How do I choose headphones?
Start from where you will use them — that decides more than any specification.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 20 min
- Read
- 2 min
Short answer
Decide where you will mostly use them first. Commuting wants noise cancelling and over-ear comfort; exercise wants secure fit and sweat resistance; calls want a good microphone. Almost nothing else matters as much.
Headphone specifications correlate poorly with how good something sounds, and reviews disagree constantly. Use case is a far better guide, because comfort and fit determine whether you use them at all.
Step by step
- Decide where you will use them most.Commuting, an office, at home, exercising, or calls. This single answer eliminates most of the market and points at the right category.
- Choose the form factor for that.Over-ear: best comfort and sound for long sessions, bulky. On-ear: smaller, often less comfortable over hours. In-ear: portable and good for exercise. Open-ear: lets you hear traffic.
- Decide whether you need noise cancelling.Genuinely transformative on trains, planes and in open offices, and a substantial price premium. Pointless at a quiet desk, and some people find the sensation unpleasant.
- Prioritise comfort over sound quality.The most under-weighted factor. Headphones that hurt after an hour do not get used, however good they sound. Try them on if you possibly can.
- Check the microphone if you take calls.Frequently poor even on expensive headphones, and rarely mentioned in reviews. If calls matter, look specifically for microphone comments.
- Check the battery and how it charges.Real-world battery life, whether the case charges them, and which cable. Some still use older connectors, which is an annoyance for years.
- Consider wired for a fixed setup.Cheaper for the same quality, no battery, no pairing. For a desk or home listening, wired is often the better buy and rarely considered.
- Check they can connect to two devices.Multipoint — switching between phone and laptop automatically. Extremely useful for anyone who works and listens on both, and it is not universal.
Tips
- Fit matters more than anything for in-ear headphones. The included tips rarely suit everyone, and changing the tip size transforms both comfort and sound.
- Mid-range headphones from a reputable brand are usually the value sweet spot. Above that the returns fall away quickly.
- If you wear glasses, try over-ear headphones before buying. Some press the arms uncomfortably against your head.
Questions people ask
Is noise cancelling worth it?
On trains, planes and in open offices, yes — it is transformative. At a quiet desk it adds cost for little benefit, and some people dislike the sensation.
Are expensive headphones better?
Up to the mid-range, generally yes. Beyond that the differences are small and comfort and fit matter far more than price.