You’ve bought one speaker for the home and you’re thinking of buying another but you should you buy a speaker from the same brand?
If you want multi-room sound, that is the ability to play audio to speakers around a home, then you should consider sticking with the same brand (as long as you like your original purchase, of course); but which brand should you go for?
That’s the question we’re looking to answer for you with this best list. With this list, we’ve not chucked an array of speakers at you just to fill a best list at different price tiers or a weird categories. We’ve chosen the best speaker in each multi-room system that we’ve reviewed, so whether you favour Apple, or are in the Amazon Echo system (Echo-system?), or perhaps even Sonos, we’ve picked our the best contender for those and other multi-room systems.
There are many ways to get multi-room audio, and you can mix and match speakers from different brands as long as they support the same feature set. AirPlay 2 enables multi-room sound across a range of speakers that support it; as does Google Cast.
And the criteria for these choices isn’t just about how they sound, though that forms the bulk of our assessment We also take into consideration their feature set, how easy they are to use through their control apps, and which music streaming services they support. Value for money also comes into consideration in our choices, especially if you’re going to buy multiple versions of the same speaker.
If you’re interested in other types of wireless speakers, check out our pages for best outdoor speakers, best smart speakers and our best Bluetooth speakers.
2026 updates
With our first update for 2026, we’ve removed the Audio Pro C10 MkII as it’s no longer available. We’ve also removed the Amazon Echo 4th Gen speaker and replaced it with the Echo Dot Max, as the older Echo appears to have been discontinued.
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Learn more about how we test wireless speakers
We play a lot of music, and we play it loud. We play it everywhere – in the house, in the garden, and even in the bath if a speaker is waterproof.
We don’t just listen to the speakers; if there are special features then we make sure we fiddle with them until we’re satisfied. Recently, some Bluetooth speakers have begun to get smart functionality with the integration of Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, and as a result we’ve started speaking to our speakers as well.
Of course, it always comes back to the music. Speakers are tested by reviewers who have a love of music, a knowledge of sound quality, as well as a context of the market. We’ll listen to wireless speakers alongside similarly priced rivals, so when we recommend a particular model, it’s among the best you can buy for the money.
Obviously, we know not everyone has the same taste in music, so we won’t only test with the same perfectly mastered album, but with a variety of genres and file qualities, from MP3 to Hi-Res FLAC.
Pros
- Sound incredible
- Very small
- Great price
- Decent voice control
Cons
- Captive cable
- Very reliant on Apple services (for now)
Pros
- Better bass delivery than the One
- Quick Tune Trueplay
- Supports Bluetooth connectivity
- Wider sweet spot
- Excellent app interface
Cons
- More expensive
- Not as clear as previous One speaker
- No adapters included
Cons
- Sonos One strikes a better balanced sound
Pros
- Decent audio for the size
- Full smart home hub
- Ready for Alexa+
Cons
- Doesn’t sound as good as the old standard Echo
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Sound incredible -
Very small -
Great price -
Decent voice control
-
Captive cable -
Very reliant on Apple services (for now)
You might think we’d opt for the HomePod 2, but for multi-room listening the HomePod mini is the best for iOS users. It’s less expensive at £99 / $99, which means you could add several to a house.
Like its bigger sibling, the HomePod mini looks great in any setting. Available in a range of colours, you can find a look that suits your tastes and décor. It’s smaller than the Echo Dot 5th Gen model and weighs 345g, making it lighter and easier to store than the HomePod 2.
You do need an iOS device to set it up, and it comes with a captive cable, which our reviewer was not fond of as if it were to get damaged, the whole unit would need to be taken back for service.
Multiple updates have added new features but the HomePod mini remains an iOS-centric device. Apple Music offers the best integration in terms of music services with direct control from another device, especially when playing music to multiple devices. With Spotify, it’s restricted to one track at a time whereas with Apple Music you can play different songs on different speakers. However, Apple has opened up third-party control to the likes of Amazon Music and Pandora. We’d like to see the likes of Spotify and Tidal make the cut too.
The sound output of the HomePod mini belies its size. It generates a big sound from its small enclosure, with good bass output and a balanced performance across the frequency range. There’s not as much detail as there is on the HomePod 2, but for a speaker of this size, this is a capable-sounding effort, at times subtle and at other times able to dig into a bass heavy track with relish.
It can reach a high volume, able to fill any room but still maintain clarity, and if you get a stereo pair the HomePod mini sounds even better. Consider you can buy two mini speakers for less than a Sonos Era 100 and this speaker is one of the best bargains around – as long as you’re an iOS user.
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Better bass delivery than the One -
Quick Tune Trueplay -
Supports Bluetooth connectivity -
Wider sweet spot -
Excellent app interface
-
More expensive -
Not as clear as previous One speaker -
No adapters included
Sonos has long been a major proponent of wireless, multi-room speakers, and the Sonos Era 100 is one of its best speakers.
The Era 100 is a wireless smart speaker that boasts hands-free control from Amazon Alexa and Sonos’ own Voice Control although it does not support Google Assistant. Regardless, we found the voice integration offered easy control, and if you don’t like voice assistants listening all the time, you can turn them off completely.
The breadth of music streaming services supported in the app is huge, with Spotify, Qobuz, Tidal, Amazon Music, TuneIn and much more available. Support for AirPlay 2 allows the speaker to be paired with other compatible speakers, and you can group with other Sonos speakers such as the Move 2 or Beam Gen 2, plus there’s Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect, which adds more multi-room possibilities if you’re subscribed to those services.
