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Do you ever want to decrease the noise from the busy world around you? If you work at a desk, are a student, or are someone who likes to be in their own world, you need a pair of headphones with noise-canceling technology.
Noise-canceling technology has come a long way. Headphones on the market now also provide sound profile customization, leverage smart voice assistant compatibility, and have all-day battery lives with quick-charging capabilities.
Also: The best noise-canceling earbuds (and how they actually work)
ZDNET did hands-on testing of many of the top noise-canceling headphones on the market, evaluating their noise-canceling capabilities, features, and price. Our pick for the best noise-canceling headphones is the Sony WH-1000XM5 due to their excellent voice sound quality, quick charge options, and advanced ANC technology. Read on for the rest of our picks for the best noise-canceling headphones.
Sony WH-1000XM5 specs: Weight: 8.81 oz. | Battery life: 40 hours (ANC off) Bluetooth: Yes (5.2) | Multipoint: Yes
Sony is one of the biggest names in the consumer headphones world, and we think that's for good reason. Sony's WH-1000XM5 delivers superb sound quality, effective noise-canceling, a sleek design, and all-day battery life. When we reviewed the XM5 headphones last year, we enjoyed the XM5's immersive ANC and clear, crisp sound.
If you enjoy touch controls over buttons, the XM5 headphones have intuitive touch functions on the ear cups, allowing quick access to control your music and take calls. Sony's Headphones Connect app offers many ways for you to personalize your headphones, from a five-band equalizer to other future-proof software.
However, these headphones aren't cheap, as their list price is $400.
Review: Sony's WH-1000XM5 headphones are basically perfect
Sony WH-1000XM4 specs: Weight: 8.85 oz. | Battery life: 38 hours (ANC off) | Bluetooth: Yes (5.0) | Multipoint: Yes
While the WH-1000XM5 are the latest over-ear headphones from Sony, the WH-1000XM4 headphones, which debuted in 2020, are another great option. This model may lack the secondary ANC processor that gives the newer version its extra noise-canceling boost, but it still provides superb sound and noise-canceling quality.
When we reviewed the XM4 headphones, we found the ANC to be extremely effective at blocking external noises.
Other standout features include the XM4's folding design and compact carrying case. Plus, the subtle metallic ANC microphone complements the overall aluminum construction and gives the headphones a sturdy, sleek, professional look.
However, if you're interested in experiencing Sony's spatial audio tech, 360 Reality Audio, you'll need a compatible music streaming service.
Review: Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless noise-canceling headset
Bose QuietComfort Ultra specs: Weight: 8.96 oz. | Battery life: 24 hours (ANC off) | Bluetooth: Yes (5.3) | Multipoint: Yes
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones are best known for their impressive noise-canceling properties and all-day comfort, living up to their QuietComfort namesake.
The QuietComfort Ultra headphones include Bose's take on spatial audio, Immersive Audio, and you don't need a compatible device or music streaming platform to access it. Immersive Audio expands the soundstage to give the listener a multidimensional audio experience, but it does quickly drain the QuietComfort Ultra's already short battery life.
As great as the noise cancellation is, the QuietComfort Ultra headphones also deliver top-notch transparency mode, allowing you to quickly toggle between letting the world in and blocking it out.
However, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones are pricey, retailing for $429.
Review: Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones are a rightful heir to the ANC throne
Apple AirPods Max specs: Weight: 13.6 oz. | Battery life: 20 hours (ANC off) | Bluetooth: Yes (5.0) | Multipoint: No
If you're dedicated to the Apple ecosystem, you'll want the AirPods Max. We praised the AirPods Max for their clear, detailed sound and effective ANC properties. The AirPods Max can seamlessly connect with all your compatible Apple devices, and can easily switch between your Apple device's audio outputs.
The AirPods Max are made of titanium and heavy metals, giving them a premium and sturdy build. Not to mention, their futuristic and clean design can make them double as a fashion statement.
However, the AirPods Max are not cheap, retailing for $549. These headphones will have software limitations with non-Apple devices, and their carrying case is everything but a portable and safe place for your headphones.
Review: AirPods Max: Stunning sound and performance mean I'm keeping the $550 headphones
Bose QuietComfort 45 specs: Weight: 8.46 oz. | Battery life: 22 hours (ANC off) | Bluetooth: Yes (5.1) | Multipoint: Yes
If you want headphones that are lightweight, comfortable, and reliable, the Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones are for you. The QuietComfort 45 are a predecessor to the QuietComfort Ultra, offering many of the same beloved features.
Through our testing, we found that the QuietComfort 45 deliver superb ANC, great sound, and the headphones come with a hard leather carrying case for storage and traveling. These headphones are perfect for everyday use if you remember to charge them, since their battery life is on the shorter side.
