These Are The Best Cheap Headphones We’ve Tried, from Classics to Cutting-Edge

Nothing might often claim to be more, but where the rubber meets the road it essentially marries great design with affordable, well-made tech. That’s nothing to scoff at, particularly where its earbuds are concerned. The Ear (a) (8/10, WIRED Recommends) are a particular standout in this regard; these headphones look and feel easily as nice as an Apple product, and they boast the vast majority of the same features as AirPods Pro, but cost about half as much.

You don’t get the same xMEMS driver combination you get in the Soundpeats model above, but the build quality and case are nicer. I even like the lighter look and feel when compared to the more expensive Nothing Ear, especially the cool yellow colorway. 45 dB of noise cancellation is plenty for most tasks, the mics sound great on calls, and you can even get hi-res audio, provided you have an LDAC-equipped cell phone.