As for its audio, the One produces a very good sound. It’s not as balanced across the frequency range as the Sonos One was, lacking a little subtlety in the midrange. But it does offer deeper and richer bass, a clear mid-range and a more defined treble performance. The soundstage is wide and spacious, especially from such a small unit as we found no issues with it filling the mid-sized room the speaker is in.
There are multi-room systems other than Alexa, Sonos, and Apple; and Denon’s HEOS is one such alternative. We’d rate the Home 150 as one of the better buys within a HEOS set-up, partly because of its size and mainly because it’s the cheapest Home speaker at £219 / $249.
That price undercuts the Sonos Era 100 too, and the Home 150 carries similar features to its Sonos rival. There’s built-in support for Amazon Alexa voice control (there’s also Google Assistant compatibility), along with AirPlay 2 (so you could add the Denon to an iOS multi-room set-up as well); and via the HEOS app there is integration with music streaming services such as Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, and Napster. Spotify Connect is also enabled, allowing for another means of creating a multi-room audio system.
The HEOS app is a tidy, efficient looking interface; though we prefer the modern sheen and interaction of the Sonos app which feels much nicer to use. Hi-res audio is supported via USB with 24-bit/192kHz FLAC, WAV, ALAC, and DSD 2.8/5.6MHz supported.
The Home 150 can look slightly on the anonymous side but that allows it to disappear into the environment it’s in. We especially like the glass touch panel with proximity controls, it adds some class and elegance to the speaker’s aesthetics and usability.
The sound is rich and warm, but no less dynamic for it. Voices are richly reproduced, with plenty of weight and heft to the low frequencies and a bright performance with high frequencies. If you want a bigger, more powerful performance, there’s always the option of Home 250 and Home 350 units.
Compared to the Sonos Era 100 we find that the Denon sounds the more musical of the two, with a more fluid and expressive in its midrange delivery. If you’re considering a speaker that can be used for parties, then the Era 100 packs a bigger punch.
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Decent audio for the size -
Full smart home hub -
Ready for Alexa+
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Doesn’t sound as good as the old standard Echo
The Echo Dot Max, is almost twice the price of the Echo Dot (5th Gen), it still ranks as Amazon’s budget smart speaker and for most, it might be the best all-round Alexa speaker.
The sound is better than previous models, with bass delivered with more depth and vocals come across with more clarity and detail. We’d rate the sound as similar to the Apple HomePod mini that also features on this list, but not quite as good as the (now discontinued) Echo (4th Gen) model.
This smart speaker is designed to make use of Alexa+, but even without Alexa+, Alexa is still above other smart assistants on the market as she’s easier to talk to and offers the best smart home functionality. She can pick up your requests, even if you mumble slightly and she responds quicker thanks to a faster processor inside the Echo Dot Max.
Of course, this is the best mulit-room speaker list, and with Alexa multi-room audio, you can connect and group with other Alexa speakers in your home and play music to one or all of them.
The design shares a similarity with the Echo Studio, though it’s smaller than that speaker (around the size of the Homepod mini), and by moving the controls from the top of the speaker to the front, we found the Echo Dot Max easier to use than the Echo Dot 5th Gen.
Multi-room refers to the act of grouping wireless audio systems together to play/control music throughout a home. For example, Multi-room systems can allow for the same piece of music to be played on all connected systems, or different music played on each individual speaker.
Full Specs
| Apple HomePod Mini Review | Sonos Era 100 Review | Denon Home 150 Review | Amazon Echo Dot Max Review | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK RRP | £99 | £249 | £219 | – |
| USA RRP | $99 | $249 | $249 | – |
| EU RRP | €109 | €279 | €249 | – |
| CA RRP | CA$129 | – | CA$399 | – |
| AUD RRP | AU$149 | – | – | – |
| Manufacturer | Apple | Sonos | Denon | Amazon |
| IP rating | – | No | No | – |
| Size (Dimensions) | 98 x 97 x 84 MM | 120 x 130.5 x 182.5 MM | 120 x 120 x 187 MM | 109 x 109 x 99 MM |
| Weight | 345 G | 2.02 KG | 1.7 KG | – |
| ASIN | – | B0BXPFL4Y2 | B0873T8NJH | B0D6SZKGT4 |
| Release Date | 2020 | 2023 | 2020 | 2025 |
| First Reviewed Date | 19/11/2020 | – | 31/07/2020 | – |
| Model Number | – | – | DENONHOME150BKE2GB | Echo Dot Max |
| Driver (s) | – | Two tweeters, one midwoofer | 25mm tweeter, 89mm woofer | – |
| Ports | – | USB-C | USB, 3.5mm | – |
| Connectivity | – | Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, AirPlay 2 | – |
| Colours | – | Matte black, Matte white | Black, White | – |
| Frequency Range | – | – Hz | 20 20000 – Hz | – |
| Voice Assistant | Siri | – | – | Amazon Alexa |
| Audio Formats | – | – | up to 24-bit/192kHz FLAC | – |
| Speaker Type | – | Wireless Speaker | Wireless Speaker | – |
| Smart assistants | Yes | – | – | Yes |
| App Control | Yes | – | – | Yes |
| Controls | – | – | – | Volume, mic mute |
| Power source | – | – | – | Mains |
| Number of speakers | Full range driver, two passive radiators | – | – | 1x 0.8″ tweeter, 1x 2.5″ woofer |
