• Winner

  Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones

  Brand

  Sony

  Battery Life

  30 hours

  Bluetooth

  Bluetooth 5.2

  Noise Cancellation

  Yes

  Weight

  0.55 pounds

  Colors

  Black, Midnight Blue, Silver

  These are the best noise-cancelling over-ear headphones on the market today. With the ability to drown out ambient sounds and a padded, comfortable fit, they may be expensive, but they’re worth it.

  Pros & Cons

  • Excellent ANC
  • Comfortable
  • SBC, AAC, and LDAC Blueooth codecs
  • Up to 30 hours of battery life

  • Expensive
  • No IP rating

  $398 at Amazon
• Close second place

  Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700

  A close second place, these headphones are still a solid choice if you want to spend slightly less money. Their ANC does a good job, and they have a more neutral sound profile out of the box, too.

  Pros & Cons

  • Good ANC
  • Comfortable
  • Slightly cheaper than the Sony WH-1000XM5
  • IPX4 rating

  • Only AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs
  • No built-in spatial audio formats

  $379 at Amazon

When it comes to the best over-ear headphones out there, the Sony WH-1000XM5 and Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 both contend for the top spot. Sony’s offering is newer and splashier, with claims of up to 30 hours of battery life, excellent active noise cancelation (ANC), and a feature-packed mobile app, along with great sound quality. Meanwhile, Bose’s headset has been available for a few years and has shown to be a capable performer with good ANC, solid sound quality, and a comfortable fit. Let’s examine these two contenders to determine the best pair of noise-cancelling headphones for you.

Price, availability, and specs

The Bose NC 700 launched in 2019, and due to their age now cost $379, which is around $20 less than the launch price. While the current price is still not cheap, it’s within the range of high-end general consumer Bluetooth headphones. Meanwhile, the Sony WH-1000XM5 debuted at $400 in 2022. It remains to be seen if Sony will permanently drop the price, but for now, both models are rather expensive.

Regardless of price, both headphones are readily available. Sometimes you can even find them on sale if you keep a keen eye out, especially around Prime Day or Black Friday.

• 	Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones	Bose 700 Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones
  Battery Life	30 hours	20 hours
  Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.2	Bluetooth 5.0
  Noise Cancellation	Yes	Yes
  Weight	0.55 pounds	0.56 pounds
  Colors	Black, Midnight Blue, Silver	Black, Luxe Silver
  Compatbility	Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri	Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri
  Dimensions	10.36 x 8.85 x 3.03 inches	8 x 6.5 x 2 inches
  Retail price	$400	$379
  Battery charge time	3 hours	2.5 hours
  Carrying case	Included	Included

Design and fit

Regarding appearance, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and Sony WH-1000XM5 look pretty slick. Bose’s offering features large padded cups that slide along a tapering, padded band. At around 8.96 ounces, they aren’t exactly lightweight, but you won’t feel burdened thanks to the amply plush band.

The Sony WH-1000XM5 also boasts large, padded cups on a band, departing from previous models that used a notched adjustment track. They weigh around 8.82 ounces, similar to Bose’s model. And likewise, while not featherweight, you’ll likely be comfortable thanks to their padding and overall design. Neither model is as padded as the Razer BlackShark V2 or other gaming headsets, for instance, but they're still pretty padded for Bluetooth headphones.

Both models come with hard-backed carrying cases. Sony lets you choose from black, Midnight Blue, or Silver, while Bose only currently offers black or Luxe Silver.

Touch controls are available on both models. The Bose NCH 700 let you control playback, adjust volume, and control phone calls. Plus, there are physical buttons to power the headphones on or off, sync Bluetooth devices, adjust the level of noise cancelation, and access your voice assistant. In the Bose Music App, you can customize some of these controls as well.

Similarly, the Sony WH-1000XM5 let you control playback, access your voice assistant, adjust volume, plus place and control phone calls using touch controls. Physical buttons control noise cancelation, power the headphones on or off, and sync Bluetooth connections. The Sony Headphones Connect app lets you customize these as well. Additionally, Sony offers wearing detection while Bose does not, so you can pop your headphones on and off, and your music will start and stop accordingly.

