Headphones can come in a variety of styles, sizes, and prices. Finding the best headphones for your needs while staying within your budget can potentially be a difficult task. We have taken the struggle out of searching for the right headphones by weeding through the masses to pinpoint the highest amount of pros versus cons when it comes to quality, construction, and price.
Below we have narrowed down dozens of highly rated headphones, as well as the ones considered the best headphones under $500 to what we feel are the best of the best in that category. Whether you are looking for headphones for gaming or watching movies with a cinematic experience, or you are an audiophile or studio professional searching for the highest quality audio reproduction, we have it covered in the list below.
How to Choose the Best Headphones Under $500
Battery Life
For wireless headphones, battery life is a major consideration and could mean the difference in an enjoyable experience or a miserable one. Over the years, the batteries in wireless headphones have gotten smaller and more powerful, with some wireless headphones lasting up to 60 hours between charges.
The more modest and average amount of battery life is around 30 hours, but this time can also be shortened depending on the features the headphones have. Active noise cancelling technology can drain a battery quicker than headphones that do not have it, and other extra features such as RGB lighting can also reduce the overall battery life.
Even with extra features, long listening sessions are possible with wireless technology and many professional musicians prefer wireless headphones or headphones with a detachable audio cable in order to prevent the amount of unwanted noise that comes from a cable brushing up against an instrument during recording sessions.
Comfort Level
If you will be wearing your headphones on a daily basis, especially for several hours at a time, comfort levels are highly important. One of the best ways to ensure you will have an enjoyable time is to take a closer look at the padding on the headband as well as both ear cups.
A variety of materials can be used for the cushioning, and while both low and high density foam is common, memory foam and gel foam are also popular. The covering can be an important consideration too. Vinyl is a popular choice, but can become hot over long periods of wear. The same can be said for genuine leather or suede, as well as some velour. Microfiber is usually a cooler alternative, but may not look as luxurious as previous choices.
When considering the comfort levels, don’t just look at the ear covers. Also consider the headband as well as the overall weight of the headphones. Heavier headphones can potentially become much more uncomfortable the longer you wear them. While they look impressive, and can make a bold statement, they can also cause pressure pain and fatigue in your ears and at the top of your scalp.
Design Quality
The design of the headphones can be important to some, and a moot point to others. Design usually means the overall shape and silhouette of the headphones. Some are large, bold, and very impressive, while others are much smaller, more sleek, and somewhat discreet.
For listeners that love big and bold, look for retro style headphones. These commonly have a large and rounded pair of ear covers with a thick and adjustable headband. For anyone that is looking for a more discreet option, look for sleek, modern, and ultralight options.
Different designs can also include various accents to make the headphones stand out. Chrome plating, logo design, and other visual elements add nothing to the overall sound of the headphones, but are simply there for aesthetics of the wearer and those around them.
Sound Quality
Arguably the most important part of looking for a new pair of headphones, sound quality is a vital consideration regardless of your intended purposes. From casual listeners to the most sought-after studio professionals and recording artists, every single person wants to be able to hear their audio clearly and accurately.
Different brands of headphones can have different qualities of sound. Some of the biggest names in the industry, such as Sony, Bose, and Sennheiser, are known for creating headphones that offer impressive and memorable sound experiences.
Lesser known brands can also provide outstanding audio such as Shure and Audio-Technica. While these two may not be as well known as the others mentioned, they can still hold their own when it comes to creating the most immersive and pleasing listening experiences for music and movies.
Connection Options
A majority of headphones will be wireless, which means you will connect to your devices via Bluetooth. In today’s market, Bluetooth headphones are becoming much more popular, especially as battery advances are made and battery life is extended.
Other common connection options include USB and USB Mini which are accepted on a variety of common devices such as laptops, netbooks, desktop computers, and a variety of smaller sound recording and MIDI devices.
For purists, 6 mm and 3.5 mm headphone jacks are the preferred choice. Adapters can be found for both of these connections to make them work with a huge range of other devices, but for most studio equipment, stereo systems, and record players, the 6 mm headphone jack is king.
Extra Features
Some of the most notable extra features are the ones that make your headphones stand out to other people. RGB lighting can be popular for gamers, but are not usually chosen by other groups of people. RGB can also be responsible for draining the battery on wireless headphones much quicker as well.
Some headphones will include a variety of interchangeable ear covers and padding options. These can include standard foam cushions, along with memory foam options. It’s always nice to have a choice of padding, especially if you plan on wearing the headphones for extended periods of time on a daily basis.
Other extra features may include headphone stands and charging docks, connection adapters, and similar components you would normally have to purchase separately. Some companies will toss in a few free gifts to build customer relationships and bring you back for more purchases in the future.
