Best Earbuds and Headphones for Workouts and the Gym in 2026

Why do I love them

The original Powerbeats Pro were released in May 2019, so Beats had plenty of time to figure out how to improve the second generation of its popular ear-hook-style wireless sports earbuds. And they have improved – by a lot. Not only do they feature a new, more refined design with better ergonomics, but also new drivers, a more powerful Apple H2 chip, a new built-in heart rate sensor, and, yes, active noise cancellation for the first time in a pair of Powerbeats. And that noise cancellation is pretty good, as is the sound quality and voice call performance – provided you get a tight seal from one of the five different tips included. Read my Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 review.

These new Powerbeats Pro 2 fit my ears better thanks to Beats improving the overall ergonomic shape of the earbud and completely redesigning the earloop: it’s 50% smaller and incorporates a nickel-titanium alloy, so it’s both flexible and durable. The heads themselves are 20% lighter.

Reasons to buy

Fitness enthusiasts prefer headphones that have over-ear hooks to prevent their earbuds from falling out of their ears during intense workouts. Generally, these earbuds don’t offer the best performance, but the Powerbeats Pro 2 share many of the same qualities and features as the AirPods Pro 2, with very good sound quality, as well as strong noise cancellation and voice call performance. In short, they are versatile and also work well as everyday headphones. It’s also worth noting that while the Powerbeats Pro 2 have some Apple-exclusive features, Beats offers an app for Android users that makes them more compatible with Android than the AirPods.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

Although Beats has improved the design and ergonomics of the Powerbeats Pro 2, they still don’t fit all ears, and some people may not get a truly tight seal with Beats’ tips. (I had a problem and had to use another set of tips from my collection.) If you don’t get a tight seal, you probably won’t be impressed with the sound quality and noise cancellation and may want to return them to the store where you purchased them. (Try to find alternative tips before doing this.)

Why do I love them

Shokz wanted to equip its new flagship OpenFit Pro open earbuds with active noise cancellation, but that’s not easy with open earbuds. Instead, he ended up backtracking on expectations and calling the technology inside these new behind-the-ear headphones “OpenEar Noise Reduction.” This is a good thing because in testing the OpenFit Pro they didn’t reduce ambient sound as well as the Apple AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation. But they look impressive for open-back headphones, are comfortable to wear, and offer the premium build quality you’d expect from a set of headphones that cost $250. Read the review.

Reasons to buy

The OpenFit Pro are well-designed and one of the best open-back headphones.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

There are more affordable open-back headphones with over-the-ear designs that may not sound as good, but cost $50 to $100 less.

Why do I love them
While I didn’t get the new H3 chip I was hoping for, or a charging case that doubles as a Bluetooth transceiver for in-flight entertainment, I got most of what I wanted from the AirPods Pro 3. The changes may seem incremental to some people, but the key elements—fit, sound quality, noise cancellation, and battery life on a single charge—all saw noticeable improvements.

They’re about as well-rounded as headphones get: excellent noise cancellation, solid voice call performance, and sound quality that rivals the best. Few heads excel in all three areas – and the Pro 3 achieves this while packing in plenty of extra features, including a new heart rate monitoring function. Read my full review.

Reasons to buy
As I said, these headphones are significantly improved in the four most important areas: fit, sound quality, noise cancellation, and battery life. The result is that you don’t feel like you’re compromising when purchasing the AirPods Pro 3 if you’re an Apple user.

Reasons to skip/keep looking
Although they work with Android devices, you’ll miss out on many of the AirPods 3’s extra features, especially those designed for Apple’s iPhone and iPad ecosystem. They can also be a little too expensive for many people.

Why do I love them

Shokz released the new OpenFit 2 Plus, which adds wireless charging and a Dolby Atmos sound mode for $20 more. The heads are otherwise the same, so you can decide if it’s worth the extra trouble (I’m not sure it is). Both are comfortable to wear, sound great on open-back headphones, at least in quieter environments, and offer good voice call performance. I also like that each earbud has a programmable physical control button to control playback. Read my review of the Shokz OpenFit 2.

Reasons to buy

Although the Shokz OpenFit 2 are a bit pricey, they are among the best open earbuds. The over-ear headphones feature a comfortable, durable design, high sound quality (for open earbuds), good voice call performance, and improved controls. Because of these features, I put them at the top of my list of best headphones and headphones for runners. They also work well for bikers and anyone who doesn’t like having eartips stuck in their ears.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

You can find cheaper open-back headphones with over-the-ear designs that may not sound as good, but they’re close enough and offer better value.

