Noise-Cancelling Headphones
every over-ear noise canceller we track, one row each. sort by battery to find the pair that survives a week of commutes, or by weight if your neck has opinions. a "no" in the analog jack column doesn't mean no wired listening, it means the seatback needs a usb-c adapter cable.
 Apple AirPods Max 2 | 7.3 Superb cancelling and sound for iPhone owners, dragged down by 386 grams, a 20-hour battery, no multipoint and a steep price. | 20 h | 386 g | None | Uses Apple's automatic switching between iCloud devices instead of true multipoint. | No jack: analog needs Apple's USB-C to 3.5 mm cable, sold separately. | Lossless up to 24-bit/48 kHz. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Beats Studio Pro | 6.6 Flexible wired options and good cancelling once sealed, but small cups make the fit uncomfortable for many and there is no multipoint. | 24 h SoundGuys measured about 31 hours with ANC on. | 260 g | None | Uses Apple's automatic switching between iCloud devices instead of true multipoint. | ||
 Bose QuietComfort Headphones | 8.0 Bose-grade cancelling and long-session comfort, now often discounted; dated Bluetooth, no USB audio and a 24-hour battery hold it back. | 24 h Quiet or Aware mode. | 236 g | None | 2.5 mm socket; cable included. Plays passively without ANC when the battery is flat. | ||
 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) | 9.1 Cancelling on par with Sony plus the comfiest fit here, and the 2nd Gen adds USB-C audio; a basic EQ keeps it a hair behind. | 30 h Rated with Immersive Audio off (23 h with it on). RTINGS measured about 37 hours. | 264 g | aptX Adaptive aptX Adaptive needs a Snapdragon Sound Android phone. | 2.5 mm socket; 2.5 to 3.5 mm cable included. | ||
 Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 | 8.1 Beautifully built and detailed-sounding with aptX Lossless and USB audio, but cancelling is a step behind and the tuning is hard to EQ. | 30 h RTINGS measured about 29 hours. | 300 g | aptX Lossless | No jack: analog via the included USB-C to 3.5 mm cable. | ||
 CMF Headphone Pro | 7.8 Impressively strong cancelling, LDAC and long battery for very little money; the creaky plastic build and gimmicky bass slider are the trade. | 50 h With AAC; rated 38 h over LDAC. | 283 g | LDAC | |||
 JBL Live 770NC | 6.7 Comfortable for travel with long battery and a good app, but very bass-heavy, with cancelling and mics that are only adequate. | 50 h | 256 g | None | |||
 JBL Tune 770NC | 6.3 Light and long-lasting for little money, but small cups limit comfort and the cancelling does little against low rumble. | 44 h | 232 g | None | |||
 Marshall Monitor III A.N.C. | 7.2 A comfortable pair with a huge 70-hour battery and great styling, but cancelling is only average and it has no hi-res codec or built-in jack. | 70 h | 250 g | None | No jack: analog via the included USB-C to 3.5 mm cable. | ||
 Nothing Headphone (1) | 7.1 Excellent isolation and a rare IP52 rating, but heavy, warm on the ears and tuned in a way reviewers find punchy rather than refined. | 35 h | 329 g | LDAC | 3.5 mm, but the headphones must be powered on when wired. | ||
 Sennheiser ACCENTUM Plus Wireless | 7.4 Light, long-lasting and unusually well connected, but cancelling and sound are merely good and the headband padding is thin. | 50 h | 227 g | aptX Adaptive | 2.5 mm socket; cable included. | Confirmed in RTINGS' testing, though Sennheiser's spec page lists the port for charging. | |
 Sennheiser Momentum 5 Wireless | 8.6 Rich five-star sound, a 57-hour user-replaceable battery and every wired option, held back by cancelling that trails Sony and Bose. | 57 h Rated at mid volume; the battery is user-replaceable. | 290 g | aptX Lossless | 2.5 mm socket; 3.5 to 2.5 mm cable included. | ||
 Skullcandy Crusher ANC 2 | 5.8 The haptic bass is fun and the app is good, but cancelling is only okay, it is the second-heaviest pair and the default bass swamps detail. | 50 h | 332 g | None | |||
 Sonos Ace | 7.0 Outstanding isolation and comfort with TV audio tricks for Sonos owners, but thin app controls, a bulky build and middling music tuning. | 30 h | 312 g | aptX Lossless Lossless Bluetooth needs a Snapdragon Sound Android phone. | Enabled once registered in the Sonos app. | No jack: analog via the included USB-C to 3.5 mm cable, and the headphones must be powered on. | |
