The word 'cheap' often gets a bad rap. But when it comes to wireless headphones, real progress has been made in recent years – today's cheap pairs are no longer the poor relation to their pricier siblings, but a taste of what makes them so great, just without the price tag. There's nothing nasty about the pairs we've picked for this list.
In fact, they often share many of the same attributes and features as their stablemates further up the range. We're seeing more and more affordable pairs with active noise cancellation (ANC), and – in the case of the Sony WF-C510 – even those without it can offer an ambient mode to make you more aware of your surroundings. They often offer app controls, good comfort levels and impressive sound quality too. And all for under £100.
Of course, there are some real stinkers at this price as well, but you won't find any of those below. The pairs on our list have all come through our test rooms with flying colours. Some have even picked up Awards. We give each pair plenty of time to run in and use them in a variety of situations with all different genres of music. We try all their features too, in order to make sure we're seeing everything they can do. For more information about our testing process, check out our how we test section further down the page.
I've been testing wireless headphones since the AirPods were just a glint in Tim Cook's eye. In my 20 years in the business, I've seen cheap wireless headphones come on leaps and bounds. Sony currently dominates this area, thanks to its sophisticated features and great sound, but check out our Also consider section to see other pairs worth a listen. If you're on a budget, there are plenty of options to give you great sound on the go...
The quick list
Replacing the WF-C500 both in Sony's product line-up and in the 'best overall' slot, the C510 offer improved battery life and a new ambient mode, along with a lower launch price and better sound quality to boot. A no-brainer.
The Earfun Air are the cheapest of the cheap – if you want cheaper, you'll have to go to Temu, and chances are they won't sound half as good as these. Fantastic value.
Comfortable, cocooning and with superb sound quality, these are the best noise-cancelling earbuds you can buy at this price.
There are more advanced noise-cancelling over-ears around, but not at this money. For the price, these do a great job at dialling down the outside world, and they sound excellent too.
Some of the cheapest over-ears from a recognised brand, the WH-CH520 boast fantastic battery life, a neutral, engaging sound and Sony's very useful mobile app. And all at a bargain price.
The best cheap wireless headphones we recommend in 2024
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.
Best overall
If it's cheap wireless headphones you're after, Sony should be your first port of call. True, the market has responded since Sony's clean sweep in the wireless headphones category at the 2023 What Hi-Fi? Awards, but Sony still dominated this year, especially in terms of budget pairs. The jewel in its pound-shop crown? The WF-C510.
They replace the Award-winning WF-C500 in fitting style – the improvements are numerous, and significant. Crucially, they have a longer battery life, which is often one of the main compromises when a brand decides to slum it and launch a budget pair. They also offer a new ambient mode, which allows in some outside sound to make you more aware of your surroundings. Which makes them unique, as that feature is usually only for pairs with active noise cancellation.
As you would expect, they do feel like their price would suggest. But then when that launch price is significantly lower than their predecessors, we can forgive it (the C500 are cheaper now though, as the end-of-life model). And they provide a snug, comfortable fit – combined with their PX4 protection, they're ideal for sports use.
Bluetooth Multipoint lets them pair with two devices at once and switch seamlessly between them, so you can go from listening to music on your phone to a Zoom call on your laptop without faffing about with any re-pairing. You can use each earbud independently of the other, too.
Thankfully Sony didn't just beef up the spec sheet and think 'That'll do'. It's improved the sound quality too. You wouldn't expect an overly analytical performance from a pair costing this much, and that's not what you get. Rather, the C510 are fun, engaging and musical, but without sacrificing Sony's signature sound profile. "You can tell the WF-C510 are part of the Sony family, such is their musicality and rhythmic ability – even complex pieces of music don't unravel and their sense of timing and ability to just get into the groove of a song works with any music you play through them," we wrote in our review.
Compared to the C500, they're a little richer and fuller-bodied, which is why they won a What Hi-Fi? Award. Sony's storming run continues.
Read the full Sony WF-C510 review
Best budget
All of the headphones on this list are quite cheap, but the Earfun Air are cheapest even by these standards. They're the most affordable headphones of any style that we can heartily recommend.
Before the Earfun Air, we had never awarded five stars to a set of proper budget wireless headphones – despite testing models from well-known and highly respected audio brands.
In the Air, this little-known company has produced a comfortable, nicely built set of headphones that also boast excellent battery life, wireless charging support and a should-cost-more presentation.
