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Headphones and earbuds can cost you a pretty penny. But you don’t need to break the bank to find a pair that delivers great audio. In fact, there are a number of headphones you can find for under $100 that give their more expensive counterparts a run for their money.
It may come as a surprise, but you can actually find several of the top features found in high-end models in more budget-friendly earbuds and headphones, including active noise cancellation. There are also budget headphones that are great for wearing at the gym, and even some that we’d recommend specifically for phone calls.
Whatever you’ll be using your new headphones for, whether it’s for enjoying your favorite new video game privately or for getting some work done at your home office, you can rest assured knowing you don’t have to go over budget for some excellent sound. Keep reading to see our picks for the best headphones under $100.
What are the best headphones under $100?
Best overall headphones under $100: Soundcore by Anker Life Q30
Best noise-canceling headphones under $100: EarFun Wave Pro
Best earbuds under $100: Apple AirPods (2nd Generation)
Best workout headphones under $100: Treblab Z2
Best headphones for calls under $100: JBL Tune Flex
Best overall headphones under $100: Soundcore by Anker Life Q30
Amazon
If you’re not familiar with Anker and its amazing headphones, it’s time to get acquainted. We absolutely love these for all of their features, reliability and high-quality construction. They’re sleek, they perform well, and they’re consistently under $100, all positives that went into our decision to name them our favorite at this price point.
These over-the-ear headphones offer crystal-clear audio with thumping bass and crisp treble, so any type of music you see fit to listen to comes out bright and immersive. That’s all thanks to the Life Q30s’ 40mm drivers. Voices — on calls and podcasts — also come through nicely.
As far as noise cancellation goes, the Life Q30s use dual microphones to filter up to 95% of ambient sound. You can customize your listening experience by using three different modes: indoor, outdoor, and transport, which change the way that sound comes in.
These headphones promise up to 40 hours per charge in noise-canceling mode and up to 60 hours in standard mode. Charge them for five minutes to get a boost of four more hours.
For a pair of headphones under $80, it’s so impressive what you get with what Anker’s managed to do here. These are your best bet in terms of affordable cans by far and then some.
Best noise-canceling headphones under $100: EarFun Wave Pro
Amazon
These surprisingly capable headphones are just $80, but offer some of the best noise cancellation you’ll find at this price point. The inexpensive EarFun Wave Pro over-the-ear headphones sound like you paid easily double the price for them, and they have many of the features of more premium headphones at that.
They sound fantastic, with 40mm drivers that complement crisp highs and great mids, with crunchy bass that never intrudes. You’ll be able to enjoy a wide variety of musical genres without getting tinny, weird sounds behind the music you choose to listen to.
But where these headphones really shine are in the noise cancelling department. With their noise cancelling features up to 45 decibels and five microphones that monitor various frequencies, you can consider outside noises squelched. Put these on and focus only on your music. The ANC effects rival even pricier options like Bose or Apple, and it’s exciting to see that in a cheaper pair of headphones.
Plus, you can change and customize the cans’ EQ options with the accompanying EarFun app, which is quick and simple to use. You can even switch between two devices while listening using the app. Pair that with a fabulous 80-hour playtime, and you’ll get headphones that can go toe to toe with any of the top brands.
Best earbuds under $100: Apple AirPods (2nd Generation)
Apple
These AirPods may be considered an older model by now, but they’re consistently available under $100 at most retailers. That makes them the only Apple earbud you can get under $100, and they’re still more than great as far as wireless earbuds go.
For Apple users, these are the most seamless earbuds around. They connect instantly whenever needed, with special effortless pairing to Apple devices like iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and MacBooks.
The wireless charging case provides more than 24 hours of battery life. And the low-latency wireless connection enables immersive entertainment. It’s easy to see why these continue to be a hit, often selling out, despite newer versions on the market.
While they work with any Bluetooth audio device, Apple gadgets get the best experience. If you want an affordable option in terms of earbuds, these older AirPods make an excellent everyday wireless earbud for just about any use case.