Why do I love them

Truth be told, in some ways I like Sony’s new LinkBuds Fit better than its flagship WF-1000XM5 noise-cancelling earbuds. While they don’t sound as good or have quite comparable noise cancellation as these headphones, they are lightweight (4.9 grams) and fit comfortably and securely in my ears. This is partly due to Sony’s new Air Fitting mounts, but it has also redesigned its ear tips and included a wide range of sizes, including XL tips that fit my ears well. While this is a slight drop in performance compared to the WF-1000XM5s, their sound quality, noise cancellation, and call quality performance are all very good. They also have built-in voice commands.

Reasons to buy

In many ways, these are Sony’s answer to Beats’ Fit ​​Pro headphones, which were released in late 2021 and became very popular. Not only do they sound great, they are light and comfortable and fit your ears perfectly thanks to their sports fins, making them perfect for everyday use and sporting activities.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The biggest problem with the LinkBuds Fit is that their list price is too high (they are too expensive at full price). They’re discounted now, and they’re most attractive when they drop below $150 (they would ideally cost closer to $130).

Why do I love them

Beats has redesigned the wingtips of its popular Fit Pro earbuds, shrunk their charging case by 17%, and renamed them the Powerbeats Fit. While I’m disappointed I didn’t get the Fit Pro 2 this year, the changes make this set of premium sports earbuds (which work well as everyday earbuds) a little better. Read my Powerbeats Fit review.

Reasons to buy them

If you don’t like the over-ear design of the Powerbeats Pro 2, the Beats Powerbeats Fit are a good alternative (I personally prefer the fit of the Powerbeats Fit). While the Powerbeats Pro 2 offer slightly better overall performance and are equipped with Apple’s H2 chip and heart rate sensors, the Powerbeats Fit still sound good and offer decent noise cancellation. They also frequently go on sale, making it possible to get them at a decent price. Don’t buy them at full price.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The Beats Fit Pro launched in late 2021. Yes, the Powerbeats Fit are slightly improved over this model, thanks to their smaller body and redesigned wingtips. However, the reality is that these are 4 year old headphones and still need an upgrade.

Why do I love them

Like the Baseus Inspire XP1 noise-isolating headphones that I highly rated, the Inspire XC1s feature “Sound by Bose” and a more premium design than previous Baseus headphones. The While they don’t produce as much bass as noise-isolating headphones like the Inspire XP1, their bass performance is better than I expected. The headphones sound quite full, especially in quieter environments, although they fare better with less bass-heavy material (I noticed a bit of distortion at higher volumes with some tracks with more bass-heavy).

While I slightly prefer the design and fit of Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds (as well as their case design) and think the Bose Earbuds sound more natural and a little better overall, the much more affordable Inspire They also have an IP66 water resistance rating, which means they are fully waterproof and dust resistant. I also liked that they have a programmable physical button on each earbud to control playback, multipoint Bluetooth (so you can connect two devices to the earbuds simultaneously), and a low-latency mode for gaming and watching videos.

The headphones have been tuned by Bose engineers and their default EQ setting in the app is “Sound by Bose”, but you can also tweak the sound slightly with six additional presets, including a bass boost mode and a custom EQ setting. The headphones support SBC and AAC codecs as well as LDAC for Android users (it must be enabled in the app). Battery life is solid, around 8 hours on a single charge with the volume set to 50%.

Reasons to buy

The Inspire

Reasons to skip/keep looking

If you can’t afford this model, Baseus also makes the MC1 Pro, which is sometimes marked down to around $50. The Inspire XC1 is very similar but features a more premium design and improved sound.

The well-designed OpenDots One are some of the best open-back headphones around. While they don’t sound as good as the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, they are pretty close and fit my ears slightly better and have better battery life. Read the review.

Reasons to buy

Like the Ultra Open earbuds, which sell for $299, they’re a bit overpriced, but at least they cost less than the Bose and their case has wireless charging.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The Shokz OpenDots One may cost less than the Bose, but it’s still quite expensive.