"Fans of a grippy, energetic listen to get you through a workout will find much to enjoy here," we wrote in our review. "While similar budget-friendly headphones can come off somewhat congested, here the design of the driver and earpiece (which doesn’t sit too far into the ear canal) allows for a pleasant and spacious presentation."
The Earfun Air buds have a waterproof IPX7 rating, so they can be submerged in up to a metre of water for up to 30 minutes, and an impressively long battery life of 35 hours. There are also touch controls and in-ear detection tech to pause playback when you remove them.
If you’re after dirt-cheap wireless headphones for casual listening, the Earfun Air could just be the ideal proposition.
Read the full Earfun Air review
Best ANC earbuds
Sony's excellent wireless earbuds slot neatly between the budget WF-C510 (which don't have ANC) and premium WF-1000XM5.
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 some much more expensive pairs. Battery life is competitive at seven and a half hours.
They lack aptX HD and LDAC but do feature noise-cancelling tech, which the cheaper 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 added so you can connect to two devices simultaneously and flit between them with zero hassle.
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-C510.
Low frequencies are a particular highlight, even with a tricky tune like Angel by Massive Attack. "It’s not just the weight, depth and solidity of the notes that impresses, it’s also the layers of detail the Sony uncovers and their ability to paint the notes with believable texture," we wrote in our review.
Downsides? The charging case only provides one extra charge which seems a little mean. But the superb sound and great feature for an affordable price set make these easy to recommend as some of the best cheap wireless earbuds available.
Read the full Sony WF-C700N review
Best ANC over-ears
The WH-CH720N were designed to be an affordable pair of over-ears with a heavy feature set and a particular focus on budget noise cancelling. In this sense, they've delivered exactly what Sony intended, and for a very reasonable price, they’re a dependably made, enthusiastic-sounding pair of headphones that, while occasionally straying into the realm of excessive bass, deliver strong ANC and a large feature set to the market's mid-to-low price bracket.
A big part of the CH720N’s appeal is to provide noise cancelling without a huge expenditure, and the novice cans don’t let themselves down. While more premium models such as the WH-1000XM5 over-ears or the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones will block out external noises more effectively, we find these affordable Sonys do a pleasing job of dampening, if not silencing completely, outside noises and distractions. Further features, including Bluetooth multipoint, voice calls, a hefty battery life and Sony DSEE sound upscaling, only sweeten the deal.
Sonically, the CH720N are great for the price, and while you'll certainly receive more refinement and balance the higher up the price ladder you go, the affordable cans feel like they're spoiling you for £100.
"No shrinking violets, they imbue their musical cargo with heft and conviction, operating on the front foot in delivering an immediate, assertive sound with an emphasis on forceful, burly bass," we wrote in our review. Their energetic, lively style works best with the rock, pop and hip-hop genres,
Sony might have focused on features, but the sound these over-ears provide is detailed, robust and exciting, with decent texture and feeling across the board. Job done.
Read the full Sony WH-CH720N review
Best over-ears without ANC
The Sony WH-CH520 on-ear headphones are without a doubt one of the less glamorous products in Sony’s seemingly endless catalogue of headphones. But it doesn’t automatically follow that they’re not worthy of attention.
You can’t really expect the Earth when you’re paying £49 / $59 / AU$79 for a pair of headphones, so keep your expectations realistic. If you do, there’s every chance you’ll be quite impressed with the feature set of the WH-CH520. Wireless connection is via Bluetooth 5.2 (with ‘Fast Pair’ for Android devices). The Sonys have multipoint connectivity, and there’s compatibility with SBC and AAC codecs. And they can run for as much as 50 hours between charges, which certainly exceeds our expectations at this price point.
The Sony WH-CH520 don’t take long to establish themselves as a nicely balanced, informative and enjoyable listen. They’re not the most expressive headphones you'll have ever heard, but they do well to dig up detail across the frequencies and present it clearly, even if we would like a little more dynamic variation.
Their low end is "solid, deep and properly controlled at the leading edges," we wrote on our review. "They hit reasonably hard, and keep bass firmly in its lane where it can’t interfere with the midrange activity above." Speaking of the midrange, it's informative, eloquent and projects well, which is a lot from headphones at this price.
Ultimately, what’s remarkable about these Sonys is how little compromise they demand of you, both in terms of audio performance and ergonomics. They’re a terrific bargain.