Best workout headphones under $200: Treblab Z2
Amazon
Don’t let the fear of sweat or water shorting out your headphones keep you from enjoying music at the gym. These Treblab headphones have you covered. They’re IPX4 water resistant and sweatproof, so you’re covered, even when you’re engaged in some seriously grueling workouts.
Pop these headphones on at the gym and enjoy your music, even with noises and chatter going on at your fitness center. Their active noise-cancellation features can help block out conversations, grunts, and other noises that keep your eyes away from the prize: finishing your workout and getting out.
They’re comfortable, too, with ultra-soft earcups that swivel and don’t apply pressure to your ears, so you have one less body part to think about getting sore while you’re exercising. And with a 35-hours playtime, you’re covered for workouts all week long and then some.
Don’t throw on just any headphones and have them short out because they’re too wet. Grab these and know that you’ll be covered no matter how hard you decide to go for the day.
Best headphones for voice calls under $100: JBL Tune Flex
Amazon
If you plan on taking calls while out and about, take the JBL Tune Flex buds with you. These sweat-proof and water-resistant headphones have everything you need for a smooth, hassle-free conversation when you leave the house.
These small but mighty buds use 12-millimeter drivers atop the same stick form factor as Apple AirPods, but they slide into your ears a bit more readily. They deliver loud, pumping bass and treble you can feel, as well as clear-sounding voices for calls and other types of media.
They do offer noise cancellation with two microphones to help improve how much sound is blocked out, with an ambient mode to let important sounds in. There’s also the interesting “TalkThru” feature, which mutes everything in the background for you to take a call if you happen to need to jump on the phone.
They’re equipped with four microphones too, so no one has to keep asking you what you said again and again. The “VoiceAware” feature even lets you choose how much of your own voice you hear in the buds, a feature rarely seen even in higher-priced options.
With a promised 32 hours of battery life, you can chat the day away. Just charge the buds up for 10 minutes to get two more hours of playtime.
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MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Vikings rookie Khyree Jackson died overnight in a car accident.
The Upper Marlboro, Maryland native played for Alabama and Oregon. He was drafted by the Vikings in April in round 4 as the 108th overall pick.
He was 24 years old.
“Our thoughts are with Khyree’s family, friends, teammates and coaches, as well as all the victims of this tragic accident,” the Vikings wrote on X.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell said he was “crushed” by the news of Jackson’s death.
“In our short time together, it was evident Khyree was going to develop into a tremendous professional football player, but what was more impressive was his desire to become the best person he could be for his family and those around him,” O’Connell added.
The crash happened in Upper Marlboro shortly after 3 a.m. and involved three cars, according to Maryland state police. Investigators believe the driver of a silver Infiniti car tried to change lanes at a high rate of speed and struck the car that Jackson was in, as well as a Chevrolet Impala.
The two other occupants of Jackson’s car also died in the crash. The occupants of the other cars were not hurt.
Officials believe that alcohol could have been a contributing factor in the crash.
In a statement, the Minnesota Vikings say they have offered support to Jackson’s family, and are offering counseling and emotional support to the players who seek it.
This is a developing story. Check back with WCCO.com for more.
Note: The above video first aired on June 24, 2024.
Alfred Handley leaned back in his wheelchair alongside a major Phoenix freeway as a street medicine team helped him get rehydrated with an intravenous saline solution dripping from a bag hanging on a pole.
Cars whooshed by under the blazing 96-degree morning sun as the 59-year-old homeless man with a nearly toothless smile got the help he needed through a new program run by the nonprofit Circle the City.
“It’s a lot better than going to the hospital,” Handley said of the team that provides health care to homeless people. He’s been treated poorly at traditional clinics and hospitals, he said, more than six years after being struck by a car while he sat on a wall, leaving him in a wheelchair.
Circle the City, a non-profit that works in multiple cities and hospitals and treats about 9,000 people annually, introduced its IV rehydration program as a way to protect homeless people in Phoenix from life-threatening heat illness as temperatures regularly hit the triple-digits in America’s hottest metro.
Matt York / AP
Homeless people accounted for nearly half of the record 645 heat-related deaths last year in Maricopa County, which encompasses metro Phoenix. As summers grow warmer, health providers from San Diego to New York are being challenged to better protect homeless patients.
