Best Sony headphones 2024: budget, premium, Bluetooth, noise-cancelling

Best Sony headphones 2023: budget, premium, Bluetooth, noise-cancelling
(Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)

When it comes to headphones, esepcially wireless ones, Sony is in fantastic form right now. It pulled off a clean sweep at the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023, winning every category of best wireless headphones for its wide range of stellar earbuds and over-ear models. Across the price spectrum, Sony has been dominant over the past year or so, offering brilliant budget buds all the way up to some of the best premium cans money can buy. 

We've ranked the best Sony pairs below according to their overall performance and value for money, with the best deals on all models also included underneath. If you're looking for a new pair of headphones, you cannot go wrong with Sony. 

How to choose the best Sony headphones for you

Why you can trust What Hi-Fi? Our expert team reviews products in dedicated test rooms, to help you make the best choice for your budget. Find out more about how we test.

So, what should you look for before buying a pair of Sony headphones? Firstly, you need to pick a style (in-/on-/over-ear) and then think about which features you want. Do you want a portable pair for commuting or the gym, or are they going to be used mainly at home? If you want Bluetooth and noise-cancelling, pay close attention to battery life. 

Most of the best Sony headphones have touch controls for functions like play/pause, skipping track, etc and some are compatible with voice assistants such as Alexa and Siri. Premium models such as the WH-1000XM5 over-ears offer even more advanced features such as Speak-to-Chat. 

If you opt for a high-end pair, you might even want to plug into a dedicated headphone amplifier to hear them at their very best. These are all things to consider when making your choice.

Right, enough talk. Here are the best Sony headphones, from all the models we've tested...

Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones on a red background

Musical and feature-laden, the WH-1000XM5 are the best Sony headphones we've tested at this level. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winner. New design, same Award-winning result for Sony’s top-tier noise-cancellers.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 30 hours
Waterproof rating: None
Weight: 250g

Reasons to buy

+
Sensational sonic clarity
+
Nice to use
+
Punchy and precise, agile bass

Reasons to avoid

-
Build less premium than before
-
Don’t fold away completely

It can be tricky for a manufacturer to push the sound performance of a product consistently from generation to generation, but that is what Sony has managed to do with the 2022/2023 What Hi-Fi? Award-winning WH-1000XM5 wireless headphones.

When we saw the official pictures of the Sony WH-1000XM5, we were more than a bit surprised. We wondered whether it was a wise move to give one of Sony’s biggest success stories in recent memory – and some of the best headphones ever made – a major redesign. But it's paid off.

The Sony XM5 headphones might feel a little less premium 2020's WH-1000XM4 (below), but the jump in sound quality from the previous generation is a big one, and rivals once again have their work cut out. If you are looking for a new pair of Sony headphones, and don't mind paying a premium for the latest and greatest tech, the XM5 should be top of your list.

Read the full Sony WH-1000XM5 review

Sony WH-1000XM4 on a table with a plant

The XM4 are still some of the finest noise-cancelling headphones you can buy, despite the arrival of the new XM5. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
Sony’s 2020 premium wireless headphones deliver a sonic masterclass.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 30 hours
Waterproof rating: None
Weight: 254g

Reasons to buy

+
Dynamic, detail-rich sound
+
Sensational sense of timing
+
Lightweight, comfy and clever

Reasons to avoid

-
No IP rating
-
No aptX support

Despite arriving back in 2020, the musical-sounding XM4 continue to be some of the best noise-cancelling headphone around thanks to their refined design, advanced features and Sony's excellent DSEE Extreme audio processor.

The chip brings Sony's Edge-AI artificial intelligence into play, which produces a more accurate sound from certain sound files. There's also a new algorithm to analyse outside noise in even greater detail, providing more effective noise cancellation. 

Both the XM4 and their predecessor, the XM3, use the same control systems – a touch-sensitive panel on the ear cup and your chosen voice assistant (Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant). But as you'd expect, the newer XM4 have a few more tricks up their sleeve including a Speak-to-Chat feature and improved call quality. The XM4 can connect to two devices at once, too, which is one more than the XM3. 

The XM4 have been superseded by the XM5 (above) but, with a 30-hour battery life and a comfortable design, Sony's slightly older noise-cancellers are still a superb buy, especially now that they're discounted. They featured among the 'best wireless headphones' at the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2022

Read the full Sony WH-1000XM4 review

Sony WF-1000XM5 with Headphones Connect app shown on iPhone

Sony's top-of-the-range model are possibly the best wireless earbuds money can buy. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winner. Sony’s most accomplished and analytical wireless earbuds yet.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 8 hours (24 hours with charging case)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight: 5.9g per bud

Reasons to buy

+
Class-leading levels of detail and clarity
+
Top-notch musicality and timing
+
Comfortable, discreet design

Reasons to avoid

-
Some rivals produce more bass
-
Could feel more secure

With the WF-1000XM5, Sony has managed to produce another sensational pair of wireless earbuds.