The Acefast Acefit Pro are similar to most new open-ear hook-style headphones, but they have a few distinctive design features that make setting them up easier. For starters, they feature built-in LEDs with 8 lighting effects that make you visible at night (a real bike light emits a lot more light though). Plus, their charging case is slim and has a battery life indicator in the translucent cover that lets you know how much juice is left in the case. Overall, I found the headphones comfortable to wear and they sound good for open-back headphones, delivering ample bass with decent clarity and good volume. Sonically, they compare well to Anker’s Soundcore AeroFit 2 and many mid-range open-ear sports headphones. I also thought their touch controls worked well while voice call performance was slightly above average, but not top-notch.

The headphones offer a battery life of 6 hours on a single charge at s moderate volume levels. They have an IP54 rating, which means they are dust and splash resistant. Available in several color options, the white color is currently the least expensive.

Anker’s Soundcore AeroFit 2 open-back headphones have been completely redesigned and are significantly different from the original AeroFit headphones. The second generation Aerofits are not only more comfortable, but also more stylish, sound significantly better and offer overall improvements. The headphones aren’t as light as the Shokz OpenFit 2 headphones and don’t sound as good, but they cost less and offer good overall performance with increased bass response. Available in several colors, they are a good option for those looking for open-back, over-the-ear headphones with a fairly premium design and good sound quality without the high price tag of high-end models.

Why do I love them

Last year, I gave Earfun’s Air Pro 4 headphones a CNET Editors’ Choice, saying they were “hard to beat for the price.” The same can be said for Earfun’s new Air Pro 4 Plus for 2025, which also won the CNET Editors’ Choice award. While these headphones are not without a few small flaws, these could easily be fixed with future firmware updates. At around $80 on Amazon, the Plus model costs $20 more than the standard Air Pro 4, but offers a pretty significant improvement in sound quality. (Note: apply the code AP4PCNET at checkout on Amazon to get an extra 10% off.)

Reasons to buy them

The headphones feature a new dual driver system that combines a 10mm dynamic driver with an “ultra-lightweight FeatherBA” balanced armature driver that helps improve bass and treble performance. Typically, dual-speaker headphones cost a lot more (these are the first headphones that cost less than $100 that I’ve seen with two speakers). The Earfun Air Pro 4 Plus also offers a comfortable fit and a fairly robust feature set, as well as improved noise cancellation that is quite decent. (Read my full review.)

Reason to skip/keep searching

If Earfun could find a way to raise the voice call performance level of its flagship earbuds from a B to an A or so, they would be the near-perfect true wireless earbuds under $100. We’ll see if we’ll get some tweaks and small improvements with future firmware upgrades, but as it stands, the Air Pro 4 Plus are still great for the price.

Benefits

• Dual driver technology dramatically improves sound
• Comfortable and secure open-ear design
• Low vibration
• Good voice call performance
• Limited sound leakage

The problem with bone conduction headphones has always been that they don’t sound very good. Unless you plug your ears, which negates the safety benefit of their open-ear design and is why they are so popular with runners and bikers. Well, that just changed. Shokz has finally cracked the code to bone conduction sound quality with a new dual-driver design in its new flagship OpenRun Pro 2 headphones ($180).

With the OpenRun Pro 2, Shokz solved the problem of lack of bass by adding a second, more traditional driver responsible for delivering low frequencies to your open ears. Shokz used the same micro-speaker technology (he calls it “air conduction”) in his first non-bone conduction headphones, the OpenFit ($140) and Open Fit Air ($120) truly wireless earbuds.

Why do I love them

The Soundcore Sport X20 has some nice improvements over Anker’s original Soundcore X10 headphones. They include an improved design, adaptive noise cancellation, better battery life, slightly better sound, and multi-point Bluetooth pairing. Like the previous model, these have an interesting design with swivel and rotating ear hooks. However, they don’t swivel as much as the X10’s ear hooks, which is a good thing (they stayed on my ears just fine). I also liked that the charging case has a smaller footprint than many over-the-ear headphones.

Fully waterproof and dustproof with an IP68 rating, the X20 has slightly larger drivers than the X10 (11mm instead of 10mm). As long as the included ear tips fit securely (you get 5 sizes), they are capable of delivering good sound with punchy bass and good detail. They lack a bit of clarity, especially at high volume (there’s a touch of distortion), and the noise cancellation isn’t as good as the Sony or Bose. But the buds are affordable and good value overall. As for battery life, it can go up to 12 hours with noise cancellation off and 7 hours with noise cancellation on. Voice call performance is also decent, but not exceptionally good.

