Anker makes everything from phone chargers to headphones, and we generally like most of its gear. The Life Q30 ANC headphones are a standout, thanks to the decent hybrid active noise-canceling tech and class-leading 40-hour playtime. These are among the best budget headphones you can buy to buck the noise of planes, trains, and automobiles. A pair of 40-mm silk diaphragm drivers even produces pretty good sound quality for the money, though they can’t compete with high-end options from Sony or Bose. As the price might suggest, they’re also a bit fragile; the plastic headband can crack if you sit on it, so handle with care.

Open earbuds let you get your music or podcast fix without losing touch with the world, thanks to a design that keeps your ear canals open. They’re ideal for dog walks, ebike rides, or even just sneaking in some football on your phone while you hang with the fam. The Acefit Air delighted me with their comfortable fit, excellent sound, slick compact case, and responsive touch controls. There aren’t a lot of fancy features here, and there’s a learning curve to get them locked in place, but you want to get a deal on use-case-specific buds, and Acefast delivers that with heaps of value. —Ryan Waniata

JLab’s Go Pop ANC should be in one of those AM/PM commercials, because there’s just too much good stuff for such a low price. At well under $50, JLab managed to squeeze in balanced sound, a light and compact design, solid battery life, and surprisingly useful noise canceling and transparency modes to escape from or stay aware of your environment. Other options like IP55 water resistance, an app for adjusting EQ and controls, and multipoint pairing just feels like showing off. I noticed a few connection hiccups in one small area, and I don’t love the case’s tiny USB-C cable, but considering their aggressively low price, this is a budget home run. —Ryan Waniata

CMF has multiple pairs of earbuds that are virtually indistinguishable—a surprising problem given how clever its parent company, Nothing, is at making a visual impression. Even so, the brand has a knack for creating slick buds that sound good on a budget, and the Buds Pro 2 are the best we’ve tried. Their Dirac-tuned sound profile provides smooth tonality with solid detail and punchy bass. The fit is light and comfy (and very AirPods Pro), and the controls, though a bit oddly organized, are responsive.

The case takes the Buds Pro 2 from pretty cool to something special, with a matte finish that’s almost pettable, and a customizable control wheel. It works best as a volume spinner (especially since that’s hard to assign to the buds), but you can also assign play/pause, song skip, and more in the Nothing app. Other features include decent noise canceling and transparency mode, and extras like Google Fast Pair. It’s an impressive package for the money, and the sound and comfort make these buds easy to keep around. —Ryan Waniata

I’ve been a big fan of Audio-Technica’s workhorse studio headphones for my entire listening life, so I was stoked to see a new, affordable pair from the brand. The ATH-M20xBT have 60 hours (!) of battery life, ergonomic ear cups with comfortable pads, and excellent sound for the money. They also come with a cable for easy wired listening, making them great for plugging into an amp or portable console.

The Beats Flex have the same conveniences of more expensive true wireless Apple earbuds: quick pairing, easy access to Siri, and seamless Apple Music integration. This is all thanks to Apple’s W1 chip powering it, which helps the headphones establish and maintain a rock-solid wireless connection to iOS devices and also has added power-management smarts to boost battery life. WIRED reviewer Adrienne So found the band between the two earbuds to be a bit long for her, but she liked the crisp sound and wide soundstage, all without the muddy bass that Beats was notorious for in its early days. She likes the 12-hour-plus battery life, which is good enough for a few workdays of tunes between trips to the wall charger. (They charge via USB-C, which is a bonus.)

They’re plasticky and don’t feel all that durable, but if you’re not super hard on your headphones, the wired M20X closed-back headphones easily compete with the larger, more robust M50X for sound quality. The M50X litter music and podcasting studios the world over, making this cheaper variant a good option for home creators on a budget, or anyone who wants a pair of over-ear headphones that faithfully recreate their favorite tunes for more deliberate listening sessions.

They’re also lighter in the bass department than many headphones in this price range, since manufacturers often boost the lows in cheaper headphones to impress untrained ears. This lack of strong bass is a good thing though. You’ll be able to hear more of the detail in your favorite shreddy guitar solos, without that extra low-end stomping all over them.

OK, yes. They look like the same ugly in-ear buds that came with your first portable MP3 player, but what the Shure SE-112GR lacks in looks, they make up for in sound quality. We’ve recommended various iterations of the SE-112 to friends and family since the iPod era. They’re small, comfy, and have surprisingly robust bass for headphones this small and cheap. They even come with foam ear tips that can block out up to 37 decibels of outside noise, making them great for folks who want to tune out the 15th play-through of “Baby Shark.”

These teeny tiny wireless earbuds from JLab are designed to fit on a keychain, and they’re small enough to take with you anywhere. They’ve also become my go-to recommendation when folks tell me they can’t find earbuds they like because they have smaller ears. They come with an IP55 dust- and water-resistance rating, which makes them great for workouts, and they have five and a half hours of power when you’re listening. It’s not the longest battery life, but certainly enough for buds this small. They also have a built-in mic for calls, but it’s not the best I’ve ever tried.

Koss’ iconic Porta Pro on-ear headphones have a cult following in audiophile communities for their comfortable, lightweight design and oddly great sound. They look like they’re fresh out of a 1980s workout ad, but they’re actually solidly built, and there are a ton of aftermarket earpads and other accessories to increase their comfort or help them fit your style. They also fold up, which makes them easy to take with you in a backpack or laptop bag.

The Logitech G Pro X is one of our favorite gaming headsets for many reasons. It has an expansive 7.1-channel soundstage, and the software also gives you tons of control over the quality of your voice. The mics were designed with help from Logitech-owned Blue Mics, and we really love the way they represent the human voice on streams, podcasts, and Zoom calls. When you’re not gaming, we like that they look more normal than flashier headsets from other gaming brands, without flashing lights to attract attention. The wired model sometimes hovers above $100, but we think the performance is worth the splurge.

★ A Cheaper Alternative: For those on a tighter budget, the G321 Lightspeed is another impressive option from Logitech that made our list of the Best Gaming Headsets for its comfy and lightweight design and bold audio performance.

Kids headphones are going to be put through a lot, and these Belkin Bluetooth headphones have held up to senior editor Adrienne So’s 9-year-old, which is a very impressive feat. They have 30 hours of battery life and come in pink, which is also very important for younger folks. They sound pretty good, even if they’re a bit stiff on larger heads (these really are for kids). The volume is limited to OSHA-approved 85 decibels, which will save your kiddos’ ears, at least until they head to their first rave.