Best Bluetooth headphones 2021: Top on-ear or over-ear wireless headphones

 

(Pocket-lint) - For headphone sound quality, Bluetooth is no longer an inferior choice. There are plenty of Bluetooth headphones that will serve you well, without the need for cables, with the advent of newer devices and more advanced audio processing and transmission.

With these cans, there's plenty of range, whether you're looking for on-ear or over-ear, so search our collection and see what could be your next wireless headphones. Our pick of the best is here.

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700

The newer Bose 700 over-ears really stepped things up a notch after the success of the earlier QC35. A seamless architecture, excellent noise-cancelling without the need for wires to cut out external sound and loud and proud sound quality (a backup 2.5-3.5mm cable is included in the carry case though). The battery life is also around 18 hours a go, making these our go-to travel over-ear headphones.

Sony WH-1000XM4

The other best noise-cancelling over-ear headphones we have reviewed have been developed by Sony. With noise-cancelling, the 1000XM4 is particularly smart, offering different modes to allow voice to pass through (or not). When on a plane, they can also measure the pressure to apply the ideal profile, making them excellent headphones for flying. AptX HD Bluetooth support means the best quality without cables, but you can still plug in and listen passively with good results when the 30-hour battery runs dead.

Sony WH-CH710N

If you are working on a small budget, then the WH-CH710N has a great value proposition for Sony. For the price, we can't think of much better Bluetooth-equipped cans. Sure, like many of the pricier alternatives below, you will not get aptX HD, but noise cancellation is on board and the WH-CH710N is compact, lightweight, ample bass kick out and well built.

Audio-Technica ATH-M50xBT

These headphones, price-wise, reflect excellent value. Although there is excellent balance and accuracy, they have a lot of clout, too. For long periods, they're also easy to wear and they have excellent battery life.

Our only quibble is that they're very large physically, so they're much more appropriate for a home setting - you'll probably find them a little big for travelling around. Hence, the style is a little dated. We still lack the noise cancellation, because if they had that, as a result, they would be more costly.

Beats Solo Pro

To make the most of these cans, you don't have to have a bunch of Apple devices, but the Solo Pro's inclusion of the H1 chip means smooth pairing with your iPhone, iPad and Mac, without having to fiddle around to get that wireless link. Also, the Solo Pro sounds fantastic, so if you're looking for a pair of headphones on your ears —Which is possibly not as convenient as an over-ear solution in the long term - then the Beats are a better choice.

Sennheiser HD 450BT

These Sennheisers are a great bet if you have a budget that won't extend to audiophile standards, but still want a great collection of headphones.

The sound is excellent, even more so for the price, and equally amazing is the battery life. You get good noise-cancelling, too much of a very decent kit to round out.

B and O BeoPlay H9i

It would be too easy to condemn the high price of the Bang and Olufsen BeoPlay H9 and the noise-cancellation would be too subtle for some. But this would be short-sighted, since the H9i is an over-ear headphone killer. Indeed, thanks to those giant earcups, the audio quality is immense, with punchy bass levels and a large soundstage. The downside is that Bluetooth does not last as long as the contest (but there is a 3.5mm jack for passive wired listening) and for its subtlety, the noise-cancelling would not satisfy frequent flyers.

V-Moda Crossfade 2 Wireless Codex Edition

The new 'Codex Edition' Crossfade 2 Wireless adds aptX for high quality Bluetooth, as much as we liked the original, and when it comes to impactful low-end bass, it knocks it out of the park. Compared with the competition, the industrial design makes them stand out, but there is no active noise-cancellation and the design is a tad pinchy compared to others.

Sennheiser Momentum Wireless 3

These wireless noise-cancelling headphones come packed with plenty of intelligent and high-end features and look great because they are made of high-end materials. The large size of the earcups indicates great comfort, but substantial physical size, obviously.

Nuraphone

Okay, so they're not exclusively over-ear, but under the over-ear earcups, the Nura incorporates in-ear fittings. It's a unique design, but one with purpose: it allows personalized sound, since the shape of your ears can be read and the sound profile modified accordingly by these cans. They look weird, they seem very odd to wear, but the quality of the sound comes from a different world.

Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BT

The DSR9BT is built for the audiophile listener who does not want some wire-based nonsense, actually high-end Bluetooth-only headphones. There's no 3.5mm jack to be found here, indeed. These A-T over-ears, ultra-comfortable to use, are designed unlike any other headphones on the market, with What Audio-Technica calls a Dnote chipset commands four voice coils for maximum dynamics and clarity in the 45mm drivers of the headphones. And they sound great indeed: you're not going to get shovel loads of bass, but the low end is close and neutral, while the high end has a sharpness and a timbre beyond anything we've ever experienced.

Master and Dynamic MW65

Yeah, it's an expensive pair of headphones, but they sound amazing and have powerful active cancellation of noise (ANC). With luxury materials, including aluminium and leather, they also really look the part. Here, there is no plastic.

The downside is that they are costly compared to Sony and Bose's ANC versions, though some foibles remain, such as walking resonance. The quality of construction on offer here, however, is simply outstanding and we think they're brilliant.

Bowers and Wilkins PX

The demand for active noise-cancelling wireless headphones has risen rapidly in recent years, so it made great sense to finally join Bowers and Wilkins. And with the PX, which won Best Headphones in the Pocket-lint Gadget Awards 2017, it does so in considerable style. B and W come from a true audiophile perspective-aptX HD features without the wires for Hi-Res Audio-and the PX is an outstanding high-end alternative to the competition (as also featured) from Bose, Sony and Beats, both in terms of style and audio capacity.