How we tested
All seven of these headphones were hands-on tested by Mashable editors and writers, including past and current tech reporters, senior tech editors, as well as shopping reporters and editors. All of these headphones were chosen with the following criteria in mind:
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Comfort: As we mentioned above, active noise cancellation becomes much less enjoyable if the headphones delivering it squeeze your head for the entirety of your flight. Any headphones that weren’t favored for long-term wear didn’t make our list.
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Battery life: If your headphones’ battery is going to die 30 minutes into your flight, they’re not going to cut it for even the shortest of trips. Our picks were typically in a higher price range that have better battery life and quick charge options for the times when you forget to juice up your headphones the night before you leave.
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Active noise cancellation quality: There are lower cost options for ANC, but not all active noise cancellation is delivered the same. That’s why we focused on picks that either offered multiple levels of ANC, or delivered a strong level of ANC on its own, that didn’t require music to make a noticeable difference.
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Portability: Over-the-ear headphones are going to deliver the best noise cancellation possible, but they are bulky. To keep these picks travel-friendly, we looked for headphones that fold up or that come with sleek carrying cases.
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Durability: Taking your headphones with you through TSA lines just opens them up to more wear and tear, so we went for higher-cost picks that are likely to survive the journey. Plus, we made sure to choose headphones that will last you for years, so the upfront investment is worth it.
To learn more about how we test headphones and earbuds in general, you can check out our comprehensive guide.
Recent testing updates
After testing them for a few weeks, we decided in February 2025 that the EarFun Air Pro 4 earbuds earned a spot on our guide as our top budget pick, knocking out the cheaper but inferior Anker Soundcore P3i earbuds. We’re still in the process of testing the Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones, so stay tuned.
For Sept. 2024, we didn’t change our lineup, deciding against including the Dyson OnTrac headphones — although we really like their long battery life, we imagine the scenario is rare when you’ll be without charging access for over 55 hours — plus, they’re a little too bulky and expensive to recommend specifically as a good pair of travel headphones.
In Aug. 2024, the Bose 700 headphones are no longer our pick for the best adjustable ANC headphones, as they’re no longer on store shelves after being discontinued nearly a year ago. At the time of writing, we don’t have a replacement as many headphones do not offer levels of adjustable ANC like the 700s did. RIP.
In June 2024, we also phased out the Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones from our recommendations. We knew they were being discontinued, but as of this writing you can no longer find them on virtual store shelves. We’ll be testing out the newer Bose QuietComfort headphones to see if they’re a worthy replacement.
In May 2024, we tested out the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e headphones. Though we were wowed by their high-end design and impressive sound profile out-of-the-box, we felt only middling about their active noise cancellation and noticed that their Bluetooth connection wasn’t stable when paired to more than one device. For $399 headphones, we expect better on both these fronts, which is why we opted not to include them in this roundup, and would instead recommend the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones for a blend of excellent sound and ANC.
In April 2024, we added the Anker Soundcore Life Q20 headphones into our lineup of hands-on tested products. (Prior to this update, we recommended them based on research and customer reviews.)
Other additions include the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones, which we added in Nov. 2023. As of Feb. 2024, we tested the Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds and the JBL Tour One M2 headphones, and added the former. The JBL headphones didn’t make the cut even though we liked their long battery life, comfort, and surprisingly functional multipoint pairing — we just didn’t think the $300 price tag matched up to the quality of the active noise cancellation. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t wow us, and if you’re willing to spend that much, we’d recommend going with Bose headphones instead.
