I've tested the best noise-canceling earbuds out in every possible scenario, whether it's the office gets too rowdy at the office, the ride on the subway is too stimulating, or my upstairs neighbor's music is blaring. I also use them to read in my Brooklyn apartment above a busy street, and I need zero distractions; the best noise-canceling earbuds don't just give you great-sounding music -- they also give you sweet, sweet silence when the music isn't on.
Also: The best headphones overall in 2025
One of the most coveted features in earbuds now is active noise cancellation, or ANC. ANC earbuds listen actively to cancel incoming sound waves with the aid of small microphones placed on the exterior of the earbuds, preserving quiet and amplifying in-ear sound. No matter how good a pair's noise-canceling performance, however, it's important that they do not have connectivity issues or excessive sound leakage.
What are the best noise-canceling earbuds right now?
My personal favorite among the best overall noise-canceling earbuds is the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds for the unmatched noise cancellation, exceptional sound, and sealed earbud fit. Of the best earbuds that I have to try out, the Quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds are the only ones that I wear on a flight because of the premium noise cancellation that keeps out the cacophonous engine sounds. If Bose is not your preference, read on for more of my best noise-canceling options.
1. Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra Earbuds
Best overall noise-canceling earbuds
My upstairs neighbor is a DJ who's cutting and mixing the same song for months—something that I happen to know by the fact that his speakers are so loud that I hear his every cut from the floor below. I insert the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds when I am trying to focus on reading my book and not on the din of that talented mixmaster, the honks and the beeps of the horns of the cars parked by my window, nor the conversations of the roommates that take place in the kitchen. I do not listen to any music -- the noise cancellation on these earbuds is so effective that all the noise disappears as soon as these are inserted in my ears so that I am free to read and focus. I also solely rely on these earbuds whenever traveling by flight, as I have not found another earbud that muffles the cacophonous engine noises of flight as effectively as these do.
Review: Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra Earbuds
When it comes to sound, the Quiet Comfort Ultra offers excellent, wide sound. On runs, the earbuds remain in my ears, which I credit to the ear tip's oval shape and the extra grip of the stability band.
Another nice feature is Bose's Immersive Audio mode, which places music right in your ears and allows music to track with you. A nice touch, but one that takes a bite out of battery life. Speaking of which, the battery life of these isn't the most competitive, but the case provides you with a boost to supplement it with on-the-go charging if you run out. One of the problems that pervades the various forums on Reddit as well as reviews is the connectivity issues of Bose, as the earbuds will drop out of connection. Charging the buds to full capacity prevents these lost connections, with other people also recommending the deletion of the app, which is occasionally buggy.
Specifications of Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra earbuds: Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3 | Battery life: 6 hours | Frequency range: NA | Noise cancellation: Yes | Water resistance rating: Water resistant
2. Sony Link Buds Fit
Best noise-canceling earbuds with a secure fit and a comfy wear
You're receiving earbuds that stay comfortably in place all-day without pressure build-up, a wingtip that keeps the earbuds in place as you walk, and software features on the app that make the device functional and unique compared to others.
I have found running with these in my ears to be a pleasure as the Link Buds Fit provide a balance of noise cancellation that keeps you in your music and away from distractions but still allows enough to come in that it keeps you highly aware of your surroundings (something that cannot be said of more powerful ANC earbuds like the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra). They sound good (as with most Sony products), they have a long battery life on a single charge, and the earbuds have a nice tactile fit that keeps them in your ear. They're also significantly lighter than heavier ANC earbuds like the Quiet Comfort Ultra.
They're the most comfortable earbuds that I've ever had.
The Link Buds Fit companion app also comes with genuinely thoughtful and brilliant features. You have a background music mode that you can switch on that plays your music in your earbuds as if you're in different spaces, like a cafe, a living room, or a bedroom. The cafe mode puts the music in your earbuds off to the side of you, which is great for productivity, and the living room mode creates a more spatial sound. The earbuds also have features that allow you to speak to and command them without a button or Siri. You have to say: "Hey, headphones, pause music," and it pauses your song. You can also have more out of the touch controls by having the Wide Area Tap setting's sensitivity set to high. That gives you a more responsive touch control by pressing around your ear (you do not have to even press the earbud itself) to pause or start music. I press the area around my tragus to have the most responsive control responses.