Price Range
One of the biggest variables with headphones is the price they are initially sold at. You can find some extremely cheap headphones with great sound, as well as some highly expensive headphones with mediocre sound.
Price ranges are determined by a variety of factors including, but definitely not limited to, the build design, sound quality, included warranty information, lightweight materials, and more. Prices can vary between brands too. Two very similar headphones can have drastically different prices if they come from two different companies.
You may also end up paying much more for headphones with celebrity branding, even if their overall quality and sound reproduction is average at best. Instead of paying to have the name of a celebrity on your headphones, try to look for other brands or models with less hype in order to get a better price overall.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between open and closed-back headphones?
The two main styles of over-ear headphones are open back and closed back, commonly just known as open and closed. Each headset has its own pros and cons and will depend on your intended purpose for the headphones themselves.
For example, if you are indoors in a quiet room, having open back headphones can provide a more enjoyable listening experience. This is due to the fact that ambient sound can enter into the headphones from the open back and help make the audio playing in your headphones feel more responsive. This is where the term “soundstage” comes into play. A vast soundstage, such as a more “natural” feeling location, can make your audio feel more real and cinematic.
Closed back options on the other hand are fully enclosed and will not allow much, if any, background and ambient noise to leak in. These headphones are a much more popular choice, and are especially common for gamers like Ninja to use. Sound isolation is very strong in closed back headsets adding to the overall immersion into your games, movies, or other audio experiences.
While both headphones can create an excellent listening experience for both casual and professional individuals, one may be better than the other. Consider your needs and how noisy or busy your background environment may be before you make your final decision on open or closed back options.
How do I choose a good headset for my needs?
After you determine what your specific needs are when it comes to your preferred listening style and requirements, the right headphone for those needs will be much easier to find. For example, audiophiles can be very discerning when it comes to their headphones and how they perform. They want exceptionally high quality audio with perfectly balanced tones and a deep rich atmosphere to get the best listening experience overall. Very few headsets can offer that high quality sound without falling into a much higher price bracket.
Gamers on the other hand may not need or want the highest quality sound, but will need immediate response when it comes to directional audio cues. If an enemy is walking up behind the gamer, they want to know this information as quickly as possible. Gaming audio is very fast paced and can also cover a huge range of frequencies from high to low.
Cinematic buffs are looking for fully immersive audio experiences for the most part. They don’t just want to hear the action, they want to feel it as well. Headphones that can produce deep rumbling bass tones can really immerse the watcher into the moment, making the movie watching experience much more memorable and enjoyable.
The first step in finding the right headset for you is to determine which of those listening styles better suits your needs. If you are a casual listener or someone that will be switching between watching movies, playing games, and listening to music, there are some mid-range all-around headphones which can do the job just fine.
What’s the difference between noise cancellation and noise isolation?
Both noise cancelling and noise isolating headphones are extremely popular, but the latter can be done simply through the design of the headset itself. Noise cancellation technology makes use of a built-in microphone to pick up sounds in the environment around you. Once those sounds are picked up, an internal processor will play frequencies that are the tonal opposite in order to help drown out or mute the sound to your ears.
This can be a difficult technology to master, but in headphones that have high quality noise cancellation technology, your listening experience can be second to none regardless of your environment and what you are listening to. The quality, size, and placement of the microphone can play a huge role in how well the active noise cancellation performs too.
Noise isolation on the other hand is a more passive feature that can be done through the design of the headphones themselves. Large over-ear headphones have noise isolation simply due to the size of the padding around each ear. This padding covers your ear and helps block or muffle background sound from leaking into your ears.
In almost every case, passive noise isolating headphones are closed-back style since open back headphones allow a large amount of ambient sound to leak in. However, you can still find exceptional levels of active noise cancelling technology in open back options as well. They are, however, considerably more costly than their closed counterparts.
Do noise-canceling headphones cancel all background noise?
Even with the highest and most advanced noise canceling technology, it is almost impossible to block out 100% of the ambient sound. However, high quality noise cancelling headphones can block out so many sounds that you may end up missing phone calls, not hearing the doorbell, and completely ignoring people talking to you.
While noise cancelling technology has come an exceptionally long way in the past few years, and advances in both processing software and microphones have improved, you won’t get a total and complete balance of frequencies in order to cancel out ambient noise. What you will get is a very quiet sound environment inside your ear cups making a great platform for highly immersive and enjoyable audio.
Different groups of listeners will have their own opinions on whether or not high levels of sound negation is necessary. For cinematic buffs and gamers, it can improve the overall experience when it comes to movies and games. But for casual listeners, either option can deliver a high quality and very enjoyable experience for your favorite songs, podcasts, or TikTok videos.
