True-wireless wireless earbuds and noise-canceling headphones are among the most popular products on CNET. Not only do I test a lot of earbuds but I also create a lot of best lists to help folks narrow down their choices and navigate the buying process.
So, what are the best wireless earbuds? There’s a lot of debate around this question, and it’s hard to name a single model as the best overall wireless earbuds. Sony’s new flagship WF-1000XM6 noise-canceling earbuds are pricey, but they’re pretty hard to beat from a performance standpoint across all the key areas, including sound quality, noise canceling and voice calling, which is why they currently top our best wireless earbuds list.
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That said, Apple’s excellent AirPods Pro 3 are a safer pick for Apple users, as their lightweight stem design tends to fit a wide range of ears comfortably. They also have more features overall, including a Hearing Aid mode, Apple’s new Live Translation feature and personalized spatial audio (Sony’s spatial audio features are Android-only). Meanwhile, Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (second gen) aren’t a big upgrade over the originals but they also feature superb noise canceling and excellent sound quality.
As for value picks, I like the Earfun Air Pro 4 Plus along with the Bose-infused Baseus Inspire XP1 and Baseus Inspire XC1, a top clip-on model with an open design (we’ll see a lot of brand new open earbuds in 2026, according to my headphones forecast). And I awarded a CNET Editors’ Choice to the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 FE.
We have more granular lists for those looking for specific types of earbuds with certain qualities or more specific uses. I’ve compiled all those best lists here on one landing page to give you quick access to our comprehensive earbuds buying advice.
CNET best wireless earbuds lists
- Best AirPods Deals
- Best Open Earbuds
- Best Clip-on Earbuds
- Best True-Wireless Earbuds
- Best Noise-Canceling Earbuds
- Best-Sounding Wireless Earbuds
- Best Cheap True-Wireless Earbuds
- Best Running Earbuds and Headphones
- Best Workout Earbuds and Headphones
- Best Earbuds for Making Hands-Free Calls
- Best True Wireless Sports Earbuds With Ear Hooks
- Best High-End Bluetooth Headphones and Earbuds
Best new wireless earbuds of 2026 (so far)
Why I like them
While expensive, Sony’s flagship WF-1000XM6 earbuds not only feature great sound and excellent noise canceling, but their voice-calling performance is also top-notch. Aside from an external makeover, the XM6s are upgraded on the inside with new drivers, a 3x more powerful QN3e chip with improved analog conversion technology, eight microphones — up from six — and an improved bone-conduction sensor that helps with voice-calling performance. The “HD Noise Canceling” QN3e processor is paired with Sony’s Integrated Processor V2, which now supports 32-bit processing, up from 24-bit. Read my Sony WF-1000M6 review.
Reasons to buy
The WF-1000XM6 are pretty hard to beat from a performance standpoint across all the key areas.
Reasons to skip/keep looking
Not everybody will get a tight seal from the included eartips. (I swapped in some tips from another set of earbuds I was testing to get a tight seal.) If you get a good seal and fit, these are special earbuds. But if you don’t, you could find them underwhelming for the price. Ideally, with earbuds this expensive, Sony would have included a wider assortment of tips.
Read Sony WF-1000XM6 review.
Why I like 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, it ended up dialing back expectations and calling the tech inside these new ear-hook style buds “OpenEar Noise Reduction.” It’s a good thing it did: During time testing the OpenFit Pro, they didn’t reduce ambient sound nearly as well as the Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation. But they sound impressive for open earbuds, are comfortable to wear and have the premium build quality you’d expect from a set of earbuds that cost $250. Read review.
Reasons to buy
The OpenFit Pro are well-designed and among the best-sounding open earbuds.
Reasons to skip/keep looking
There are more affordable open buds with ear-hook designs that may not sound quite as good but do cost $50 to $100 less.
Read Shokz OpenFit Pro review.
When Sony launched its original stem-free, donut-shaped LinkBuds in 2022, I lauded them for being an innovative take on open earbuds after Apple had dominated the open earbuds genre with its AirPods for several years. The second-gen LinkBuds Open were released in 2024, and now Sony’s added the donut-shaped LinkBuds, its take on the increasingly popular clip-on genre of open buds. While there isn’t anything terribly innovative about them, especially given their high list price of $230, they’re nicely designed, fit my ears well, sound quite good (for clip-on buds anyway), have strong battery life and feature excellent voice-calling performance. Read my Sony LinkBuds Clip review.
Reasons to buy
The LinkBuds Clip may not sound great compared with noise-isolating earbuds in the same price range, but they measure up quite well to other top clip-on buds, none of which feature fantastic sound and aren’t really designed for critical listening. Where they do seem to have a real competitive advantage is with their voice-calling performance, which is great if you like to chat when you go for a run or do other activities.
Reasons to skip/keep looking
The LinkBuds Clip seem a little overpriced at $230, which is why I have them rated just below four stars. Should they end up on sale on Amazon for $50 less, you can add a quarter star to my rating.
Read Sony LinkBuds Clip review.
Watch this: Sony WF-1000XM6 Earbuds Review: Supreme Performance, Subdued Design