testing process.

Read more

Why? Well, I knew based on the testing we've done on those headphones before that they wouldn't actually win in a battle that focuses on noise-blocking power first and foremost, and I only had so much time I could spend testing.

Take the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3 , for example. They're five-star headphones, and are excellent but I've compared them to the similarly priced options
from Bose, Sony and Sonos before, and I know that their noise cancellation is a clear level below.

I focused on choosing the most likely candidates for delivering strong ANC results across different pricing bands, from the premium of the Sony WH-1000XM6 down to the tiny price of the Runolim WH301A, ensuring that we had several options competing at the same price level.

This not only helps me to ensure that I'm only picking the ones that stand
out among their peers, but also means I was doing direct comparisons between any cheaper models that punch above their weight and the models just above, for a complete picture of where the best value can be found. How I tested the best noise cancelling headphones

There's obviously a lot to test in these noise-cancelling headphones, from sound quality to smart features to how comfortable they are to wear but the most important thing is their active noise-cancellation power.

I decided that I wanted to test in real-world conditions, which means I'm not taking scientific measurements of the levels of noise reduction here, based
on artificially created sound from a speaker.

While that kind of test is obviously a good way to measure with absolute consistency, it doesn't reflect well the nuances of how well noise is cancelled in practical use, because there are multiple factors involved.

For example, I tested two pairs of Soundcore headphones while compiling this guide, and the noise cancellation power was very similar on them both this applied with no sound coming through, and when listening to music that covers a wide range of frequencies.

However, when listening to a podcast, one was much weaker, because its mid-range reproduction wasn't as strong as the other pair, so voices sounded more muted and were much harder to make out over the background sounds. There was similar noise reduction in most cases, but a clear difference in how well you could make out what you were listening to.

But I still wanted to create some consistent testing conditions so that I could fairly compare all the headphones to each other for noise cancellation, and dig into where their strengths and weaknesses are.

Read more

So TechRadar's audio team came up with the idea of four noise-cancellation tests. Two of them target droning noises (which are easier for ANC headphones to deal with), while two target chaotic and unpredictable noises (which are harder to cancel out).

Similar, two of the tests target higher-pitched noises (harder for ANC headphones to deal with), and two target lower-frequency noises (easier to deal with).

Here are the four tests I did, all using real-world sound. In all cases, I tested all the different pairs of headphones in one big session, switching back and forth between them, making direct comparisons and ranking them.

Droning sound

Chaotic sound

Higher frequency

Hair dryer

Caf

Lower frequency

Microwave

Road traffic

Hair dryer

I placed a hair dryer on a table on full power (with no heating I'm not made of money), facing me. I measured 2m away from it, and marked the floor. I faced the hair dryer directly while testing each pair of headphones.

Microwave

I took over the office microwave for several hours (I am not kidding, that's exactly what I did) and marked the floor 1m away from it, and tested the headphones facing it directly. I had the microwave on full power, normal microwave use, for short periods at a time so I could listen to the headphones.

Caf

I set myself up on a table in a busy city-center chain caf for a few hours over lunch. The noise of the espresso machines, the clinking of cups and cutlery, and the chatter all combine into a cacophony of higher-pitched sound that rises and falls, and has sudden sharp peaks. This is basically the toughest kind of sound for ANC headphones to deal with.

Road traffic

While road traffic certainly can produce higher-pitched sounds, the rumble of engines and friction of tires tends more towards the mid- to lower-frequency range. I stood on the side of a busy intersection with traffic going in three directions, testing all the headphones one after the other. This is easier than the caf test, but can still easily overwhelm the podcast, and will be quite audibly over the music on weaker headphones.

How I make my comparisons

When comparing headphones, I try them with nothing playing just as a bit of a base line, then I try them with music playing, then I try them with a podcast playing to see if I can easily make out what's being said.

For consistency, I use the same piece of music: Let It Happen by Tame Impala, from 1:45 on. I found this to be a good balance drowning out noise, because
it has a consistent melange of sound across a wide frequency range, but with just enough space among the sound for audio to leak through, if it's going
to.

I also use the same podcast episode an episode of The Eye of the Duck , with two men with fairly lower-frequency voices, which can be easily overwhelmed
by higher-frequency outside sounds leaking in, so this is providing the toughest test.

The audio is played from my iPhone 16 Pro to the headphones this means that some of them are playing in limited standard Bluetooth quality rather than
the higher quality they're capable of over aptX or LDAC, but again this is important for consistency. They all get the same input, which make it easier to compare the output.

Volume levels are also important when it comes to noise cancellation, of course the louder the better for drowning something out. But that's not good for your hearing, and doesn't tell me too much about how well the sound is being actively cancelled, so I stick with a reasonable real-word listening volume.

This is where it gets hard to be truly consistent: I have to just estimate
the volume as being equivalent between the different headphones. I can't just set my iPhone volume to 35% and say that's the right level, because that 35% means very different levels of actual volume depending on the headphones.
I've been reviewing audio gear professionally since 2011, so I'm confident in my ability to equalize the volume suitably, but you should know that this is the biggest variable.

Testing the rest of the headphones' skills

I've made noise cancellation the dominant factor in this guide, but obviously it's not the only thing we test for. Sound quality is a significant factor,
as is comfort for long sessions while traveling or working.

