Bose Ultra Open Earbuds: They weren’t the first pair of earbuds, but Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds started this small breed of wireless earbuds. They’re a bit overpriced, but otherwise, there’s a lot to like about them, including impressive comfort, a secure fit and excellent sound quality for open buds. Initially, the buds did not include multi-point Bluetooth pairing, but the feature was added in July of 2024. Read my review of the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds.
JBL Endurance Peak 3: As JBL releases a new Endurance Peak model in the spring of 2026, the third-generation ear-hook style sports earbuds should be available at a good discount. Available in black or white, the Endurance Peak 3 buds offer better battery life (up to 10 hours with four extra charges in their case), improved voice performance and an IP68 rating that makes them waterproof and completely protected. They also have an Ambient Aware mode and a Talk Thru mode that can automatically lower the volume level of your music and open the buds to the outside world. That means you can have a conversation with someone without taking the buds out of your ears.
Anker Soundcore AeroClip: Soundcore by AeroClip are Anker’s best earbuds right now. Not only do I love their design — they have a premium look and feel — but they’re comfortable to wear and have the best sound of clip-on buds. Equipped with 12mm drivers, it offers plenty of bass with good volume and decent clarity. The buds sound fuller and more open than many cheap clip-on buds and are among the best-sounding earbuds I’ve tried (Android users should note that they have support for Sony’s high-quality LDAC audio codec).
Skullcandy Method 360 ANC: Surprisingly, Skullcandy teamed up with Bose in 2025 to create a budget version of Bose’s $299 QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds. With “Sound by Bose,” the Method 360 ANC buds not only sound better than most earbuds in this price range (they sound very similar to Bose’s $170 QuietComfort Earbuds), they also fit comfortably and securely thanks to Bose’s Fit Kit system that includes stable straps to lock in your ears. They’re included in our list of the best wireless earbuds and are always a good value, but Skullcandy has released Route 540 ANC in 2026 (with a 20% minimum charge). Read ANC’s Skullcandy Method 360 review.
Shokz OpenFit Air: Shokz, the company formerly known as AfterShokz, has long been a leader in bone conduction headphones. However, this model, like Shokz’s OpenFit wireless earbuds, does not use bone conduction technology. They have an open design that blasts sound into your ears using custom speaker drivers, which Shokz calls “air drive” technology. While Shokz’ hidden flagship OpenFit 2 sounds a little better, has better battery life (up to 11 hours instead of 6 hours at medium volume levels) and a physical control button, the Open Fit Air costs about $60 and is much lighter and more comfortable to wear. Having said that, it looks like they were dismissed by Shokz.
Edifier LolliClip: Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds may be the best-sounding and most comfortable earbuds out there, but they list at $300. In contrast, Edifier’s new LolliClip buds cost $130 and their sound is much closer to what you get with the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds — and they’re almost as comfortable to wear while I’m wearing them securely. They also have other features that the Bose buds don’t, including active noise cancellation (not all effective but you can hear it blocking out some noise at low frequencies), a heart rate monitor, a blood oxygen sensor and ambient noise with tracking. There is also a low latency mode for playback and it supports LDAC for Android users.
Jabra Elite 8 Gen 2: Jabra billed these buds, unfortunately discontinued, as “the world’s toughest earbuds,” and based on our testing (they survived a few drops without a scratch), that might be true. Although there are two new color options, the Gen 2 model does not look different from the first one but it also includes the LE Audio smart case, which allows wireless streaming from any device with a USB-C or 3.5mm port (I tested it with inflight entertainment and it worked well, with no audio interference). The Elite 8 Active Gen 2 also features enhanced surround sound powered by Dolby Audio “for a better music experience,” enhanced Natural HearThrough for better awareness when outdoors, and improved noise cancellation performance.
Soundcore by Anker Sport X10: The Soundcore Sport X10 have an interesting design with ear hooks that swivel when you use them and flip down when you want to put them in their charging case, with a smaller footprint than most buds with ear hooks. As long as you get a solid seal, they sound great, with powerful, punchy bass and great detail. They also have active noise cancellation, which works well but not as well as Sony or Bose noise cancellation. They are also fully waterproof with an IP rating of IPX7, which means they can be completely submerged in up to 3 feet of water for 30 minutes. Battery life is limited to up to eight hours and three more charges in a charging case.
Shokz Open Move: Shokz’s entry-level OpenMove headphone lineup costs $80, though we’ve occasionally seen it drop below $70. It replaces the older Titanium model and features minor design improvements. I found it comfortable to wear and while it doesn’t sound great, it does sound good compared to bone-conducted headphones — again, keep your expectations in mind for sound quality or you’ll be disappointed. It’s great for listening to podcasts, audiobooks and newscasts while you work.
Sennheiser Sport True Wireless: The Sport True Wireless bluetooth earbuds (about $130) are essentially Sennheiser’s CX True Wireless earbuds with sport wings — with a more secure fit — and better durability. They have an IP54 rating which makes them splash resistant and dust resistant. The CX True Wireless, rated IPX4, does not offer dust resistance.
Skullcandy Push Works : With their ear-hook design, they’re actually an affordable version of the Beats Powerbeats Pro and actually fit my ears better than the Powerbeats Pro — I’m not usually a fan of the ear-hook style, but these are some of the better models. They are also much less expensive than Beats.
Cleer Audio Arc 2 Sport: Cleer’s original Arc earbuds were solid sports earbuds that featured decent sound from open-style earbuds that sit over your ears and fire sound into them. The 2023 model (about $170) increases the sound quality and offers further upgrades and feature upgrades, including a new “advanced” charging case with UV sterilization and multi-point Bluetooth connectivity (Bluetooth 5.3), all of which make for a more advanced product.
Beats the Powerbeats Pro: While the Powerbeats Pro remains a popular workout earbud, it has been around for a few years so it’s best to buy it at a huge discount.
JBL Live Pro 2: Over the years, JBL headphones have released some decent wireless bluetooth earbuds, but none really impressed me. That finally changed with the arrival of the new Samsung model Live Pro 2 again Live Free 2 buds. Both compact sets — the Live Pro 2 has a stem while the Live Free 2 has a pill-shaped design — offer a comfortable fit and solid noise cancellation, excellent sound quality and voice calling performance, and a solid set of features, including Bluetooth multi-point pairing, an IP rating of IPX5 (water proof) and wireless charging.
Sony LinkBuds: The LinkBuds are, in a sense, Sony’s answer to Apple’s standard AirPods. While it doesn’t sound as good as Sony’s flagship WF-1000XM4 or the LinkBuds S noise-isolating Bluetooth earbuds, they offer a smart, innovative design and a more secure fit than AirPods, as well as decent sound and excellent voice calling performance. Like third-generation AirPods, their open design lets you experience the outside world — that’s what the ring is all about. Read our Sony LinkBuds review.