Sony Link Buds Fit technical details: Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.3 | Battery life: 5.5 hours of bud life and 15.5 hours of case life | Frequency response: 20 Hz - 20,000 Hz | Noise cancellation: Yes | Water resistance rating: IPX4 (splash-resistant)
3. JBL Tour Pro 3
Noise-cancelling earbuds with a smart
You can always count on two things with an earbud by JBL: great noise cancellation and long-lasting battery life. A great example is the JBL Tour Pro 3. If you switch off ANC, the earbuds, with clear and sharp sound, will carry you through your 40-hour working week -- and beyond.
These earbuds' noise-cancellation mode eliminates all the background distractions in the office and dampened the harsher noises on my commute. They also have functional features like the Talk Thru mode, a boon for workers seated by the desk who need to maintain the music as they respond to queries by colleagues.
The earbuds come with a "Smart-Charging Case" with a screen on the front to manage the audio but also serve as a dongle that inserts into your in-flight entertainment system whilst traveling and connects to your computer for even more superior conference calls. The earbuds' microphones make them ideal for office calls, and the long battery life means your earbuds never run out of power in the middle of a call.
Also: I did not expect that these earbuds would run my Bose QuietComfort Ultra into second place The JBL Tour Pro 3 is not without a few negatives, the major one being in the earbud construction. I've also tested its previous Tour Pro 2, which felt big, almost heavy. Inflation finds its way to everything, including earbuds. "The Tour Pro 2 earbuds feel big and heavy, and they stay planted in your ears and feel like a $300 pair of buds". Holding the two earbuds in my hand, the Tour Pro 3 buds feel significantly lighter -- and more plasticky -- than the Tour Pro 2. That lighter construction also leads them to tend to fall out of my ears," I wrote in my spotlight.
Specifications of JBL Your Pro 3 are: Connectivity: Bluetooth version 5.3 | Battery life: 44 hours without ANC | Waterproof rating: Waterproof | Earbud weight: 83g
4. Apple Air Pods Pro (2nd Generation)
Top noise-canceling earbuds that support Apple
Air Pods, ubiquitous as they now are, have come a long way since the days of people dreaming of a cordless version of wired earbuds. Apple's design of the Air Pods Pro, though, added an amazing combination of excellent sound quality, comfort, and noise cancellation -- especially with the 2nd generation.
With the new H2 chip by Apple, these AirPods significantly boost performance with high-band connectivity and a low-distortion driver with a custom amplifier. These technologies combine to offer better sound quality across a wider set of sound frequencies.
For those that have found the always-on noise cancellation a bit disorienting, these 2nd-gen Air Pods Pro also feature a transparency mode that ZDNET writer Jason Cipriani says he is "legitimately in love with" based on high-quality audio and surrounding sound listening.
Also: Two new Air Pods models will arrive this fall. Here's what we know
These second-generation Air Pods boast twice the noise cancellation and 33% more battery life. Plus, a new feature allows you to personalize spatial audio settings to your taste to enjoy your ideal sound experience (with iOS 16).
5. JLab Jbuds ANC 3 Best budget noise-canceling earbuds
JLab's JBuds ANC 3 proves that one can have effective active noise cancellation without spending a lot of money on a pair of earbuds. Work in my apartment becomes a bother with background sounds such as roommates and a DJ above. When I listen to these budget earbuds, however, the thudding music above my head is gone, much like with the Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds but a fraction of the price. The JLab Jbuds ANC 3 have three listen modes: ANC, ANC Off, and Be Aware. The ANC mode decreases the volume and places external sound a distance away as I listen to audio, and is on par with some of the more pricey earbuds that I've reviewed, but for a fraction of the cost. The battery life also lasted for weeks before it needed a recharge, so if you're the sort of person that cannot afford to do daily or even weekly recharges, try these out. These earbuds fit securely and comfortably inside my ears and stay in place even with exercise. They have a long-lasting battery, multipoint Bluetooth with smooth audio switching between multiple devices, and great sound. These earbuds are a great value for $60. Amazon reviewers say that the earbuds have real sound and noise cancellation but that the earbuds lack special features like easy touch controls on the earbuds. JLab JBuds ANC 3 technical specifications: Connectivity: Bluetooth Multipoint | Battery life: 9 hours in the earbuds and 33+ hours in the case | Noise cancellation: Yes | Waterproof? IP55