Noise Cancelling Headphones

IME you get whay you pay for. DH needs an over the ear headset due to his hearing aids. Some years ago he was using ones by Sony and was happy with them. At the time I was using a Bose headset and really liked them. They did what they were supposed to do and I found them comfortable for extended wear. I didn't find them too bulky to carry, but others might disagree. DH is still using these since I switched to the Bose noise canceling earbuds. These I find so comfortable that I can even sleep with them in.

A few months ago I decided to switch from Bose noise canceling earbuds to the Bose Noise Canceling headphones.

It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. They are amazing. I chose them because most reviews said they offered the best noise cancellation.

Even though they are bulkier than earbuds, to me, they are worth every penny and every square inch--or centimeter--of space. I also find them much more comfortable as I could never get the earbuds to stay in my ears.

I'm following along to see what is suggested.

I've been using my Bose QC 20 wired earbuds for the past 5 years. Sadly, I know some day they will need replaced.

I went the other direction, from Bose noise canceling headphones to wired earbuds, and am very happy. The headphones just took up too much space in my carry-on, since I only use them on flights (and when we fly business class, I don't need them at all.) And if I do need them in a hotel setting, earbuds are more comfortable than headphones. Whether your ears like earbuds is an important factor.

Robert, while Bose over the ears, noise cancelling headphones may have a high price tag, they are very good at cancelling noise, very durable, are very comfy, and are fantastic for travel. I have had the Bose QuietComfort 35 IIs since 2020 and I must admit I wear the heck out of them daily even wearing them to bed sometimes if there is noise outside (traffic, street noise when traveling) and they keep going never wearing out even though I'm probably wearing the crap out of them.
1.) Noise cancelling: Bose are fantastic at cancelling noise be it plane engine noise on long plane trips (crying kids too!) or annoying noise you want to block out like traffic, loud cars, a lawn mower, a leaf blower (I am very sensitive to noise), Bose do a fantastic job at blocking it out. The speaker quality is terrific. I listen to a lot of music and everything sounds amazing through the headphones as do podcasts or the radio which I stream from my phone. My husband and I both have a pair and we got a splitter to connect our headphones for when we watch movies on our pc on the plane which is nice. Works great.
2.) Durable: I'm sure that Bose did not intend for me to wear them as many hours as I do in a day, but I do: walking in the summer and winter, during 12 mile hikes, gardening, doing chores and to bed occasionally. They are are holding up great. I do replace the headphone covers bc they do wear out but you can find these great cheap ones that have a breathable comfortable fabric on Amazon. Also, You will need to charge them here and there as needed, but that's easy. They are comfortable as I noted, but as I am a petite woman with a small head, the headphones are a bit big, but I simply wear a headband or a hoody when home to make it fit better, but guys probably won't have this issue.
3.) Packable and light: They pack up nicely in their carrying case and fit in a day pack nicely. If these were to finally die, I would not hesitate to replace immediately. I would definitely recommend buying Bose over the ear Noise Cancelling headphones--they are fab!

Any flight over 4 hours, I am packing my Bose noise cancelling over the ear headphones. Any flight under 4 hours, I pack my Bose noise cancelling earbuds. I have borrowed/used other brands. None beat Bose IMO. Bose typically has a sale during the dates of the US Open tennis tournament as there are a couple of tennis players who are/were brand ambassadors for Bose.

Thanks for the replies so far - very helpful as I try to sort this out
The earbuds do look and sound great, but I'd be worried about losing the darn things, hence the focus on the over-the-ear version.

but I'd be worried about losing the darn things

I'm also a fan of the Bose wired earbuds. The nice thing about wired vs. Bluetooth is that they're harder to lose.

Costco has the BOSE at a great price right now. It's our favorite too. We had the Sony, and liked them - but the BOSE are so much better.

Which Bose model in particular?

I have these and I prefer them to my old Bose. Much better price. https://amzn.to/4zKV0ob

I had multiple pairs when I traveled for business, but in my leisure travel to Europe, I have to admit I just do without. Earbuds can get a bit tiresome after hour four, over the ear are great for a long flight...but then you have to carry them around for a month (along with neck pillows if that is your thing)

I don't find the overseas flights that noisy, even back in coach, and I don't sleep on flights, so I am usually listening to a movie, so I found it really was not worth the hassle to haul them along. Your experience may vary.

I had a pair of Bose QC earbuds for several years and was extremely happy with them, the noise cancelling function was great but they gave out and I felt that they should have lasted longer so decided to try something less expensive.