Read our full Sony WH-CH520 review
Also consider
The best cheap wireless headphones alternatives we've tested:
Panasonic RZ-S500W: the former Award-winning RZ-S500W were Panasonic's first foray into wireless noise-cancelling earbuds and they're sensational performers for the money. Sound quality and noise cancellation are both first-rate.
JBL Live Pro 2 TWS: if you prefer a 'stem' design to the more rounded look, these are for you. They have all the features you could want, and perform brilliantly too.
Sony WF-C500: Sony's end-of-life wireless earbuds won't be around much longer, but if you can pick them up cheap they're an absolute bargain. True, they are outgunned by the C510 in pretty much every respect, but for the money they are reliable, comfortable and sound very good indeed.
How to choose the best cheap wireless headphones for you
The best cheap wireless headphones come in all shapes and sizes. You can get some pretty decent wireless over-ears and in-ears for not much money at all. Wondering which is best for you? Check out our guide to headphones vs earbuds.
Healthy battery life should be a priority for any of the best budget wireless headphones – anything around 20 hours and above for over-ear headphones and over six hours for earbuds (plus charging case battery life) is good.
If you're a fitness fiend who wants a secure fit and waterproofing, you're better off going for a pair of sport headphones with sweat/water resistance. Look out for an IP rating of at least IPX4, meaning they'll survive basic splashing but not a dunk in the drink.
You also might want to consider which version of Bluetooth they're running. We're currently on Bluetooth 5 (5.4 to be precise). Newer versions can offer improvements in performance over older versions when it comes to things like wireless range, so it could pay to do a bit of extra digging through the specs of any pairs you're considering. Bluetooth Multipoint is another one to look out for – it lets you pair with multiple devices at once, and then switch between them seamlessly as and when you need.
Some cheap models offer active noise cancellation (ANC), while some might have an ambient mode which allows in some outside sounds to make you more aware of your surroundings. The ANC on budget pairs will be more basic than found on pricier headphones – if you want more advanced features, you have to pay for them.
You'll also want to consider comfort, especially if they're going to be sat in or on your ears for any length of time. Finally, you definitely want decent sound quality for the money. As the best cheap wireless headphones around, all of the above have come out of our testing labs with flying colours.
How we test cheap wireless headphones
In order to put these headphones through their paces, we use them in real-world conditions. That means we run them down from full to empty to gauge battery life (multiple times) and use them outdoors in both built-up areas and open spaces to test how stable the wireless connection remains to the music source.
Using them outdoors also lets us check their noise-isolating properties, and active noise-cancellation (ANC) if they have it. We try them with both smartphones and computers to see how well they stand up in different use cases. And if they're a sporty pair, we'll take them out for a jog or to the gym to check how well they stay in our ears while exercising.
Each pair is compared to the best in its price and style class – whether that's one standout pair or a few that we favour the highest among the 100+ pairs we listen to each year. 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.
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.
For more information, check out our dedicated how we test headphones page.
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F.A.Q.
What are cheap good quality headphones?
It depends what you're looking for, but you can't go far wrong with any pairs on this list. The best overall are the Sony WF-C510, but if you want noise cancellation and/or an over-ear pair, there are options for you above.
Are wireless headphones worth buying?
We think so. The sound quality – especially at this end of the market – isn't much different from a wired pair, and the added convenience is a godsend (no more cable tangle).
Why do people still use wired headphones?
Some prefer a wired connection as it's more reliable (though all of the pairs on this list have rock-solid wireless connections). At the high end, a wired pair will give you better sound quality. Or maybe they just haven't upgraded from their old pair of wired headphones.
Recent updates
- 11th November 2024: Swapped Sony WF-C510 for C500 in main list, moved C500 to 'Also consider'. Expanded 'How to choose' section with more details and links. Added review quotes for each entry in the main list. Rewrote intro to link to our Sony WF-C510 review.
- 9th September 2024: Rewrote intro. Deleted headings from entries in 'The quick list'.
- 8th July 2024: Deleted Jump Menu and Test Results tables. Rewrote intro. Bolded advisory text in the How to Choose section.
- 30th April 2024: Changed to new Best Buy format. Removed Panasonic RZ-S500W and JBL Live Pro 2 TWS from main list. Added new 'Also consider' and F.A.Q. sections.
- 6th February 2024: Removed JBL Flow Pro.
- 11th May 2023: Removed Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 Plus, added Sony WF-C700N and JBL Live Pro 2 TWS.