There's a new design to behold, and it's a big step forward. The XM5 are also comfortable, nice to use and noise-cancelling and call quality are up there with the competition. Looking for the clearest and most detailed sonic performance from a pair of wireless earbuds on the market right now? The WF-1000XM5 produce it – and by quite some distance.

They're not quite as rich or full in the bass as we've come to expect from flagship earbuds from Sony but there's so much detail and texture to every track, it makes them a great choice for fans of any musical genre.

Add to that an eight-hour battery life (plus 16 hours from the case), Multipoint Bluetooth (so you can connect to two devices simultaneously), excellent noise cancellation (they seem to remove an extra layer of midrange noise compared to their predecessors, the XM4) and IPX4-rated sweat resistance, and this is a solid offering across the board.

There's no shortage of competition at this price, including the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II and AirPods Pro 2, but for most people, most of the time, the Sonys are great all-rounders.

Read the full Sony WF-1000XM5 review

Sony WF-1000XM4 on a desk with the case and app

Few true wireless earbuds come close to matching the all-round brilliance of the Sony WF-1000XM4. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
Even with the XM5 arriving, Sony's WF-1000XM4 are a stunning pair of buds.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 8 hours (24 hours with charging case)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight: 7.3g per bud

Reasons to buy

+
Clear, detailed bass performance
+
Wonderful sense of musicality
+
Class-leading battery life

Reasons to avoid

-
Missing Sony’s Multipoint feature
-
Lacking ear tip choices
-
No aptX HD

Sony's Award-winning WF-1000XM4 wireless earbuds preceded the excellent WF-1000XM5 (above), and are a brilliant choice for anyone listening on the go. The XM4 buds build on the huge success of the 2020 Award-winning WF-1000XM3 buds with added comfort and even better sound.

They produce one of the most dynamic, detailed and balanced performances we've heard from a pair of Bluetooth buds. Bass notes sound tight and textured, while vocals ooze refinement and sophistication. Their musical delivery keeps you coming back for more, and also makes you thankful for the eight hours of battery life, which is class-leading in this field.

They're comfortable to wear too. The compact earpieces include touch-sensitive controls and a new ear tip design which helps with noise isolation. Combine this with Sony's excellent noise cancelling and you've got a pair of headphones that effectively block out the hustle and bustle.

IPX4 water resistance comes as part of the WF-1000XM4 package, as does Sony's clever Headphones Connect app for iOS and Android and clever features such as Quick Attention and Speak-to-Chat. 

Read the full Sony WF-1000XM4 review

Sony WF-C500 earbuds on a patterned background

Sensible compromises make these stylish Sonys real competitors in the budget true wireless earbuds arena. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winner. Budget true wireless earbuds that don't cut too many corners.

Specifications

OS support: iOS/Android
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 10 hours (20 hours with the case)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight: 5.4g per bud

Reasons to buy

+
Compact and comfortable design
+
Spirited, well-balanced sound
+
Fine control app

Reasons to avoid

-
Ordinary battery life
-
Slightly small-scale sound
-
Numerous serious rivals

The What Hi-Fi? Award-winning WF-C500 manage to pack in a lot of what makes Sony's expensive true wireless in-ears – such as the WF-1000XM5 – a success without cutting too many corners.

You get an IPX4 rating for moisture- and splash-resistance, plus ‘fast pair’ connectivity with Android devices and ‘swift pair’ with Windows 10 PCs. It's possible to use Google Assistant or Siri to control these buds, although neither platform is built in. 

Sound is nicely balanced and even-handed; the midrange is loaded with detail and vocals are presented in a cohesive manner. Can The WF-C500 be bettered? Sure – some alternatives are more convincing. But for the money, it's a very decent sonic performance.

Downsides? Battery life is 10 hours from the buds themselves, plus another 10 hours from the case. That's nothing special when compared to rivals. Still, if you're after the best sub-£100, sometimes sub-£50 earbuds, the Sony WF-C500 should be on your shortlist, because very few buds are likely to beat them.