I take battery life into account, and any key features that make a pair of headphones easier to use, or generally more useful, in the long term.

I'm also looking at build quality and how easy the controls are to find and use and while nice aesthetics don't make or break my picks, it's nice for things to look nice. The test scores of these headphones

After completing the testing described above, I ranked the headphones from best to weakest in each individual test, and assigned a score out of 5 to
each (including half marks).

I didn't just go with a system of '5 for the best one, 1 for the worst one'
I started with 5 for the best one, and then dropped a mark or half a mark whenever there was an obvious step down in effectiveness between models. This means that in some cases, no headphones scored right at the bottom of the scale.

First, here's a table purely of the scores I gave, including the total across all tests. Unweighted scores

Model

Total score

Hair dryer

Microwave

Traffic

Caf

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen)

19.5

4.5

5

5

5

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

19.5

4.5

5

5

5

Sony WH-1000XM6

19

5

5

4.5

4.5

Sonos Ace

18.5

4.5

4.5

4.5

5

Bose QuietComfort Headphones

18

4.5

4.5

4.5

4.5

AirPods Max

17.5

4

5

4

4.5

Sony WH-1000XM5

16

4

4

4

4

Sony WH-1000XM4

15.5

4

4

3.5

4

Cambridge Audio P100 SE

15

3.5

3.5

3.5

4.5

1More Sonoflow HQ51

14.5

3.5

3.5

3.5

4

Nothing Headphone (1)

14.5

3

4

3.5

4

Sennheiser Accentum Plus

13

3

3.5

3

3.5

Amazon Basics

11

2

3

2.5

3.5

Soundcore Q30

10

2.5

2

2.5

3

Soundcore Q20i

10

2.5

2.5

2

3

Audio-Technica ATH-S300BT

9.5

3

2.5

1

3

Runolim WH301A

6.5

1

2.5

1

2

However, I think the Traffic and Caf tests are more important than the Hair Dryer and Microwave tests, because they're more like the environments in
which you'll mostly rely on ANC, and at the same time are harder tests. If
you agree, then here's the same table as above, but with the Traffic and Caf scores doubled when counting the total score, to increase their importance. Weighted scores

Model

Total score

Hair dryer

Microwave

Traffic (2x)

Caf (2x)

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen)

29.5

4.5

5

5

5

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

29.5

4.5

5

5

5

Sony WH-1000XM6

28

5

5

4.5

4.5

Sonos Ace

28

4.5

4.5

4.5

5

Bose QuietComfort Headphones

27

4.5

4.5

4.5

4.5

AirPods Max

26

4

5

4

4.5

Sony WH-1000XM5

24

4

4

4

4

Sony WH-1000XM4

23

4

4

3.5

4

Cambridge Audio P100 SE

23

3.5

3.5

3.5

4.5

1More Sonoflow HQ51

22

3.5

3.5

3.5

4

Nothing Headphone (1)

22

3

4

3.5

4

Sennheiser Accentum Plus

19.5

3

3.5

3

3.5

Amazon Basics

17

2

3

2.5

3.5

Soundcore Q30

15.5

2.5

2

2.5

3

Soundcore Q20i

15

2.5

2.5

2

3

Audio-Technica ATH-S300BT

13.5

3

2.5

1

3

Runolim WH301A

9.5

1

2.5

1

2 My list of the best noise-cancelling headphones, in-depth The best noise cancelling headphones overall Image 1 of 5 (Image credit: Future) Image 2 of
5 (Image credit: Future) Image 3 of 5 (Image credit: Future) Image 4 of 5 (Image credit: Future) Image 5 of 5 (Image credit: Future) 1. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

The best noise-cancelling headphones overall right now Acoustic design:
Closed | Weight: 250g | Frequency response: Not listed | Drivers: 35mm | Battery life: 24 hours Best-in-class noise cancellation for cheaper than the competition Excellent audio quality Light, comfortable and folding design Limited hi-res audio support Low battery life Sony XM6 have a more neutral sound profile

Let me sum this up quickly: Bose's first-gen Ultra Headphones offer noise cancellation that's basically indistinguishable from newer premium models,
but can be bought for around $100 / 100 less than them. That's it, that's the tweet.

These were first released in late 2023, and since then Bose has released its own Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) and Sony has released the Sony WH-1000XM6 , both of which should in theory overtake these the noise-cancellation stakes, being newer and fancier.

But, having compared the three extensively swapping between them maybe ate
up more time than any other testing I did my conclusion is that they're
still best-in-class for blocking noise in a meaningful sense. I think the 2nd Gen are marginally superior, but only if you spend ages looking for differences because you're writing a long guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones (for example).

As you can see in the tables above, I actually think these are even
marginally better than the Sony XM6, based on superior performance for more chaotic real-world sounds, particularly with higher-frequency noises I felt SEEN-BY: 1/100 3/100 102 103 104 105 106 108 113 115 119 123 127 129 130 132 SEEN-BY: 3/135 137 138 140 142 145 146 147 150 151 152 156 157 159 160 163 164 SEEN-BY: 3/165 170 172 174 175 176 177 178 180 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 SEEN-BY: 3/190 191 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 209 SEEN-BY: 3/210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218