Review: Bose QuietComfort 45: The perfect headphones for all-day listening
Monoprice BT-600ANC tech specs: Weight: 10 oz. | Battery life: 40 hours (ANC off) | Bluetooth: Yes (5.0) | Multipoint: Yes
If you want highly effective noise-canceling for less than $150, consider the Monoprice BT-600ANC headphones.
ZDNET's testing concluded that the BT-600ANC headphones offer noise cancellation on par with Sony, Bose, and Apple. Additionally, the BT-600ANC have a sturdy build and a design that mimics Sony's XM4 over-ear headphones.
The BT-600ANC headphones are sure to offer you all-day comfort and ANC that can rise to the occasion. However, the BT-600ANC headphones don't have a companion app, so there's no way to personalize your audio experience.
The Sony WH-1000XM5 are the best overall noise-canceling headphones based on price, device compatibility, battery life, noise reduction, and software features. However, the Sony WH-1000XM4 are a close runner-up. You can quickly see how these two compared to the others I've mentioned with this handy table:
Whether you're back in the workplace or at home, environmental noise can be a hindrance to productivity and entertainment. While every option on this list can help dampen noise, no noise-canceling headphones can completely eliminate noise, especially in noisy environments. Still, each option offers a unique set of features that make it best suited to particular users with more specific goals than just generally blocking noise.
Exceptional noise-canceling technology and impressive sound quality. These headphones offer comprehensive software features for future-forward users.
Sony headphones for a less premium price. If your desire is a pair of premium cans from Sony, but you don't want to pay $400, these are for you.
The best headphones from Bose. The QC Ultra are the latest over-ear headphones from the company, delivering the best Bose has to offer
The most premium option that will natively work well with your Apple devices. These headphones will deliver great sound and ANC while blending into your Apple ecosystem.
Bose headphones for a less premium price. The QuietComfort 45 are a few years older than the Ultra, but offer many of the same premium features for less money.
The best ANC for the lowest price. The BT-600ANC delivers noise-canceling that can compete with the most expensive headphones in this list for only $100.
The ZDNET team conducted thorough, hands-on testing of the headphones on this list. Aside from simply including options that advertise noise-canceling tech, we tested the strength of each pair of headphones' noise-canceling properties. We also considered other metrics like design, build quality, and battery life.
Headphones employ multiple types of noise-canceling technology, with the most common being active noise cancellation (ANC). However, some headphones use hybrid or adaptive noise cancellation, and all headphones use a degree of passive noise cancellation.
Active noise cancellation uses microphones on the inside of your ear cups to detect external noise and produce an equal but opposite sound wave to cancel the extraneous noise inside your ear cups. Headphones with only internal mics have less effective noise canceling, but the sound quality tends to remain untouched by the sounds produced by the microphones.
Hybrid noise cancellation is a type of ANC that uses microphones inside and outside your ear cups to listen for a greater frequency of external noise. The additional external microphones make the noise-canceling properties stronger, but sometimes the sound quality is compromised.
Adaptive noise cancellation works similarly to passive and active noise cancellation but uses computer algorithms to assess the noise in your environment. If your headphones with adaptive noise cancellation detect you've entered a noisier environment, they will increase the noise cancellation.
Passive noise cancellation, sometimes called noise isolation, refers to how well headphones naturally block ambient by solely covering your ears. There is no technology involved with this kind of noise reduction. Closed-back headphones with a snug fit will have better passive noise cancellation, while open-back and loose-fitting headphones will allow more ambient noise to reach your ears.
If you work from home, are a student, frequently travel, or work in a shared office, noise-canceling headphones will benefit you. If you find yourself spending hours of your day in deep work but are frequently distracted by external noises, invest in a pair of noise-canceling headphones.
Noise-canceling headphones can also help you if you feel overwhelmed by the loud noises of crowded public spaces like airports and grocery stores. Keep in mind that noise-canceling headphones cannot completely mute the world around you, and you're likely to hear voices, cars honking, and other loud noises, just at a lower volume.
Noise-canceling headphones are not specifically meant to protect your hearing. That said, the lack of outside noise means you can often listen to your audio at lower volume levels than you would if it were competing with ambient noise. This results in indirectly protecting your hearing by helping you keep your volume at a safer level, as detailed in our five tips for preventing hearing loss caused by headphones.
Noise-canceling headphones can help reduce your exposure to loud noises since the noise-canceling technology helps keep external noises at bay. However, if you keep your headphones' volume too loud for too long, you can still damage your hearing.
Desktop Gooseneck Microphone The market is full of noise-canceling headphones to consider. Brands like Audio-Technica, JBL, and Sennheiser make great ANC headphones as well. In addition to our top picks, here are a few other noise-canceling headphones worth looking into.