Read the full Sony WF-C500 review 

Sony WF-C700N held in the hand with red background

Sony's new midrange wireless earbuds are a great middle ground between its high-end and budget models. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winner. Sony’s wireless earbuds combine comfort, ANC and sensational sound quality.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 15hrs (buds: 7.5hrs; case: 7.5hrs)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight: 4.6g each

Reasons to buy

+
Very comfortable fit
+
Refined presentation for the money
+
Detailed, dynamic and musical sound

Reasons to avoid

-
Less battery than rivals
-
No aptX or LDAC support

Sony's newest wireless earbuds sit between the brand's budget WF-C500 and high-end WF-1000XM5. Both of those models are Award winners, so the C700N have a lot to live up to. But we're happy to report they don't let the family down – and they even won an Award of their own.

We think they're brilliant options that more than justify their price tag. The buds are impressively small, and their lightweight design helps make them even more comfortable than Sony's XM4. Battery life is competitive at seven and a half hours.

They lack aptX HD and LDAC but do feature noise-cancelling tech, which the WF-C500 lack. Adaptive Sound Control automatically switches listening modes depending on your location, and Sony's DSEE (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) upscales low-res digital audio files to higher quality. A software update has seen Bluetooth Multipoint also added so you can be connected to two devices simultaneously.

We think the Sony's sound quality is superbly balanced too, with deep, detailed bass, expressive mids and engaging highs. They're a very musical listen for the money and a clear step up from the cheaper WF-C500.

Downsides? The lack of support for aptX HD and LDAC is disappointing, and the charging case only provides one extra charge which seems a little mean. But the superb sound and great feature set make these easy to recommend as some of the best Sony headphones available. 

Read the full Sony WF-C700N review

Sony WH-CH720N held in front of a white wall

Sony's Award-winning form continues in the mid-range. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
What Hi-Fi? Awards 2023 winner. Affordable over-ears with no obvious shortcomings.

Specifications

OS support: Android/iOS
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 35 hours
Waterproof rating: None
Weight: 192g

Reasons to buy

+
Forceful, robust sound presentation
+
Decent ANC for the price
+
Solid build quality

Reasons to avoid

-
A little over-enthusiastic in the bass
-
No case or foldability

If you’re on a very strict budget but want a decent set of over-ear wireless headphones then you won’t do better than the What Hi-Fi? Award-winning Sony WH-CH720N.

While they don’t match the performance of the more expensive headphones in this list, including their big brother the WH-100XM5, during our checks we were amazed at how few compromises Sony has had to make to keep costs down.

While they don’t have a fold-down design, or come with a carry case, the WH-CH720N feel surprisingly well made and offered our testers a comfortable fit, even during prolonged listening sessions.

Audio quality is also excellent considering the WH-CH720N’s price, and a clear step up on similarly priced rivals such as the now-defunct Sennheiser HD250BT we tested them against. Playing a variety of genres they delivered a forceful, robust, and enjoyable sound, where the only minor issue we noticed was that they could be slightly over-enthusiastic with the bass.

Add to this their usable active noise cancellation, which is powerful enough to drown out background office noise and week-long battery life and the Sony WH-CH720N becomes an easy recommendation for any buyer on a budget.

Read our full Sony WH-CH720N review

Sony WH-CH520 headphones held in hand with vinyl records in background

They're built down to a price, but compromised in the least compromising ways. (Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)
Certainly cheap and definitely cheerful.

Specifications

OS support: iOS/Android
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC
Noise-cancelling: No
Battery life: 50 hours
Waterproof rating: None
Weight: 147g

Reasons to buy

+
Balanced and engaging sound
+
Great battery life
+
Useful and extensive control app

Reasons to avoid

-
Dynamically inhibited
-
Could have greater insight

They tend to be a bit overlooked in the face of their pricier stablemates, but Sony's cheap wireless earbuds are some of the best around. The same is true of its more affordable on-ear headphones. Just look at the WH-CH520 above.

For a very competitive price, they offer decent build quality, a comfortable fit and a pretty decent array of features. There's Bluetooth 5.2, Multipoint (for seamlessly switching between multiple wireless devices), and Sony's superb Headphones Connect mobile app – albeit in a stripped-down form compared to when used with Sony's pricier headphones. It offers equaliser presets and customisation, a hearing test, plus Sony's DSEE upscaling tech to polish the sound quality.

Battery life is a staggering 50 hours. That's 10 hours shy of Sennheiser's Momentum 4 Wireless, but still pretty special, especially at this price. And they sound superb too, though the same "for the money" caveat applies. They're nicely balanced and informative, though when it comes to low frequencies more expression would be welcome. But the bass is deep, solid and controlled. All in all, quite the bargain.

