The Best Wireless Earbuds of 2025, Tried And Tested By Experts
Finding the right pair of wireless earbuds can be overwhelming—there are hundreds on the market, all promising the best sound, comfort, and features. To help you cut through the noise, we’ve tested more than 450 pairs and narrowed it down to our top picks for most people. Whether you’re after a do-it-all option for everyday listening, a budget-friendly choice that still impresses, or a pair tough enough to handle your most intense workouts, we’ve got you covered. Below, you’ll find our favorite wireless earbuds right now, along with why they stand out.
Summary of best wireless earbuds:
The best overall: Sony LinkBuds Fit, $200 $130 at Amazon
Budget pick: EarFun Free 2S, $40 at Amazon
Best for serious workouts: JBL Reflect Aero TWS, $150 at Amazon
*All products featured on Manhattan Times are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
1) The Best Wireless Earbuds: Sony LinkBuds Fit, $200 $130
No matter what your day has in store, the Sony LinkBuds Fit are ready to handle it. Unlike many earbuds that are tailored for specific uses—such as working out or traveling—these are like the all-around athlete of earbuds, performing well across the board.
Their sound is rich and balanced, and you can tweak the audio to your liking using the Sony app. The compact design should fit comfortably in most ears, and each earbud features a soft wing that holds it securely without creating too much pressure. Call quality is excellent thanks to clear microphones that also cut down on background and wind noise. Plus, with an IPX4 rating, they can handle sweat or light rain without trouble.
One standout feature is the always-on voice control, which works not just with smartphones but with many laptops too—something you won’t find in many other wireless earbuds. If you prefer tap controls, these are notably dependable, responding even if your tap isn’t perfectly on target and giving you a beep to let you know your command went through.
The active noise cancellation rivals some of the best we’ve tested when it comes to blocking out airplane noise. However, the included ear tips don’t seal as tightly as those on higher-end models like the Sony WF-1000XM5, so you might still hear more high-pitched sounds.
Battery life runs about 5 to 6 hours per charge, which is fairly standard for feature-rich earbuds like the AirPods Pro 2. The compact case adds roughly 15 more hours of power, though it’s disappointing that it doesn’t support wireless charging.
2) Best Budget Pick: EarFun Free 2S, $40
If you’re looking for truly wireless earbuds under $50, the EarFun Free 2S are the best option we’ve come across. They pack a surprising number of features for the price, including an impressive IPX7 waterproof rating, a Qi wireless charging case, around 7 hours of playtime per charge, and an 18-month warranty. They also have full touch controls, and their noise-reducing microphones perform as well as those on earbuds that cost twice as much.
For the price, the audio quality is quite good. The bass has clear definition, and the highs reveal more detail than most budget earbuds—though at higher volumes, that detail can tip into harshness and become tiring over time.
There are a few trade-offs. You won’t get extras like active noise cancellation or a transparency mode. (If you’re after budget ANC, the EarFun Air Pro 4 is worth a look in our noise-cancelling guide.) The earbuds themselves have a smooth finish that can make them tricky to grip, which might be a problem for people with smaller ears. Finally, the touch controls can be less precise and more finicky than physical buttons.
3) Best For Serious Workouts: JBL Reflect Aero TWS, $150
If you’re after a wireless set of earbuds that can keep up with your toughest workouts, the JBL Reflect Aero TWS is a fantastic choice. They’re our top recommendation for exercise headphones thanks to their secure winged design, straightforward controls, and impressive IP68 rating that makes them both sweatproof and waterproof.
Right out of the box, the sound quality is solid, and you can customize it to your liking through JBL’s app with its built-in equalizer. Battery life is also a plus—these earbuds last about 8 hours on a single charge, and the compact case adds another 16 hours, though it’s a bit of a letdown that it doesn’t support wireless charging. You can use either earbud independently, and call quality is clear thanks to reliable microphones.
Our testers generally found them comfortable to wear, but if you have especially small or sensitive ears, the stabilizing wings might start to feel a bit uncomfortable after long use. Another minor drawback: while the touch controls are intuitive and simple, they don’t cover every feature, so you’ll need to decide which function—like ANC—you’re willing to skip.
Why you can trust our recommendations
I bring a solid background in audio to this work, with bachelor’s degrees in both music performance and audio production from Ithaca College. Over the years, I’ve reviewed more than 2,000 pairs of headphones just for Wirecutter. Before moving into product reviews, I spent several years working in terrestrial radio and then transitioned into professional voice acting in Los Angeles—so I’ve been inside recording studios for over a decade.
For this particular guide, I’ve personally tested more than 450 pairs of wireless earbuds. I also lean on a listening panel made up of audio experts, musicians, and composers. One of those is our senior staff writer Brent Butterworth, who has decades of experience reviewing audio/video gear and helps with technical measurements.
It’s also important to know that I don’t own stock in, or have any financial interest tied to, the companies or products we cover. Like all Wirecutter journalists, I test and review products with total editorial independence, without any influence from business interests. You can read more about our rigorous editorial standards on our website.
How we chose and tested
True wireless earbuds—meaning Bluetooth earbuds that aren’t connected by a cable—are by far the most popular style today, mainly because they’re lightweight and barely noticeable when you wear them.
To determine the best options for everyday use, we look for earbuds that check off several key boxes:
• Excellent sound quality: We want audio that’s well-balanced, without any part of the frequency range overpowering the rest, and with a sense of spaciousness. (We break down exactly how we judge sound quality in another article.)
• A secure, comfortable fit: If earbuds hurt to wear, or if they easily fall out—especially while commuting—you’re not going to use them. We look for models that come with multiple ear tip sizes or stabilizing features to suit different ear shapes.
• Strong battery life: At a minimum, we expect five hours of listening on a charge, plus extra juice from a charging case.
• Clear call quality: Good voice pickup is crucial for phone and video calls.
• Water and sweat resistance: It’s handy to have some protection against rain or workouts. (If you’re focused mainly on exercise, we have a separate guide for workout headphones.)
• Effective noise blocking and hear-through modes: We like earbuds that can both help shut out the world and also let sound in when you need awareness. Although the picks in this guide aren’t necessarily the top noise cancellers—that’s covered in our dedicated noise-cancelling guide—we still value these features.
To date, we’ve put over 450 Bluetooth earbud models through our testing process. Our panel evaluates sound quality, fit, comfort, and usability, then ranks their favorites. We also do extensive microphone tests on calls in both quiet and noisy places, with and without wind.
Battery life is verified to see if it meets what manufacturers promise. We check Bluetooth reliability too—whether you’re walking away from your device, keeping it in a pocket, or switching between iOS and Android. (Some earbuds can be finicky with computers, and we explain why that happens in our article “Bluetooth Headphones Don’t Always Play Nice With Computers. Here’s Why.”)
After all the testing, we weigh each pair’s performance, features, and price to finalize our recommendations.
This completes our list of the best wireless earbuds. If you want more posts about the latest news, check our other home page here.