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Five affordable hearing-aid brands we love
There’s no denying that hearing aids can be expensive. In 2024, the average price of a quality pair of prescription hearing aids can fall anywhere between $1,000 and $3,500, making this a steep investment for people looking for an solution to hearing loss.
If you’re wondering whether quality and affordable hearing aids exist to help improve your daily life, we have good news: there are plenty of over the counter (OTC) hearing aids out there that can help with hearing loss, all for a fraction of the price of more expensive devices.
Save big on your next (or first!) pair of hearing aids with our list of the best budget-friendly hearing-aid brands below.
Five budget hearing aid brands we love
Whether you’re on the lookout for a new hearing aid with the best features, the comfiest fit, or the lowest price tag, we have some of the best and most affordable hearing aid options below.
Shop the best budget-friendly hearing aids from brands like Jabra and MDHearing below.
Best overall: Jabra Enhance Plus
Jabra via Amazon
One of the best OTC hearing aids out there is the Jabra Enhance Plus hearing aid. Featuring a sleek, nondescript design and more than 10 hours of battery life per charge, these hearing aids belong at the top of our list.
Unlike many prescription hearing aids that can cost thousands of dollars a pair, these hearing aids — Jabra’s first OTC model — offer impressive sound quality and features for a price that’s under $1,000.
Prices start at $799 for the Jabra Enhance Plus hearing aid.
Pros:
- Jabra Enhance mobile app is intuitive and easy to use
- Decent battery life
- Good overall balance of affordability and accessibility
Cons:
- Jabra Enhance app is currently only available for iOS users
- Background noise cancellation could be a smidge better in our opinion
Most budget-friendly: Audien Hearing Atom 2
Audien via Amazon
If you want quality hearing aids from the most budget-friendly hearing aid brand, look no further than the Atom 2 hearing aids by Audien Hearing.
These super-small hearing aids make for a great low profile look. With four hearing settings that can be just as useful for people with severe hearing loss as they are for those with mild to moderate hearing loss, this hearing aid offers solid background noise cancellation.
Don’t just take our word for it — according to Audien Hearing, this hearing aid currently holds a 4.5 out of five star rating with more than 500,000 customer reviews.
These budget-friendly hearing aids are available for just $189 at Audien Hearing or Amazon below.
Pros:
- The absolute lowest price you’re going to find for high quality OTC hearing aids from a trusted and budget-friendly hearing aid brand
- Multiple preset programs can make these a great pick for people with varying degrees of hearing loss, as well as anyone with the inner ear disorder Ménière disease, which can require multiple adjustments throughout the day
- 24-hour battery life on a single charge
Cons:
- Small size and sleek design can make these difficult to maneuver or configure for older adults
- Sound amplification and background cancellation features aren’t as crisp or robust as other, pricier models
Best behind-the-ear fit: MDHearing Air
MDHearing
One of the most affordable hearing aids out there is the MDHearing Air model, the hearing aid brand’s latest OTC hearing aid.
If you’d prefer larger hearing aids, which can be easier to configure with bigger buttons and less prone to getting lost, consider this behind-the-ear design by MDHearing. This hearing aid sits snugly around and behind the ear for easy access.
This budget hearing aid offers impressive features like background noise reduction and omnidirectional sound amplification.
This hearing aid brand offers some of the lowest prices on our list, with the price of a pair of MDHearing Air devices sitting at just $297.
Pros:
- Super affordable for anyone uninterested or unable to consider prescription hearing aids
- Excellent customer support according to customer reviews
- Free shipping, free lifetime support, a one-year warranty, and a 45-day risk-free trial make this one of the best and safest purchases you can make when shopping for new hearing aids
Cons:
- Limited tech capabilities when compared to other, more expensive devices
- Behind-the-ear design can be more noticeable than other in-the-ear hearing aids
Best Bluetooth streaming quality: Go Hearing Ultra OTC
Go Hearing
Another behind-the-ear design that’s worth your money is from Go Hearing. The Go Hearing Ultra OTC hearing aid comes with several standout features, such as Bluetooth streaming capability, hands-free calls, and a whopping 20-hour battery life.
Thanks to its flexibility and included measuring tool, this hearing aid is easily fitted and configured on your own — no visits to an audiologist or specialist required if you’d prefer a DIY approach.
These hearing aids are currently on sale, marked down to just $399 from the original price of $499.
Pros:
- Comfortable and lightweight, especially for behind-the-ear hearing aids, which can sometimes be on the bulkier side
- Impressive battery life for OTC hearing aids
Cons:
- Sound performance isn’t as impressive as other hearing aids
- No mobile app, so adjustments are limited to the device’s buttons
Most tech features: Lexie Lumen OTC
Lexie via Amazon
On the higher end of budget hearing aid brands is Lexie. But the Lexie Lumen OTC hearing aid has standout features and a price tag that’s still half what you’d pay for quality prescription hearing aids, make these worth your consideration.
