2025 BEST Earbuds đź‘‘ Budget to Premium KINGS!
Of all the earbuds launched recently, these are the top earbuds in the Premium, midrange and budget categories. First I need to set the record straight. Just because you don’t see your favorite earbuds here does not mean they’re not great. It’s just that these ones made a bigger impression as a whole, and I will only nominate those that scored a Rank A and above in my mic quality rankings, because it is my firm belief that great earbuds must have great mic pickup. But feel free to comment which earbuds you think are the best and why.
Premium (>$200)
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen
First in the premium tier we have the Bose QC Ultra Gen 2. I like their laid back, clean and relaxing sound signature which is great for spatial audio. They’re really comfortable to wear, their noise canceling performance is top tier, and they’re a huge improvement over the Gen 1 QC Ultra with improved microphone pickup, no mosquito buzzing sound in the left earbud which was a common issue on the Gen 1, better connectivity and wireless charging. I did like Gen 1 for the noise canceling, but I like Gen 2 even more.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/4Y-2Pf3SCtI
JBL Tour Pro 3
Next we have the JBL Tour Pro 3. Aside from sounding punchy and clean, with great bass extension and midrange detail, it’s one of the most feature rich earbuds. I like the case screen which allows me to perform settings without the app, it’s got Auracast and It has a great set of EQ settings to work with like Personi-Fi automatic EQ and a great graphic EQ. Foam tips are included also in case you want better noise canceling.
My only complaint about it is the bulky size of the case, but what I love about the case is the ability to connect it to any wired source of audio. My camera monitor doesn’t have Bluetooth so the JBL Tour Pro 3 is my main method to get wireless audio from it.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/UViaMTlKVCA
AirPods Pro 3
Next we have the AirPods Pro 3. I don’t usually nominate AirPods because their fit has always been an issue. They’re glossy, and they slip out of position easily, which affects sound quality and noise canceling. But the AirPods Pro 3 is a huge improvement. Now they plug in properly, and their bass response and noise canceling is way better than the Pro 2. In fact, they’ve got the best noise canceling among all earbuds at this moment.
Of course, being an Apple device it is optimized for Apple devices which allows you to get better mic pickup, and exclusive features and settings, which are not available on Android devices or PC.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/W4MTeiiGaYY
Technics EAH-AZ100
The Technics AZ100. Ever since the AZ100 came out I’ve been using it pretty much as my daily driver because it does everything quite well from the noise canceling to transparency and mic pickup, it plugs in very well, and it’s fully supported on both iOS and Android. As for sound, it sounds very enjoyable, clean and punchy with heavy bass extension where needed, and they are quite resolving in the soundstage so little bits of detail in the recording comes out a bit brighter.
But there are 2 main reasons why it’s my daily driver - the fact that it’s one of the only earbuds now that can do 3-way multipoint pairing, that is, if you don’t mind not using LDAC codec, and its very small case. In fact, when I’m not testing other earbuds, I use this almost everyday.
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Watch full review - https://youtu.be/G1f1I9lnd4E
Midrange ($100 - $200)
Huawei Freebuds Pro 4
For the midrange we have two nominees. First, the Huawei Freebuds Pro 4, for the simple reason that it has S-tier mic pickup. Even if you take calls in extremely noisy conditions like in this video, the Huawei produces the cleanest, most consistent mic quality. Nothing else comes close whether in the premium or budget range, which is impressive. It is also supported on both iOS and Android, although for Android, you will need to download Huawei’s app loader to get the AI life app.
As for sound, I do think it sounds a bit too flat in the mids highs so it does need a bit of tuning in its graphic EQ to sound good. But like I said, the main reason why it’s one of the best midrange earbuds is the fact that it’s the undisputed Mic Quality King.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/4eO01uM3A3s
Nothing Ear (3)
The Nothing Ear (3) comes to mind as one of the best midrangers because it’s a great all rounder for the price. Great earbuds microphone, great app, many custom options for its sound, and great noise canceling. The earbuds mics already do a great job, but what’s special here is Super Mic, a microphone built into the case which allows for better mic quality, because Super Mic does capture more information compared to the mics built into the earbuds. As for the sound, I do enjoy its bass a lot, it’s heavy and visceral, but I’m not a fan of the scooped out mids. That’s okay. It’s easy to fix it with its fantastic Advanced EQ feature.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/5RrDiZp135o
Budget (<$100)
OnePlus Buds 4
In the budget range we’ve got 3 nominees. In terms of performance the OnePlus Buds 4 are almost the best in all aspects whether it’s sound, noise canceling, mic pickup, transparency. The sound settings are also very comprehensive, from EQ presets to Golden Sound Calibration, to a very capable graphic EQ. Controls are great, it’s a tap and swipe combo of playback and volume controls.
This makes it possible to use just one earbud and still have access to all the controls whereas other earbuds in this price range tend to only have tap or squeeze controls. So the OnePlus Buds 4 is a great all rounder, and super easy to use.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/OJDvLv85g94
SOUNDPEATS H3
Next we have the SOUNDPEATS H3. The main reason why it’s on this list is that, to me, it is one of the best sounding budget earbuds. It starts out pretty bright in the upper mids, but when EQed properly, it could go toe to toe with much more expensive earbuds like the Sony WF-1000XM5. It’s got muscular, textured bass, clean mids reproduction and great dynamic range, very resolving in the soundstage. It’s got great mic pickup and great noise canceling.
Its battery life can be a bit better. The advertised battery is up to 7 hours per charge, but with ANC and LDAC codec, I got about 4-5 hours of use, a bit below average, possibly because it’s dual drivers so the power draw is heavier. But as I said, main reason to get it is the sound for the price.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/NyAU8cX0TIU
CMF Buds Pro 2
Last but not least, we have the CMF Buds Pro 2. In spite of it not being a new product, every time someone asks me for a budget recommendation, my first reaction is to propose the CMF Buds Pro 2. It’s a great all rounder for its price, which sometimes goes below 50 bucks, yet has great noise canceling, mic pickup and transparency. As for sound, it’s more on the bass heavy side, but once that’s adjusted in the Nothing X app, it sounds very vibrant, airy and impactful.
It also has this very unique, satisfying click dial which lets you control volume and playback for more convenience than using the controls of your phone or earbuds. The app for it is great, covers almost every setting except that it doesn’t have a proper graphic EQ, just a simple 3-band one. Otherwise, the CMF Buds Pro 2 is still super easy to recommend in the budget range.
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⚠️ Watch full review - https://youtu.be/Bz0rZjC2xgw
