Open earbuds have become the saving grace for listeners that want to keep their earbuds in all day long without ear fatigue, or remain present in their environment. But up until recently, the category has had their fair share of issues.
Simply put, when listening to a pair in a quiet environment, open earbuds may sound great — but as soon as you introduce city traffic noise, or indoor cafe/restaurant noise, those new sounds tend to drown out the music. Bass response all but goes away. Vocals become hard to hear. Traditionally, those have been the trade-offs for having nothing sitting in your ear canal.
This collection of the best open-ear earbuds, led by the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, stands out from a growing pack. They are the best picks for your ears when you want to set your ear canals free. However, new additions from Motorola, Sony, Soundcore, and Nothing are giving them a run for their money. Here are our favorites.
Meet the best open-ear earbuds
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Best overall
Bose Ultra Open Earbuds’ feature an extremely comfortable, eye-catching design, and their “Immersive Sound” setting blew me away! Battery life is rated for seven and a half hours but one of their best features, Immersive Audio, cuts that almost in half to four and half hours. A quick 10-minute charge in the case gives you two hours of playtime. No wireless charging or multipoint.
Premium style
The Moto Buds Loop deliver the Bose audio you love in a stylish package, with a comfortable design studded with Swarovski crystals. With eight hours of listening time per charge and dual 12mm ironless drivers, these open earbuds aren't just for show.
Best with ear hook
Nothing quietly sells one of the best open earbuds in the Ear Open. These earbuds have a hook for stability and bass response we don't typically see from buds of this type. Frequently available for under $100, these earbuds earned a five-star rating in our review.
Best AI translation
The Soundcore AeroClip 2 open earbuds pack a ton of incredible tech inside, including the Thus AI chip, four microphones, and two voice pickup units. Aside from sounding great and lasting for eight hours on a single charge, the AeroClip 2 also support AI translation over 100 languages.
Best custom fit
The Sony LinkBuds Clip have a basic and customizable design. You can wear them as-is for a simple fit, or add silicone stabilizers for personalized comfort. The charging case is compact, and our review found that Sony's sound leakage reduction mode stands out.
Best for outdoor adventures
Our review of the Shokz OpenFit 2 open earbuds stand out because they come with improved IP55 dust and water resistance. Plus, they sound much better than their predecessors, not only for music but also for call quality. Multipoint lets you stay connected to two devices simultaneously. A physical button replaces the previously finicky touch controls, while battery life goes up to 11 hours, depending on listening conditions.
Best budget pick
The JLab Open Sport open earbuds get you decent sound in a very flexible form factor. There’s no companion app and the touch controls are very simple and intuitive. Best for glasses wearers because you can slide the hooks off and exchange them for a pair of included clips, then mount them directly to the arms of your glasses.
Best for hi-res
The Beyerdynamic Verio 200 made themselves easy to like in our review. Already solid sound quality and bass response get a boost with hi-res audio thanks to aptX Lossless codec support. You can always tune the sound yourself through the EQ in the accompanying app to personalize it even further. The lack of wireless charging for the case is vexing but at least the earbuds can play for up to eight hours per charge.
Best workout earbuds
1MORE Fit S50 have some of the longest battery life at up to 11 hours of use. Their IPX7 water resistance rating makes them great for workouts, so they’ll handle the sweatiest workouts, light rain, and some submersion. Some folks may experience fit issues with the ear hooks if they have smaller ears. 1More's penchant for delivering good sound shows itself here as well, making these buds easy to appreciate.
Picking what works for your open ears
Auditory masking is the biggest issue you’ll encounter when deciding which open-ear style earbuds you’re going to rock with. You’re more likely to be listening to them at lower volumes so you don’t dull your situational awareness, and that's why it's important they perform well under those conditions.
This list is a clear example of how this particular earbud category is growing more popular. Improvements are obvious when hearing the Nothing Ear Open or Sony LinkBuds Clip. Not to mention admirable performance from the Moto Buds Loop and Soundcore’s AeroClip 2.
Since 11 to 14 hours is far more than you’re going to get out of any active noise canceling earbuds, some shoppers may look at those with battery life comparable to the best ANC earbuds and ask, “What’s the point?” A fair question.
Though Bose had the shortest battery life with Immersive Audio turned on, they are the best overall because when off, they get 7.5 hours (depending on listening conditions). Just 10 minutes in the case gets you two more hours of playback. So, even at 4.5 hours with Immersive Audio on, 20 minutes of case time gets you four more hours, getting you through an eight-hour workday.
If you don’t want to fuss with that though, you have my insights and battery stat info to power your purchasing position.