Reasons to buy

If you like the concept of the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 but don’t want to pay $249 for them (yes, they’re on sale regularly, but they cost $249), the X2s are a good alternative for a lot less money.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

Some people prefer an open design (one that lets sound from the outside world in) in a set of over-the-ear headphones. Not everyone will benefit from a perfect seal with these headphones.

While the BlueAnt Pump First, they fold and feel sturdy, weighing 295 grams (while they’re not lightweight, they’re not too heavy either). Second, they’re comfortable to wear and come with two sets of replaceable ear cushions: the “everyday” set is covered in soft faux leather, while the workout set is covered in fabric and is designed to keep your ears cool while you warm up. Finally, they are IP54 splash and sweat resistant. I also liked that they feature physical control buttons, making them easy to use, and support USB-C audio, allowing you to plug them into a smartphone, tablet, or PC equipped with a USB-C port and use a wired connection to improve audio quality with more clarity.

Equipped with Bluetooth 5.4 but lacking a companion app or ear detection sensor, their sound profile leans on the warm side. They have a bit of bass punch, which some people like, and you have three modes to choose from: Transparent, Noise Reduction, and X-Mode. The latter offers the greatest dynamic range and volume, which is why I tended to keep it in X mode. Battery life is also decent, up to 58 hours of battery life at moderate volume levels with noise cancellation turned off. But in many ways, as the price suggests, these are more mid-range headphones. In other words, don’t expect to be blown away by their sound quality, noise cancellation, or voice call performance. But they’re decent across the board and make attractive sports headphones for those who like to work out with over-ear headphones.

In recent years, with its new headphones, Bose has focused on high-end noise-cancelling headphones at high prices. But now it has launched more affordable $179 (£180) QuietComfort headphones for people priced lower than its flagship QuietComfort Ultra headphones at $299 (£300). The new QC earbuds, as Bose calls them, don’t perform as well as the QC Ultra earbuds, but they offer a very secure fit, powerful sound, and noise-canceling performance while adding a few new features, including built-in voice controls, not found in the Ultras.

Why do I love them

When in your ears, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 look a lot like the original Pixel Buds Pro and retain the stabilizing fins that help lock the earbuds into your ears. But they are smaller than their predecessor and Google has equipped them with its new Te chip nsor A1, which offers more processing power and improves their performance at all levels. What you ultimately think of them will largely depend on how well they fit in your ears. This is the case for most noise-canceling headphones, but with the Pixel Buds Pro 2, if you don’t get a perfect seal from the included tips, the sound quality and noise-canceling performance drops significantly. If you get a perfect seal, these earbuds offer great sound, strong noise-canceling capabilities, and a robust feature set, especially for Android and Google Pixel phone users. Read my Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 review.

Reasons to buy

For Pixel device owners, the Pixel Buds Pro 2 have added appeal because they’re designed to work more seamlessly with your Pixel devices (there’s automatic switching between Pixel smartphones, tablets and watches) and also feature “Clear Calling” for Pixel smartphones, which improves voice call performance a bit. That said, Android owners can enjoy most of the Pixel Buds Pro 2’s features, including hands-free Google Assistant and the “Conversation Detection” feature that pauses what you’re listening to and puts the earbuds into transparency mode when you start talking to someone.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

I’ll start by pointing out that while the headphones work great with iPhones, iPhone users are missing out on several features, so Apple users should probably look elsewhere. Ergonomically, the earbuds’ smaller design should provide a better fit to a wider range of ears, but some people may find the original Pixel Buds Pro fit their ears better. Additionally, some Android owners might be disappointed that the headphones support neither Qualcomm’s AptX audio codecs nor Sony’s LDAC audio codecs (AAC and SBC are supported). Finally, it’s a bit annoying that the white case can pick up stains from items in pockets, although the case is fairly easy to clean with an alcohol wipe.

