The best wireless earbuds and headphones for Samsung phones

Say what you will about the bean-shaped design of the Samsung Galaxy Buds Live, but they might be the most innovative wireless headphones of the year. Like standard AirPods, they have an open design—you don’t stick the tip in your ear—and are quite comfortable to wear, and fit more securely in your ears than AirPods. However, they don’t fit everyone’s ears equally well. These wireless headphones are discreet and basically sit flush with your ear without a little white tube sticking out of them.

They provide good sound and work well as a headset for making calls, with good background noise reduction so that callers can hear you clearly even if you’re in a noisier environment. Although they have active noise cancellation, it’s mild compared to noise cancellation in headphones that have a noise-canceling design. In other words, buy them for the design and sound, not the noise canceling features.

Waterproof: yes (IPX2 rating — sweat resistant and protects against light splashes).

Read our Samsung Galaxy Buds Live review.

The Samsung Buds Plus look essentially the same as the original Galaxy Buds, but they have a battery life of 11 hours for music playback (was 6), and they have dual drivers for better sound and an extra microphone in each earbud to help with external noise reduction during calls.

I was blown away by the sound. It’s detailed and smooth, with deep, crisp bass. The sound is richer and more spacious than the original Galaxy Buds. The audio comes from the respected Austrian audio company AKG, which Samsung acquired when it bought Harman. Although the original Buds were also “tuned” by AKG, they’re a nice upgrade over the originals – and right up there with what you get with the Jabra Elite 75t, if not better. They use Bluetooth 5.0 and support AAC (there’s now an app for iOS users) and Samsung’s scalable codec, which is similar to aptX but proprietary to Samsung Galaxy phones.

Thanks to their noise-isolating design, they sound slightly better than the Galaxy Buds Live. But there are advantages to both designs, so take that into consideration when you’re trying to decide between the two. Personally, I use the Buds Live more than the Buds Plus (yes, I have both).

Waterproof: yes (IPX4 rating — splash proof).

Read our Samsung Galaxy Buds Plus review.

The previous model Sony WH-1000XM3 was excellent. But if it had a weakness, it was the voice calling capabilities, especially in noisier environments. The new WH-1000XM4 has improved in this area and also adds Bluetooth multipoint pairing so you can connect to two devices at the same time – such as your phone and PC. This means that if a call comes in while you’re using the headset with your computer, the sound will switch to your phone when you answer the call.

The Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700 probably still have a slight edge for voice calls, but the 1000XM4 are perhaps a bit more comfortable and have some other small noise-canceling and audio improvements that make this model a great all-around choice.

Waterproof: no (no IPX certification)

Read our Sony WH-1000XM4 review.

The long-awaited successor to the Bose QuietComfort 35 II, the Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700 may not be a leap forward in quality, but these headphones offer slightly better sound and noise cancellation along with top-notch headset performance. They’re a strong all-around audio performer with up to 20 hours of battery life and a sturdier build than their predecessors (some find the QuietComfort 35 II headphones slightly more comfortable).

They cost $400 at launch, but they’ve come down in price a bit, and when they go on sale they’ll be on par with the new Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones, their closest competitor.

Waterproof: no (no IPX certification)

Read our Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700 review.

The second-generation Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 don’t come cheap. However, this version of the true wireless headphones is better than the original in everything, with a slightly smaller, more comfortable ear design, excellent sound quality, active noise cancellation that rivals the AirPods Pro, increased battery life (up to seven hours compared to the AirPods Pro). the original four) and better noise reduction during calls. If you don’t like these active noise canceling in-ear headphones in black, the white version of the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless headphones is now available for purchase. Most importantly, though, the Momentum True Wireless 2 have just as great sound – for true wireless in-ear headphones, anyway – delivering clearly better sound quality than the AirPods Pro. This makes them arguably the best true wireless headphones on the market today and earns them a CNET Editors’ Choice Award.

These Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless headphones use Bluetooth 5.1 with support for AAC and AptX codecs (for AptX enabled devices such as Samsung Galaxy smartphones).

Waterproof: yes (IPX4 rating — splashproof).

Read our Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 review.

At first glance, the Elite 75t, which was originally supposed to cost $200 and now sells for $180 (and sometimes less), looks more like an evolutionary update of the highly regarded Elite 65t. But the upgrades turned out to be a bit more substantial than I first thought, especially now that you can add noise cancellation via a firmware update.

The Elite 75t’s smaller size (pads and case are 20% smaller than the Elite 65t), extended battery life, and USB-C charging are significant upgrades. Other than that, there are smaller changes like the new design of the charging case with magnets inside that make it easier to open and close and keep the attachments inside. While the Elite 75t aren’t as comfortable to wear as the AirPods Pro, they sound better, with a cleaner overall sound and better bass quality when you’re snug.

The slightly sturdier Elite Active 75t is also available for about $20 more, but with the arrival of the new Elite 85t, we should see some sales on the Elite 75t. which has been on the market for some time.

Waterproof: yes (IP55 rating — can withstand heavy splashes of water).

Read our Jabra Elite 75t review.

Jaybird got off to a rocky start in the world of true wireless — it’s “AirPods” — when it released the Jaybird Run workout headphones in October 2017. This model is upgraded to the Jaybird Run XT wireless in-ear headphones in 2019, which was well designed but had a few performance issues that kept the wireless headphones from being great. But its wireless successor, the Jaybird Vista (jokingly Windows Vista), includes design, battery life, and performance improvements that make it the device I hoped the Jaybird Run would be.

At $180, the Jaybird Vista with a bigger battery is a bit more expensive than it should be, but these were some of the best wireless headphones to hit the market in 2020. These AirPods alternatives will especially appeal to those looking for a more low-key set of fully wireless workout headphones that are fully waterproof. A companion app for Android allows you to customize the sound.

Waterproof: IPX7 (fully waterproof)

Read our Jaybird Vista review.