After much research, I came across the Anko Soundcorp brand and settled on a pair of Liberty 4 NC. They rated highly and got very good reviews and the price was a 1/3 of the big 3. I am extremely happy, I wear them most days for hours at a time and the battery life is excellent, only needing to plug them in or sit them on a wireless charger once a week or longer. The sound quality is good to me, although I am not an audiophile and the noise cancelling is close enough to my old Bose that I don't now remember much difference but the Soundcorp is pretty good.

Robert,

I have a different approach whether travelling or just working around home, and use Apple AirPods Pro2. I've been very pleased with them so far and don't see any reason to change to something else. The noise cancelling mode works really well even on flights although even in the highest noise cancelling mode, they don't eliminate the plane noise entirely. I prefer to maintain some awareness of announcements from the flight crew, so sometimes leave them in the "Adaptive" mode. The newer Pro3 models apparently have even better noise cancelling.

I'm reluctant to use anything larger as it wouldn't fit in the carry on I normally use and I like to minimize bigger items as they're just one more thing to haul around and keep track of. The Airpods are also more discreet, and I can make or answer calls with them.

Husband and I bought over-the-ear noise cancelling headphones earlier this year before a big trip and, wow, what a difference they've made while traveling on planes, trains, and in noisy hotel rooms. We keep them on the entire time for flights from the US to Europe. Muffles crying babies and noisy engines, resulting in fewer headaches for me. We've even gone to sleep with them on in hotel rooms to cancel out nearby trains, party noises and even motorcycles racing up and down roads. Have to lie on our backs to wear them. Then when we wake up in the middle of the night and things have quietened down, we can take them off.

Go to Best Buy or another large store where you can try on different brands to find out which brand and model feels comfortable for your head size and ear size. Best Buy had several brands and models charged so we could test how well they blocked out sounds of nearby shoppers. We kept them on for several minutes to see how we liked them. For me, the Bose Quiet Comfort fit over my large ears best. My husband found the JBL brand were comfortable. Pricey? Yeah, but look for them on sale (especially Black Friday deals). We think they were one of the best purchases we've ever made! Worth the investment. Think about how many hours you'll use them.

I have the Bose but recently bought a pair of AirPods PRo2. I too was worried they might fall out or be knocked out of my ear but then saw a necklace loop type thing that magnetically attaches to them. that way if they do fall or get knocked out they will just dangle around you neck. Thenecklace leash thing does come in multiple colors. I bought a bright magenta colored one so i could spot it easily in my case or if dropped. Check Amazon. Hope that helps if you decide to do the AirPods.

I have the Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2nd Generation Bluetooth Headphones.

BTW, our fearless leader, the man whose name is on this website, travels with a pair of Bose Noise Canceling Headphones. (Not earbuds.)

He once said he'd rather travel in economy with the headphones than in business class without them.

I also wear them on train/coach journeys where I am moving from place to place. However, for day trips, I will take my Bose NC earbuds instead because they fit in my pocket.

Prior to owning the Bose headphones I used a pair of Soundcore NC headphones. They were good, and cheaper, but Bose is better.

I did a lot of research before choosing because, let's face it, they aren't cheap. Then I went to Best Buy and tried them on. I also tried on Sony's. For me, the Bose was the most comfortable and the case was slightly smaller. I suggest seeing if any store near you has them to try on.

Then I waited for Amazon to have a sale.

I should also say that the Bose earbuds are my second pair. With my first pair, one decided to call it quits after about nine months and falling out numerous times. It was out of warranty.

I have had Bose Quiet Comfort over the ear headphones for years and they work great. I also have Apple AirPods Pro, which are obviously much more portable, but the sound cancellation is not as good, and they are also much easier to lose.

My Quiet Comfort ear pads were getting a little worn (to save space I throw them in my bag without the case), but replacement ear ear pads are very reasonably priced and the rest of the headphones are sturdy.

If I am in a very noisy environment (think red eye flight with a child screaming for hours behind you), I use high quality foam in ear earplugs, my over the ear Bose headphones, and then play background sounds through the headphones. That usually allows me to sleep with whatever is going on around me.

If you are a CostCo member, they usually have a good price on the Bose headphones.

If you want a more budget friendly over the ear option, I have the Anker Soundcore Life Q30, which have been great. I got them a couple of years back for around $60 I believe. They are very straightforward to use and do well for noise cancellation. I think they sound awesome. I think there may be newer models out now -I just saw a different style of Soundcore in Black and Cream at Costco for $75 ish I think. Mine have been very durable fortunately.

Soundcore makes all sorts of over the ear, in-ear headphones and earbuds. They are very affordable and the quality is very high. You can find them easily in Amazon.

Given I place a premium on packing without bulk (many of my trips involve bikepacking), I'm a noise-cancelling earbud person. Full-size over-the-ear units are unnecessary bulk and weight for me.

