These are the best Bluetooth headphones and earphones

Bluetooth headphones and earphones are popular Christmas presents. To make the choice easier, ntv.de presents the test and price-performance winners from Stiftung Warentest. There is also something for small budgets, with earbuds with good sound and good active noise suppression available for less than 50 euros.

While sales of consumer electronics are declining overall, the demand for headphones continues to rise. According to Statista, around 13.3 million units were sold in Germany in 2022, and this year the figure will be around 13.6 million. Bluetooth headphones are particularly popular. According to the German Association for the Promotion of Consumer Electronics (gfu), around 8 million wireless headsets were sold between January and the end of October 2022, an increase of 16%.

Anyone who wants to have something on or in their ears for Christmas or give headphones as a gift has a huge choice and the price differences are enormous. The lists from Stiftung Warentest can be a practical decision-making aid. ntv.de presents the best Bluetooth headsets and the price-performance winners that are currently available.

In-ears

Great sound in pocket size is provided by in-ears, i.e. headphones that are inserted or hang in the ears. Because they are so practical, inconspicuous and airy, they are particularly popular. Stiftung Warentest lists a total of 116 Bluetooth earphones that are still available and have achieved a good quality rating.

The Technics EAH-AZ80 are currently in first place with an overall score of 1.7. The testers rated both the sound (1.5) and the active noise cancellation (ANC) (1.1) of the earphones as very good. The wearing comfort and handling of the earbuds is good (1.9), the endurance is satisfactory. The test winners are expensive; they are hard to find online for less than 270 euros.

Apple's Airpods Pro 2 follow with a quality rating of 1.8, practically on a par. The testers also rated the sound (1.5) and ANC (1.3) as very good, while wearing comfort and handling were good (2.5). The Apple earphones are also neck-and-neck with the Technics champions when it comes to price. They are available from around 260 euros.

Large price differences for third place

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II, which cost around 230 euros, also achieved an overall score of 1.8. Sound (1.6), wearing comfort and handling (2.5) as well as endurance (1.9) received good ratings, while the ANC of the earbuds was rated very good (1.5) by the testers.

The third earphones with a quality rating of 1.8 are the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3, which offer very good active noise cancellation (1.5), sound (1.8), battery (2.4) as well as wearing comfort and handling (2.0). The price of the earphones has fallen significantly since their market launch in spring 2022 and they are now available for just under 190 euros.

The Beats Studio Buds+ are brand new and also received an overall score of 1.8. Stiftung Warentest rated the sound (1.7), ANC (1.6), running performance (2.3) and wearing comfort and handling (2.1) as good. Despite their strong performance, the Buds+ are comparatively inexpensive at around 150 euros.

Theprice-performance winner among the wireless in-ears is the Xiaomi Redmi Buds Pro 3, which are available from online retailers from around 45 euros. They sound good (2.4), have strong ANC (2.3) and are durable (2.5). As the earphones do not offer good instructions either in print or online, the testers found the wearing comfort and handling only satisfactory (3.0).

Over-ear headphones

Bluetooth over-ear headphones with circumaural speaker cups usually have a much fuller sound with more volume and richer bass than earphones. They also offer much more space for batteries and are therefore much more durable. However, they are not as airy and you can't put them in your trouser or jacket pocket.

Stiftung Warentest has two test winners here, both of which achieved a quality rating of 1.7. You have to pay at least 480 euros for the Bowers & Wilkins PX8. For this, you get headphones with good sound (1.7), good noise suppression (1.8) and good comfort (2.2). The testers considered the performance to be very good.

The Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless received the same overall rating, but can be found online for as little as 275 euros. It offers slightly stronger ANC (1.6), but the competitor is slightly ahead in terms of sound (2.0). Stiftung Warentest rated the comfort as good (2.2) and the battery as very good (0.6).

Airpods Max only third

With a quality rating of 1.8, the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2, which is currently available for just under 230 euros, follows close behind. It sounds almost as good (1.8) as its more expensive stablemate, but only has satisfactory ANC (2.6). Wearing comfort and handling are good (2.2), endurance is very good (1.1).

Theprice-performance winner with the same overall score is the JBL Tune 770NC, which is available for as little as 100 euros. Not only are the sound (1.8) and comfort and handling (2.5) good, the headphones also offer strong active noise cancellation (1.6). Its performance is very good.

Apple's Airpods Max were only one of five third-place finishers with a quality rating of 1.9, but the headphones, which cost around 580 euros, were the only test candidate to achieve a very good rating for sound (1.5). The ANC is good (1.9), comfort and handling (2.7) and battery performance (2.8) only received satisfactory marks.

On-ear headphones

On-ear headphones are compact and fit in many a jacket pocket. However, some people find it uncomfortable that the shells of the headsets press on their ears. As a result, the selection of this form factor is quite small. Stiftung Warentest lists just six good on-ear headphones that are still available.

The best of these and also the price-performance winner is the JBL Live 460NC, which is available from online retailers for as little as 70 euros. It is the only on-ear headphones with a good sound (2.2) and no other headphones offer good active noise suppression (2.3). They are comfortable to wear despite the overlying cups (2.2) and their endurance is very good (0.9). Quality rating: 2.0.