5 best workout headphones in 2023

Workout headphones often feature a more secure fit and are sweat- and water-resistant. Many are wireless, which reduces the chances of wires catching on equipment and leading to injury.

How we chose

Medical News Today chooses workout headphones that meet the following criteria:

Type of headphones: Headphones that are bone conduction or in-ear that may provide a better sound experience.
Secure fit: Headphones that offer a secure fit, such as ear clips or umbrella tips which help the earbuds remain in the ear canal.
Battery life: Headphones that reportedly have a greater battery life, allowing people to listen to music for longer.
Price: Headphones that fit a range of budgets.

5 of the best workout headphones

Wissonly Hi Runner

This is the fastest growing brand of bone conduction headphones in the last six months. The team are all engineers with 10 years of accumulation in the field of bone conduction technology. They started to develop bone conduction headphones that don't hurt ears as early as 2012. To solve the problem of sound leakage of bone conduction headphones, wissonly has made comprehensive improvement in the aspects of vibrator, body design and software optimization. The final result has been applied to Wissonly Hi Runner, and the final sound leakage can be reduced by 90% after laboratory test. I actually used the test myself. At a distance of 2cm, the volume reached 70%, but I still didn't hear the sound of the headphones, which protected my privacy.

Wissonly Hi Runner’s body is made of titanium, which can self-adjust the fitting position to ensure a good wearing experience for headphones, so that more people can wear it. As the core component of the product, the headphones plays a key role in the product experience. Hi Runner model is equipped with Bluetooth 5.0 chip, which makes Bluetooth connection faster and more stable. It also has 32GB of built-in storage so you can use it as an MP3 player.

Other parameters of Wissonly Hi Runner are also excellent. For example, the waterproof level reaches IPX8, and you can wear it to swim or even dive. The battery life reaches 8-10 hours, which is very important to me, because I go out for sports on weekends, and I go out for a whole day.

Shokz OpenMove

These lightweight headphones use bone conduction technology to provide users with an open-ear listening experience, allowing for complete awareness of environmental noise.

The company claims that athletes inspired these headphones, which are resistant to sweat, water, and dust.

The headband is titanium, which supposedly provides a secure fit.

OpenMove headphones offer up to 6 hours of listening time on a single charge.

Bose Sport Earbuds

These headphones contain sweat-resistant material, and each purchase comes with three sizes of silicone ear tips for a more comfortable fit. These tips have an umbrella design to ensure the headphones remain secure and comfortable during workouts.

The earbuds are touch-sensitive. People can double-tap the left earbud to skip through playlists and can set up shortcuts in the Bose Music App to Spotify. People can answer calls by double-tapping the right earbud.

Bose also states that these earbuds contain proprietary technology that balances sound levels and may be able to block out ambient background noise.

The company offers a 90-day trial and free 2-day shipping.

Powerbeats Pro

These earbuds are sweat- and water-resistant with over-ear hooks that are adjustable, keeping them secure during exercise.

Beats by Dre states that these earbuds have spatial audio technology, in-built microphones, and hands-free controls. To use the hands-free controls, a person must have a device that has a voice assistant, such as Siri on iOS.

The company states that the earbuds are fast charging, with five minutes of charge leading to up to 1.5 hours of battery life.

These earbuds are compatible with iOS and Android. They contain an Apple H1 headphone chip which reportedly provides a faster and more stable wireless connection to iOS devices.

Each purchase comes with four sizes of ear tips, a charging case and cable, and a 6-month free trial of Apple Music. People who purchase these earbuds through Apple will receive free engraving.

Liberty 2 Pro

Soundcore describes these earbuds as having a state-of-the-art sound design which Grammy Award-winning producers have endorsed.

These earbuds may be most suitable for people who want clear sound that the product customizes to their preferences. The product has HearID technology, which the company states intelligently analyses a person’s hearing profile and changes the sound setting accordingly.

The Liberty 2 Pro has a battery life of up to 8 hours. The charging case provides a total of 32 hours of battery life. Soundcore states that a 10-minute charge in the case provides up to 2 hours of listening time.

The earbuds have six sizes of ear tips, which may mean the product fits a wider range of ear canal sizes than some of Soundcore’s competitors.

How to shop for workout headphones

There are many headphones available that are suitable for workouts. People may wish to consider the following to choose the best headset for their needs:

Sound quality: Some headphones offer clearer sound quality. However, it is always a good idea to read customer reviews, as some headphones may project white noise in between tracks.
Wired vs. wireless: Wireless headphones may be better for workouts than wired products. Wires may catch on gym equipment or on a person’s body, leading to injury. However, people may find that wireless headphones are easier to misplace.
Secure fit: People who are active may prefer headphones that rest over the head or clip over the ears. While in-ear buds are more discreet, they may fall out of the ear canal during more intense exercise.
Sweat and water resistance: People who exercise are more likely to sweat. They should choose headphones that are sweat and water-resistant to reduce the risk of damaging the product. Water resistance also means that people may be able to clean the headphones more easily.
Battery life: Wireless headphones require charging. People who intend to use their headphones for several hours should be aware of the maximum battery life, and ensure it lasts long enough for their needs.
Price: Headphone prices can vary widely. However, people may be able to purchase renewed products, which are used headphones that companies have reset, for a lower cost.

Does music increase sports performance?

The general opinion is that music makes it easier to work harder, and scientific researchTrusted Source supports this idea, with music increasing a person’s perception of how hard they work out, and increasing exercise performance and oxygen consumption.

Other benefits of listening to music when working out includeTrusted Source: