Since we live in a world where we have our smartphones in our hands or tucked away in our pockets, we tend to listen to move music and watch more video than ever before. If you’re sharing the music with a friend or just watching a quick video that you found on social media, your phone’s built-in speaker will usually suffice, but if you’re looking to immerse yourself in the experience, Bluetooth headphones with active noise cancellation are the way to go.
If you’ve ever tried shopping for headphones online or in a store, you know how frustrating it can be since it’s hard to know what you’re really paying for and why some headphones are cheaper while others are dramatically more expensive. To make things easier for you, we’ve done quite a bit of research to find the 5 best Bluetooth headphones with active noise cancellation. You’ll still have to choose which of these is best for you, but that shouldn’t be too hears since we’ve weeded out most options which shouldn’t be considered.
The Sony WH1000XM3 are considered by most to be the best Bluetooth headphones with active noise cancellation. They’re not exactly pretty, small or cheap, but that really doesn’t matter when battery life lasts up to 30 hours on a single charge and the audio quality is this good. Topping things off, the Sony WH1000XM3 comes with the best touch controls we’ve ever used and you also get Google Assistant built right in.
The Bose QuietComfort 35 Wireless Headphones II may not have the most user-friendly name on the planet, but they’re easily the most popular active noise cancellation headphones on today’s list with more than 2,600 reviews on Amazon and a very solid 4.4/5 rating. Bose has been leading in this category for a very long time and offers some of the best audio we’ve heard from headphones in its price range. The only downside is that you’ll only get about 20 hours of audio playback on a single charge.
While not as popular as Sony’s noise-canceling headphones, the Microsoft Surface Headphones are a great new entry into the category. Microsoft’s headphones are easily the most stylish of the bunch, offering amazing audio and incredible comfort. Those who don’t mind using Microsoft’s Cortana voice assistant will also be able to control their music and volume with simple voice commands.
If you’re looking for great base or simply enjoy that trademark Beats sound, the Beats Studio 3 Wireless is a pretty good option. The headphones are equipped with adaptive noise cancellation which listens to the ambient noise around you and makes adjustments on the fly. They’re also well-designed and look a lot better than most headphones with more than a dozen unique colors (some featuring designer patterns). Beats has also streamlined the buttons by incorporating most functions into the large “b” button on the side of the headphones.
Closing out our list is the Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 Wireless. While these headphones launched at more than $500, they’ve been reduced to about $270 for the past few months. For that price, you get incredible noise cancellation with a total of 4 mics which pick up the noise around you in addition to the best passive noise cancellation among the other devices listed. Sennheiser fans will also be pleased to see that the design of the Momentum 2.0 Wireless matches the company’s iconic industrial design which is a breath of fresh air.