Our Favorite Headphones for Working Out (2024)

4 months ago 49

“You're ever mooooving,” a genitor person erstwhile said successful my direction, arsenic helium rapidly disappeared implicit the horizon. As the moving genitor of 2 kids, I … don't disagree. Luxurious over-the-ear headphones are large if you chiefly usage headphones astatine enactment oregon for meetings, but for the remainder of your life—working out, traveling, oregon puttering astir your location pretending you're putting things away—you astir apt privation thing overmuch much convenient and durable.

Since I started investigating workout headphones years ago, the sound, comfort, variety, and features person each improved dramatically. I beauteous overmuch ever person a brace connected oregon astir maine during the day, whether I'm biking connected errands, running, stone climbing, oregon pursuing on to mildly embarrassing yoga videos connected my laptop successful my bedroom. If you besides request the distraction of euphony oregon podcasts portion scrambling up stony slopes oregon mowing your lawn, present are a clump of WIRED's favourite pairs. We've worn and sweated connected each of them. Don't spot thing you like? Check retired our Best Wirefree Earbuds, Best Cheap Headphones, Best Bluetooth Speakers, oregon immoderate of our different buying guides for more.

Updated June 2024: We added the Jabra Elite 8 Gen 2, the Ray-Ban Meta Wayfarers, and the Shokz OpenSwim Pro. We besides updated links and pricing throughout.

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  • Photograph: Adrienne So

    The Best Overall

    Jabra Elite 8 Active Gen 2

    This proposal comes with a large caveat: This year, Jabra announced that its newest releases would beryllium its last. That includes the flagship Elite 10 Gen 2 and this year's Elite 8 Active Gen 2. The institution volition proceed to grant its unusually agelong two-year warranty, but determination won't beryllium immoderate bundle updates aft that. With that said, I person recommended Jabra's workout headphones for years now, and I inactive emotion the Elite 8 Active Gen 2. The standout diagnostic this twelvemonth is simply a plug-and-play astute lawsuit that turns itself into a wireless transmitter. If you're watching TV portion your spouse is sleeping, oregon flying successful a plane, you tin plug your lawsuit into the 3.5-mm output and bask spatial audio without immoderate hassle oregon latency. As idiosyncratic who travels often with tiny children, this diagnostic is startlingly convenient.

    I similar beauteous overmuch everything astir the Jabra buds. The acceptable remains the astir comfy and unafraid of immoderate buds I've ever tried (Jabra claims it scanned 64,000 ears to dial it in), with an manufacture modular of 8 hours of artillery beingness without the case, and wireless charging. The afloat featured app lets you customize the magnitude of ambient sound you tin hear—for example, if you privation to drown retired the musculus bro grunting down you but don't privation him to beryllium capable to sneak up connected you. I emotion the pleasingly matte lawsuit and the amusive colors and the mode the buttons consciousness erstwhile you propulsion them. They're IP68 rated; I ran successful them for a week with my ears sweating successful the punishingly humid Virginia summertime vigor without fear. These are my favourite versatile, comfortable, and convenient earbuds, and I volition beryllium atrocious to spot them go.

  • Photograph: JLab

    Best Cheap Buds

    JLab Audio Go Air Sport

    Workout buds are getting cheaper and amended each the clip (I've recommended different pairs that I similar below), but JLab’s are truly successful a antithetic class. The Go Air Sport are the athletics mentation of the insanely affordable Go Air (8/10, WIRED Recommends), with a flimsy markup for over-ear hooks and a lawsuit with a cover.

    You conscionable can't find buds with prime this bully for this price. They travel successful a sturdy lawsuit with a built-in USB charger. The physique prime is solid, and interaction controls are not excessively sensitive; I don't accidentally crook disconnected my euphony oregon crook up the measurement whenever I set my hairsbreadth oregon my hat. They person a coagulated 30 hours of artillery beingness erstwhile you recharge them successful the case—I wore them for 2 weeks for a fewer hours each time portion moving and walking my dog, and I ne'er had to recharge them. And the Bluetooth transportation is stronger than successful different affordable earbuds that I've tried; I don't person to beryllium wary astir walking astir a corner, distant from my phone. As a bonus, they besides travel successful a wide array of playful colors.

    Alternative: Is your biggest occupation with workout buds that you tin ne'er find the darn things erstwhile it's spell time? Save yourself immoderate occupation and connect the JBuds Mini ($40) to your gym bag. These are the cutest, tiniest headphones I've ever seen, and I'm successful love. They dependable decent and acceptable beauteous well, considering however tiny they are. The artillery beingness is simply a perfectly capable 5 hours oregon truthful extracurricular of the case, and they travel successful a wide assortment of amusive colors.

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