Dr. Liz Frye, vice chair of the Street Medicine Institute which provides training to hundreds of healthcare teams worldwide, said she didn’t know of groups other than Circle the City administering IVs on the street. The organization also distributes tens of thousands of water bottles each summer and tries to educate people about hot weather dangers.
“But if that’s what needs to happen to keep somebody from dying, I’m all about it,” Frye said.
Bringing care to people in need
The amount of people requiring treatment for heat illnesses is rising. The Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, featured in last year’s book, “Rough Sleepers,” now sees patients with mild heat exhaustion in the summer after decades of treating people with frostbite and hypothermia during the winter, said Dr. Dave Munson, the street team’s medical director.
“It’s certainly something to worry about,” said Munson, noting that temperatures in Boston hit 100 degrees with 70% humidity during June’s heat wave. Homeless people, he said, are vulnerable to very hot and very cold weather not only because they live outside, but they often can’t regulate body temperature due to medication for mental illness or high blood pressure, or because of street substance use.
The Phoenix team searches for patients in homeless encampments in dry riverbeds, sweltering alleys and along the canals that bring water to the Phoenix area. About 15% are dehydrated enough for a saline drip.
Matt York / AP
“We go out every day and find them,” said nurse practitioner Perla Puebla. “We do their wound care, medication refills for diabetes, antibiotics, high blood pressure.”
Puebla’s street team ran across Handley and 36-year-old Phoenix native Phillip Enriquez near an overpass in an area frequented by homeless people because it’s near a facility offering free meals. Across the road was an encampment of tents and lean-tos along a chain-link fence.
Enriquez sat on a patch of dirt as Puebla started a drip for him. She also gave him a prescription for antibiotics and a referral to a dentist for his dental infection.
Living outside in Arizona’s broiling sun is hard, especially for people who may be mentally ill or use sedating drugs like fentanyl that make them less aware of their surroundings. Stimulants like methamphetamine contribute to dehydration, which can be fatal. Dr. Matt Essary, who works with Circle in the City’s mobile clinics, said the organization also often treats surface burns that can happen when a medical emergency or intoxication causes someone to fall on a sizzling sidewalk.
Matt York / AP
Temperatures this year have reached 115 degrees in metro Phoenix, where six heat-related deaths have been confirmed through June 22. Another 111 are under investigation, and the city is seeing an “increasing” number of patients with heat illnesses every year, according to Dr. Aneesh Narang, the assistant medical director of emergency medicine at Banner Medical Center-Phoenix, which treats many homeless people with heat stroke.
Narang’s staff works frequently with Circle the City, whose core mission is providing respite care, with 100 beds for homeless people not well enough to return to the streets after a hospital stay.
Extreme heat worldwide requires a dramatic response, said physician assistant Lindsay Fox, who cares for homeless people in Albuquerque, New Mexico, through an initiative run by the University of New Mexico’s School of Medicine.
Three times weekly, Fox treats infections, cleans wounds and manages chronic conditions in consultation with hospital colleagues. She said the prospect of more heat illness worries her.
Highs in Albuquerque can hit the 90s and don’t fall enough for people living outside to cool off overnight, she said.
“If you’re in an urban area that’s primarily concrete, you’re retaining heat,” she said. “We’re seeing heat exposure that very quickly could go to heat stroke.”
Serious heat stroke is far more common in metro Phoenix, where Circle the City is now among scores of health programs for the homeless in cities like New York, San Diego and Spokane, Washington.
Circle the City works with medical staff in seven Phoenix hospitals to help homeless patients get after-care when they no longer need hospitalization. It also staffs two outpatient clinics for follow-up.
Rachel Belgrade waited outside Circle the City’s retrofitted truck with her black-and-white puppy, Bo, for Essary to write a prescription for the blood pressure medicine she lost when a man stole her bicycle. She accepted two bottles of water to cool off as the morning heat rose.
“They make all of this easier,” said Belgrade, a Native American from the Gila River tribe. “They don’t give you a hard time.”