Read the full Sony WH-CH520 review

Sony Linkbuds S on a mixing desk

The LinkBuds S aren’t short of positives, but neither are they a runaway sonic success. (Image credit: Sony)
These might be 'the world’s smallest wireless earbuds', but size isn't everything.

Specifications

OS support: iOS/Android
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC, LDAC
Noise-cancelling: Yes
Battery life: 6hrs (+14hrs from case)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight : 4.8g per bud

Reasons to buy

+
Balanced sound
+
Solid bass
+
Good noise-cancelling

Reasons to avoid

-
Dynamics can be bettered
-
Lack of drive to the sound

The original LinkBuds launched in March 2022, complete with innovative 'open ring' drivers. Sony followed up with the more conventional-looking LinkBuds S, which offer active noise-cancelling in place of the open rings.

The Linkbuds S are very small – Sony billed them as 'the world’s smallest noise-cancelling wireless earbuds' – and very comfortable. They're also IPX4 water resistant, meaning they can handle a gym workout and your commute.

The touch controls are responsive although these LinkBuds don’t get the Wide Area Tap feature of the originals, which allows you to control them by touching the surface of your skin just in front of your ear.

In isolation, the LinkBuds S sound good, and the noise-cancelling is decent. They also boast some useful features such as Google Fast Pair (for Android devices). But they are also slightly disappointing in that they lack the rhythmic drive of Sony’s other wireless earbuds. A solid buy, but not Sony’s finest work.

Read the full Sony LinkBuds S review

Sony Linkbuds with the case on a pale background

The quirky 'open ring' design allows the wearer to have conversations without removing the earbuds. (Image credit: Sony)
A new breed of wireless earbuds from Sony.

Specifications

OS support: iOS/Android
Bluetooth: SBC, AAC
Noise-cancelling: No
Battery life: 5.5 hours (17.5 with the charging case)
Waterproof rating: IPX4
Weight : 4.1g per bud

Reasons to buy

+
Balanced, natural sound
+
Open and spacious presentation
+
Lightweight and comfy

Reasons to avoid

-
Sound lacks drive and dynamics
-
Ordinary battery life
-
No wireless charging

Sony’s original LinkBuds deserve praise for their clever design. They use a ring-shaped 12mm driver with a hole in middle, which lets you hear the outside world while your music plays in the background. The idea is that you can opt to wear the LinkBuds all day, whilst working, gaming and socialising.

We like the LinkBuds a lot. They're comfortable, extremely light and call upon Sony’s DSEE (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) technology to help restore high-frequency sounds lost in compressed digital audio files. Even the touch controls are inventive: you can choose to tap the surface of the main bud or tap the area in front of the bud, thanks to a special sensor. 

On the downside, the sound quality isn't perfect. Detail levels are good for the money, but how much of that you’ll hear can be affected by ambient noise levels. They're not hugely dynamic, either.

That aside, the LinkBuds are worth considering if you aren't sold on conventional in-ears.

Read our full Sony LinkBuds review

How we test headphones

We have state-of-the-art testing facilities in London, Reading and Bath, where our team of experienced, in-house reviewers test the majority of hi-fi and AV kit that passes through our door.

Of course, testing headphones often doesn't require such facilities (though we do try audiophile headphones in our reference hi-fi system). What is important in our headphones reviewing process is that each pair is compared to the best in its price and style class – whether that's one standout pair or a few we favour the highest among the 100+ pairs we listen to each year for reviews and What Hi-Fi? Awards judging. What Hi-Fi? is all about comparative testing, and we keep class-leading products in our stockrooms so we can always compare new products to ones we know and love.

We are always impartial and do our best to make sure we're hearing every product at their very best, so we'll try plenty of different types of music and give them plenty of listening time (and time to run in), while the wired headphones that might warrant being used with a DAC are tested with a suitable one. It's not just about sound quality, of course. If a pair has active noise cancellation – increasingly the case these days – we'll ensure part of our testing involves using them in different environments. 

All review verdicts are agreed upon by the team rather than an individual reviewer to eliminate any personal preference and to make sure we're being as thorough as possible, too. There's no input from PR companies or our sales team when it comes to the verdict, with What Hi-Fi? proud of having delivered honest, unbiased reviews for decades.

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Andy Madden

Andy is Deputy Editor of What Hi-Fi? and a consumer electronics journalist with nearly 20 years of experience writing news, reviews and features. Over the years he's also contributed to a number of other outlets, including The Sunday Times, the BBC, Stuff, and BA High Life Magazine. Premium wireless earbuds are his passion but he's also keen on car tech and in-car audio systems and can often be found cruising the countryside testing the latest set-ups. In his spare time Andy is a keen golfer and gamer.

With contributions from