 Sony ULT WEAR | 7.6 Near-flagship cancelling and comfort for less, but the bass-first tuning needs EQ and some owners report hinge failures. | 30 h SoundGuys measured about 32.5 hours with ANC on. | 255 g | LDAC | |||
 Sony WH-1000XM5 | 8.4 The former benchmark still cancels and calls very well and now sells well below flagship money; non-folding and no USB audio. | 30 h SoundGuys measured about 32 hours with ANC on. | 250 g | LDAC | |||
 Sony WH-1000XM6 | 9.2 Class-leading cancelling and calls with LDAC, multipoint and a jack; the shallow pads and firm clamp are the only real knock against it. | 30 h Sony's ANC-on rating; SoundGuys measured about 37 hours. | 254 g | LDAC | |||
 Sony WH-CH720N | 7.0 The lightest pair here with long battery, multipoint and lively sound for budget money; isolation is middling and the plastic build feels cheap. | 35 h | 192 g | None Sony lists SBC and AAC only. | |||
 Soundcore Life Q30 | 7.5 The long-running budget benchmark: real cancelling and 40-plus hours for little cost, with dated hardware and a headband prone to breaking. | 40 h Soundcore's spec table says 40 h; newer product copy claims 50 h. RTINGS measured over 44 hours. | 260 g | None | |||
 Soundcore Q20i | 6.8 A cheap, comfortable, foldable pair with multipoint and long battery; the cancelling is only decent and hisses a little. | 40 h | 246 g From Anker's own comparison chart; soundcore.com doesn't list it. | None | |||
 Soundcore Space One | 8.3 Gets most of the flagship experience (good ANC, LDAC, multipoint, 40 hours) for budget money; the build feels cheap and it struggles with engine rumble. | 40 h | 265 g | LDAC LDAC is switched on in the app, Android only. |
How the AI score works, and who wrote it
A language model rated these, not a test lab. Every score from 1 to 10 is an AI assessment of how good the product is against the other 21 in this comparison, formed from the specifications we verified plus the published lab reviews and owner reception found while researching each one. Nobody at Slopsheets listened to, wore or plugged in any of it.
It weighs the things a spec table cannot show: how a product is actually reviewed, how well the software works, build quality, and what you get for the money. That is deliberate. An earlier version of this column was pure arithmetic on the table and it ranked a bundle of cheap boxes above a class-leading single unit, because counting hardware is not the same as judging it.
Treat it as an informed starting point and read the sourced comparison, not as a verdict. The score is relative to this comparison only, so it means nothing across categories, and it carries no price, star rating or review count. Every specification behind it is sourced and checked; the score on top of them is opinion.
Frequently asked questions
Why isn't noise-cancelling strength a column?
Because no maker publishes it as a comparable number, and we don't fill gaps with marketing copy. Cancelling gets measured by labs like RTINGS and SoundGuys on test rigs, so check their results for the rows you're weighing. The AI score does factor in how each pair's cancelling is reviewed.
Is the battery figure with noise cancelling on or off?
On. Makers tend to headline the ANC-off number, which is often 30 to 50 percent higher, but nobody buys these to switch the cancelling off. The ratings assume moderate volume, so loud listening shortens them.
How should I sort this table for a long-haul flight?
Sort by battery and keep the rows at 30 hours or more, then check the analog jack column: a yes plugs into a seatback system with the cable in the box (2.5 mm sockets ship with a 3.5 mm adapter cable), a no needs a USB-C to 3.5 mm cable. Use weight to break ties for comfort past the six-hour mark.
Why do two pairs show no multipoint?
Both are Apple's: the AirPods Max 2 and Beats Studio Pro rely on Apple's automatic switching between devices on one iCloud account instead of holding two connections open. That's smooth inside Apple gear and does nothing for a Windows laptop or an Android phone.
Does the AI score account for comfort and call quality?
Yes. It's a model's judgment drawn from published reviews, weighing cancelling, comfort, sound, call quality, reliability reports and value against the rest of this table, not just the spec columns. It isn't hands-on testing.
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