The proliferation of noise-cancelling earbuds is one of the most impressive developments in the world of consumer audio—if not consumer electronics. The feature, which sucks up energy and requires both processing power and high-quality microphones, seemed at first like it’d be impossible to implement in gadgets that can fit in your pocket. Early noise-cancelling earbuds were wired, like their full-sized counterparts, and came with a bulbous battery pack that needed to be charged frequently.
However, as noise-cancellation technology (and rechargeable batteries) evolved, it came to over-ear wireless headphones, then on-ear wireless headphones, and, finally, earbuds. There are now plentiful earbuds with noise reduction as a standard feature—like our best overall, the —but they’re not all that expensive. If you’ve enjoyed noise cancellation on over-ear headphones, but want the convenience of wearing earbuds, here are the best noise-cancelling earbuds to get.
Noise cancellation is a feature and phrase thrown around a lot, but it can mean a couple of different things. First off, there are two types of noise cancellation: passive and active. All earbuds with properly fitted eartips provide passive noise cancellation, which happens when a ‘bud creates a tight seal within your ear canal.
This physical barrier muffles noise from the outside world, whether your earbuds are turned on or off. Passive noise cancellation is the equivalent of hearing a loud noise in one part of.
