If you've ever stumbled into Amazon's headphone section, you've seen it: $9.99 earbuds with 50,000 five-star reviews sitting next to $99 name-brand buds that swear they'll "change your listening experience," if not your entire life. So … what exactly is the difference? Are the cheap ones secretly great, or are the expensive ones doing something you don't notice until you've lived with them?
As someone who uses a lot of tech for a living (and has been burned by too-good-to-be-true deals more than once), here's the stuff that actually matters when deciding whether those budget earbuds are worth tossing in your cart — and what you're paying for when the price tag hits triple digits.
Active noise cancellation (ANC)
The cheapest earbuds rarely have real ANC — they usually rely only on passive isolation from silicone tips. Spend more and you get stronger ANC, adaptive modes that adjust to your environment and better sealing tips.
Look for: Basic ANC and silicone tips in multiple sizes.
If you're an Apple fanatic but don't want to spend the big bucks on AirPods Pro, here's a Beats deal for you. The popular Studio Buds + are over 40% off right now, have noise-cancelling, offer up to nine hours of straight listening time (up to 36 hours combined with its charging case) and are water- and sweat-resistant. Plus, the included interchangeable silicone ear tips will ensure a just-right fit.
"Don't let the age fool you," says Senior Tech Writer Rick Broida. "These earbuds deliver very good sound, solid noise-cancelling and impressive battery life, with various amenities (like adaptive ANC and multipoint pairing) that are commonplace now but were a big deal in 2022."
Adds Broida: "There's no ear-detection here, though, and these aren't quite as sweat-proof as their modern counterparts. But for $50, those are easy pills to swallow."
When it comes to Apple brand earbuds, a lot of people forget about Beats. The cheapest AirPods with ANC are currently sitting, on sale, at $149. I've personally seen these drop as low as $72.
Beats Studio Buds+ are currently sitting right at an incredibly rare $100, are newer and offer more robust noise cancelling.
Battery life — both the buds and the case
Manufacturers' estimates of buds' maximum battery life usually means how long they'll run with ANC and any other extras turned off. Real-world battery life drops when you have ANC on. Cheaper buds often promise 4-6 hours (less if they have ANC).
Look for: 5-8 hours per charge and 30+ hours with the case.
192 hours. No, that's not a typo. With this case you get 192 hours of playback. That is more than a week of listening. Why so high? Well, this case doubles as a phone charger, so it is more than full of juice. If battery life is your primary concern, these buds will put your fears to rest.
Most of us have bought a pair of really cheap earbuds from a gas station just to get us through a day of work and — surprise! — found that they leave a lot to be desired. But these Tagrys are a delightful price-point outlier — they come with 13mm speakers to output a lot of sound, delivering booming bass and crisp treble, as well as 60 hours of battery life with the case.
In addition to a wildly impressive audio quality-to-cost ratio, they come with an LED power display on the charging case, which eliminates guesswork when it comes to checking battery life. I wish I had that on some of my much more expensive buds.
Also cool: You get three separate sets of ear tips so you can mix and match to find the perfect size for optimum comfort, stability and sound.
Multipoint connectivity and Bluetooth stability
This is a "quality of life" feature budget buds often frustratingly skip. Multipoint connectivity lets you switch between your phone and laptop without re-pairing; it's a must for people who take calls on different devices.
Look for: Bluetooth 5.2 or newer and actual multipoint support, not just "quick switching."
These automatically pair with your last used device when you take them out of their case, thanks to Bluetooth 5.4. They have ANC and transparency mode, and while I wouldn't expect Apple AirPods quality from either of these features, just having them included in a pair of $30 buds is nice.
Broida found these to be the best budget earbuds for the bass-lovers out there.
"To be fair, I had to do some tweaking in the Baseus app; I thought the best overall audio quality came from having ANC and bass-boost turned on and Spatial Acoustics turned off (as opposed to set to Music). There's also an 8-band equalizer for those who like even more fine-tuning," says Broida.
"In fact, there's a Deep Bass preset that, when paired with Bass Boost mode, produces a double-helping of resonant thump that's sure to please bass-lovers. (This might be a good time to point out that Apple AirPods Pro 3, which cost $249, don't even have an equalizer.)"
Companion app and customization
This is a big differentiator. A good app lets you: update firmware, adjust EQ, customize touch controls, check battery life and toggle ANC modes. Cheaper buds might have a clunky one or no app at all.
Look for: An app that at least offers EQ presets and touch-control editing.
What's made thousands of reviewers fall in love with these Tozos other than the incredibly low price tag? Superior audio quality, of course, courtesy of 6mm speaker drivers that produce powerful, crystal clear sound and heart-thumping bass. Trust us, these sound way better than the buds that came with your phone (do phones still come with headphones these days?).
A big part of why they sound so good is the Tozo app, which lets you dial in the EQ exactly how you like it. Want deeper bass? More balanced output? Anything is possible. Well, almost anything.
Are open-ear headphones really earbuds? For the sake of this list, let's say yes. I have a few pairs of Soundcores, both earbuds and over-the-ears, and the app is incredibly easy to use and the changes you can make to the sound profiles are significant. You can save a bunch of presets as well, so you don't have to try and recall how you prefer your podcasts to sound after an hour-long White Stripeslistening sesh.
Fit, ear tips and ear detection
Fit matters more than most people realize — it affects comfort and sound quality. Higher-end buds include multiple tip sizes, better silicone or memory foam and features like ear detection to auto-pause your audio when you take your earbuds out.
Look for: At least 3 tip sizes and a secure fit. Ear-detection is a nice bonus, but rare under $50.
Broida picked these earbuds as his "Best budget earbuds overall." His reason? The long list of features: "Adaptive noise-cancelling, in-ear detection, wireless case-charging, support for both aptX and LDAC lossless audio codecs and batteries good for up to 11 hours on a charge.
"Ah, but how do they sound? Better than you'd expect given the price. Everything I listened to sounded lush and well-balanced. The active noise-cancelling also punched above its weight, though it doesn't match the levels offered by Apple, Bose and Sony," says Broida.
While they're not currently under $100, I've personally seen these earbuds drop to as low as $69 during Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, so they're worth keeping an eye (ear?) on. Ear detection is a tough quality to find in less expensive buds, but it is absolutely hands down my favorite feature of the AirPods 4. Another highlight is multipoint connection, especially for you Apple users. I frequently switch between my iPad, iPhone and MacBook Pro throughout my day, and it is so, so nice not to have to do anything in order to have a seamless swap.
Water resistance and durability
Cheap models can be hit or miss with build quality. IPX4 is the bare minimum water resistance for your workouts — meaning sweat and light rain won't fry them. Better buds reach IPX5-IPX8.
Look for: IPX4 or better.
Wondering what all of these IP ratings mean? Basically, they tell you how well your gear survives the elements — IPX4 shrugs off light splashes, IPX5 handles steady spray, IPX6 laughs at high-pressure jets, IPX7 can be dunked for a quick moment, IPX8 can go even deeper for even longer. The double-digit versions like IP55 or IP56 add dust protection to the mix so your earbuds don’t choke the moment you hit a dusty mountain bike trail.
These NC9s feature the IPX8 rating, which means they're incredibly waterproof. I wouldn't swim laps or take a shower with them in, but I would have no problem wearing them during a vigorous workout.
One of the reasons open-ear headphones are getting so popular is that they allow you to remain aware of your surroundings, whether you're on a walk, bike ride, run or just your daily commute. That means they'd better be able to handle a bit of sweat or the occasional unexpected rainstorm. With an IP55 waterproof/dustproof rating, these can cruise through your workout and then some.
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The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.