My personal faves right now are Beats Studio Buds. No, they aren't as good as the Bose or Sony options. But they have great sound quality and really do cut down on noise interference. They also work with Apple's "Find My" service - a big deal if they get lost.

I also love my Jabra Elite Active 75T earbuds, which are more comfortable and have better sound quality for jazz and classical music. But Jabra is no longer in the earbud business, so...

Anker Soundcore earbuds are also exceptional for the price.

Lots of great advice here, thanks. Unfortunately, Air pods don't block flight announcements well enough for me. On long-haul flights I still carry my trusty Bose headset, and also wear silicon ear plugs beneath them during boarding & announcements, but yes they're bulky and heavier than I would like. Then I switch to the Air pods, which I really like for daily background noise. I also wear them outside when gardening to quench those pesky nearby leaf blowers & any nearby construction or overhead airplanes.

Unfortunately, Air pods don't block flight announcements well enough for me."

That's exactly my point. I prefer AirPods as they still allow a bit of sound transfer, and I can still keep track of flight announcements, etc. Towards the beginning and end of the flight, I usually leave them in "Adaptive" mode but midway in the flight I often put them in maximum noise cancelling mode.

To get the best noise cancellation, earbuds will be a step down. I have the Apple Airpod Pro 3s and they're amazing compared to other earbuds I've tried, but it's not the same as the over-the-ear headphones.

For noise cancelling performance for flights, I think the two best companies are Sony and Bose. These two companies just have better ANC (noise cancelling) tech than the other brands. Anker and other brands make good budget headphones, but the noise cancellation and quality is clearly lower.

I think the best approach is buy the "Sony XM" or "Bose QuietComfort Headphones" product that's on sale in your region at the time. If the prices are close between the equivalent Sony or Bose, I think Sony has a slightly better product, HOWEVER the XM5 model that's discounted doesn't fold up flat which is a negative for travel. I think this class of headphone is worth the price at $200 on sale vs. a budget option. If you look during black friday or other sales, I think it's possible to find this class of product lower than that as well. I bought my XM4s on Amazon as a "new-in-box" for $130.

Plectrude is spot on.

I used wired Bose Quiet Comfort 20 earbuds from 2016-2024 and enjoyed the great noise cancellation. I listened for long periods during flight to my favorite music collections. But eventually I wanted to progress to something that reproduced music better. The good thing though is that these were not easy to lose.

After 2024 I've used Bluetooth to connect Bose Quiet Comfort Earbuds to my seriously good DAP music player - I can store terabytes of my FLAC files on it. These earbuds have wonderful sound including a nice deep bass. They don't cancel noise quite as well as the wired Quiet Comfort 20. Also, they are really easy to drop, leading to one panic flying when one got lodged into a place no one could access. Eventually we figured out a way to retrieve it. Positives: I can listen to a huge catalog of a favorite artist during a long flight. Negatives: easy to lose, less effective noise cancellation and also dropped connections become annoying.

I did try these straps that did help stop me from losing the earbuds but they seriously interfered with the constant need to recharge the earbuds. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DMSWV6Z9
Maybe they were more problematic than helpful.

At home I am used to wonderful Sennheiser open and closed 800's and 820's, not sure if they still manufacture them. I also have a really nice set of Byerdynamic T1's that were made just before they made them too bassy for my taste. Music is vitally important in my life.

It's a no-win situation - I want the quality of my over-the-ears but with added noise cancellation. But these are too bulky for me during travel. I like the travel friendly earbuds but wired and bluetooth each have their own set of issues.

I don't think there's an ideal solution for me.

Apple Airpods PRO (gen 2) caused me an ear infection that muddied my hearing for weeks. And before all the chimes ring in, I DID NOT WEAR THEM MORE THAN 30 MINS STRAIGHT. I now have a pair of Airpods NON-pro gen 4 ANC (active noise cancelling) which (unlike the PRO series with their silicone seals) don't trap moisture inside the ear canal.

That said, I have not found the noise-cancelling feature of any in-ear bud anywhere near as effective as the over-ear type at least when it comes to cancelling out the thing that truly ruins a flight for me, that being someone's screaming rug-rat. I've had Bose for almost a decade now with no issues other than the inexcusably nonexistent quality of the ear pad upholstery which is paper-thin and lasts under a year of sporadic wear no matter how carefully I treat them. I found the Amazon knock-off replacements actually outlast the Bose ones costing thrice as much. Also, replacing them is fiddly. Oh and ANC only works with BT, not if you use them wired.

Three final tips: 1) getting on Bose's mailing list for flash deals and refurbs can save loads. 2) packing a set of replacement ear pads is recommended. 3) if like myself you prefer to not have a 2,5cm furrow in your hair when you arrive, wear the headphones over a baseball cap. Or they can be worn under the chin.