Skullcandy’s Crusher headphones have a built-in slider that lets you adjust the bass to such a degree that you literally feel it vibrating on your head. The Crusher 540 Active is similar to other Crusher models (it doesn’t have active noise cancellation like the Crusher ANC 2), but it has a sweat-resistant nano-coating as well as removable and washable ear cushions. I found these fabric-covered, memory foam ear cushions to be quite comfortable to wear and fairly easy to put back on after removing them, although it initially seemed more difficult than it seemed to get them back in place safely. They also have physical controls, which I appreciated, and I liked the way they sounded when I brought the bass down to its lowest setting. The headphones actually deliver decent clarity and well-defined bass at their default setting, but the bass heads can turn the bass up to 11 and shake the head as much as they want (the bass sounds pretty muddy when you turn it all the way up).

While these fit my head relatively well, those with smaller heads may not get a truly secure fit. This can be annoying if you try to do sit-ups or another exercise with them and they start to slip. But those with larger heads shouldn’t have any problems.

Known for its headphones and swimming headphones, H2O Audio has now expanded into more terrestrial headphones with its Ript Ultra over-ear headphones and Ript Light headphones. For working out, the main feature of the Ript Ultra headphones are their ear “cushions”. Two interchangeable sets are included: one is covered in soft-touch, sweat-resistant silicone (the pads are washable), while the other is covered in soft faux leather for everyday use. Both sets of cushions are nicely padded with memory foam inside, and the headphones are comfortable to wear, although slightly heavy at 10.5 ounces (298 grams).

The Ript Ultras are quite expensive, but they sound good and offer decent noise cancellation as well as long battery life (up to 50 hours at moderate volume levels). I’m not sure they sound as good as some $250 headphones – they’re a little lacking in clarity – but they’re quite dynamic and have some warmth with plenty of punchy bass. Voice call performance was also decent, and the earbuds come with a protective case and cord for wired listening. Hopefully their price will come down a bit as they have some attractive features, especially those replaceable ear pads, and seem to be solidly built even though they’re mostly plastic.

Why do I love them

Love them or hate them, the Beats Studio headphones are some of the most popular headphones of all time, launched as wired headphones in 2008. This is the fourth generation of them, and they have the same list price as their predecessor and look very similar on the outside but have big changes on the inside that make them significantly better headphones. I’m tempted to describe them as more affordable plastic versions of the AirPods Max. However, this is not entirely accurate due to a choice of chipsets and a notable missing feature. But read my full review to find out what makes this a really good headset with a few small caveats.

Reason to buy

The Studio Pros are the best Beats over-ear headphones, aimed at Apple and Android users. Android users benefit from multi-point Bluetooth pairing with automatic switching between devices linked to your Google account, while Apple users sign in to their iCloud account but must manually switch between devices. For Apple users, there’s spatial audio with head tracking when watching videos and hands-free Siri access. Those who prefer a more exciting, edgy sound signature to more laid-back options will find them appealing and should work well with a variety of music genres.

Reason to skip/keep searching

The only big problem here is the lack of ear detection sensors: Most $350 over-ear headphones have this feature, meaning your music doesn’t automatically pause when you take the earbuds off. I also think Beats made a mistake in not powering them with Apple’s H2 chip, because going forward you won’t get any more feature upgrades designed for that chip. Android users don’t get spatial audio with head tracking or hands-free Siri.

Why do I love them

Sony’s improved entry-level noise-cancelling headphones, the CH-720N, have a bit of a plasticky vibe, but they’re lightweight (just 192 grams) and very comfortable. Part of me expected them to sound pretty mediocre, but I was pleasantly surprised, as these headphones offer a good overall tonal balance with punchy bass, decent clarity, and a fairly wide soundstage (the headphones are suitable for a variety of music genres. They also offer decent noise cancellation and good voice call performance.

No, they don’t sound as good or perform as well as the WH-1000XM5 headphones or Sony’s new WH-1000XM6 headphones. But they sound more premium than they look – and don’t feel – and their overall performance is superior to that of their predecessor, the CH-710Ns. Is it worth $150? Maybe – or maybe not. But the good news is that, like the CH-710N and WH-XB910 before them, these are often marked down to over $100, making them a good value.

Reasons to buy

Budget-conscious buyers looking for Sony quality at an accessible price will find these offer a significant step up from truly entry-level headphone options.

Reasons to skip/keep looking

The main reason you don’t get them is that you just want a premium noise-cancelling headset that not only offers better build quality, but also better overall performance, as well as more advanced features like ear detection sensors, LDAC audio codec support, and Sony’s Quick Attention and Speak-To-Chat features. Sony also leaves out any sort of carrying case or pouch with these headphones, which is slightly disappointing.