Perfect for mild to moderate hearing loss, the Lexie Lumen OTC hearing aid comes with multiple pre-programmable listening settings that can be matched with different environments and noise levels.
This hearing aid is also equipped with a telecoil setting that lets wearers bypass background noise and tap into nearby speakers — useful whether you’re at the movies, a museum, or a busy train station.
Pros:
- Good background noise cancellation
- Custom features make this hearing aid useful for a variety of scenarios
Cons:
- No Bluetooth connectivity
How we compared the best budget hearing aid brands
For a closer look at how we rate products, here is what we prioritized while looking at budget-friendly hearing aid brands:
- Affordability: We looked plenty of budget-friendly OTC devices to make sure we only highlight the highest-quality hearing aids.
- Sound technology: We looked for important features like background noise cancellation and speech amplification.
- Customer reviews: All of our hearing devices hold a four-star review or higher from happy customers just like you.
- Comfortability: We paid attention to the design, shape, and fit of each hearing aid to ensure only the most comfortable hearing aids made the list.
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Sen. Thom Tillis says “the scope” of Helene damage in North Carolina “is more like Katrina”
As recovery missions and repairs continue in North Carolina more than a week after Hurricane Helene carved a path of devastation through the western part of the state, the state’s Republican Sen. Thom Tillis called for more resources to bolster the relief effort and likened the damage to Hurricane Katrina’s mark on Louisiana in 2005.
“This is unlike anything that we’ve seen in this state,” Tillis told CBS News’ Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Sunday morning. “We need increased attention. We need to continue to increase the surge of federal resources.”
Hurricane Helene ripped through the Southeast U.S. after making landfall in Florida on Sept. 26 as a powerful Category 4 storm. Helene brought heavy rain and catastrophic flooding to communities across multiple states, including Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia, with North Carolina bearing the brunt of the destruction. Officials previously said hundreds of roads in western North Carolina were washed out and inaccessible after the storm, hampering rescue operations, and several highways were blocked by mudslides.
Tillis said Sunday that most roads in the region likely remained closed due to flooding and debris. Water, electricity and other essential services still have not been fully restored.
“The scope of this storm is more like Katrina,” he said. “It may look like a flood to the outside observer, but again, this is a landmass roughly the size of the state of Massachusetts, with damage distributed throughout. We have to get maximum resources on the ground immediately to finish rescue operations.”
Hurricane Katrina left more than 1,000 people dead after it slammed into Louisiana’s Gulf Coast in August 2005, flooding neighborhoods and destroying infrastructure in and around New Orleans as well as in parts of the surrounding region. It was the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. in the last 50 years, and the costliest storm on record.
The death toll from Hurricane Helene is at least 229, CBS News has confirmed, with at least 116 of those deaths reported in North Carolina alone. Officials have said they expect the death toll to continue to rise as recovery efforts were ongoing, and a spokesperson for the police department in Asheville told CBS News Friday their officers were “actively working 75 cases of missing persons.”
On Saturday, the U.S. Department of Transportation released $100 million in emergency funds for North Carolina to rebuild the roads and bridges damaged by the hurricane.
“We are providing this initial round of funding so there’s no delay getting roads repaired and reopened, and re-establishing critical routes,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement. “The Biden-Harris administration will be with North Carolina every step of the way, and today’s emergency funding to help get transportation networks back up and running safely will be followed by additional federal resources.”
President Biden previously announced that the federal government would cover “100%” of costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures in North Carolina for six months.
With North Carolina leaders working with a number of relief agencies to deal with the aftermath of the storm, Tillis urged federal officials to ramp up the resources being funneled into the state’s hardest-hit areas. The senator also addressed a surge in conspiracy theories and misinformation about the Biden Administration’s disaster response, which have been fueled by Republican political figures like former President Donald Trump.
Trump falsely claimed that Mr. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic opponent in the November presidential election, were diverting funds from Federal Emergency Management Agency that would support the relief effort in North Carolina toward initiatives for immigrants. He also said baselessly that the administration and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, were withholding funds because many communities that were hit hardest are predominantly Republican. Elon Musk has shared false claims about FEMA, too.
“Many of these observations are not even from people on the ground,” Tillis said of those claims. “I believe that we have to stay focused on rescue operations, recovery operations, clearing operations, and we don’t need any of these distractions on the ground. It’s at the expense of the hard-working first responders and people that are just trying to recover their lives.”
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