While these two headphones are pretty evenly matched regarding design, comfort, and controls, the Bose NCH 700 has an IPX4 rating, while the Sony WH-1000XM5 has none. That means Bose’s model can handle splashes and drips, while Sony’s cans aren’t built to deal with moisture. Still, keeping either pair of headphones well away from water is best.

Sound and call quality

These two headphones are quite close in terms of their sound quality, but there are some differences if you listen closely.

The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 generally produce a more neutral sound profile without boosting low notes much. You’ll likely hear the mids and highs clearly because of this, and no one part of your music will dominate. But if you want to change this sound profile, you can use the equalizer in the Bose Music App. It’s pretty basic, however, and only lets you adjust the broad categories of lows, mids, and highs, along with four presets. Notably, Bose’s headphones don’t offer a spatial audio format of their own. Plus, they only support the AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs, meaning you may notice a slight mismatch between video and audio on some Android devices, but iPhones should be fine.

In contrast, the Sony WH-1000XM5 amp up the bass a little by default. This isn’t drastic, but you will likely notice it, especially with bass-heavy tracks. As a result, mids and highs may sound slightly quieter than they otherwise would, but everything will still sound quite good. However, there is an equalizer in the Sony Headphones Connect app to change this. It’s more detailed than Bose’s equalizer, with numerous presets and custom options. Sony also offers 360 Reality Audio for spatial audio with compatible streaming services, such as Amazon Music Unlimited. These headphones also support the SBC, AAC, and LDAC Bluetooth codecs, meaning they’ll offer low-latency, high-quality connectivity with the best Android phones.

Still, both of these headphones offer overall excellent sound quality. When it comes to default settings, Bose edges out Sony slightly, but if you tinker with the WH-1000XM5, you can easily level the playing field.

As for the microphone during phone calls, the Bose NCH 700 deliver your voice clearly enough, but background noise can still make its way through. In contrast, the Sony WH-1000XM5 boasts a mic that can handle lots of loud ambient noise. Your words will arrive easily intelligible on the other end as a result.

And while Bose may have once reigned supreme in the over-ear ANC realm, Sony has toppled it here. The Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 do a solid job cutting out low- and mid-range sounds, while isolation handles higher-pitched noises. But the Sony WH-1000XM5 does a much better job. They cancel out these ranges better than Bose, and their padded ear cups and better ANC handle higher-pitched noises more adeptly. You’ll find office sounds, airplane engines, and other distractions to be practically absent or at least far quieter.

Software

The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 use the Bose Music App to connect and control their features. You can use it to adjust how strong the ANC is, equalize the headphones, customize the touch controls and buttons a bit, and update their firmware. The Sony WH-1000XM5 use the Sony Headphones Connect app for similar controls. As mentioned, their EQ is a bit more detailed. Both apps ask for personal data, which might feel unsettling, but is par for the course these days.

Both headphones let you change how much ANC is in effect. If you want to knock it down to take in your surroundings or listen to stop announcements on the bus, for example, you can do so. Both also have a conversation or transparency mode, which lets you hear others clearly without removing the headphones.

Battery life

According to Bose, the NCH 700 get around 20 hours of battery life with ANC on, while Sony claims the WH-1000XM5 get 30 hours with ANC enabled. A quick 15-minute charge gets you up to 3.5 hours from Bose’s model, while Sony’s quick charge feature gives you one hour after three minutes of charging and five hours after 10 minutes. Plus, Sony claims that if you have a USB PD (power delivery) charger, you can get three hours of playback time after just three minutes of charging.

Both models offer ample battery life, but Sony edges out Bose regarding fast charging and overall capacity. Likewise, both use USB-C to charge and come with the appropriate cable, but neither has an AC adapter in the box.

Which is right for you?

We’re looking at two top contenders similar in price here, but when it comes down to it, the Sony WH-1000XM5 win in a few key areas. They offer better ANC, longer battery life, and a better mic that handles ambient noise well. While they don’t have quite as neutral a sound profile out of the box as the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, you can easily EQ them if this bothers you. Plus, the WH-1000XM5 have LDAC, while Bose’s model only offers SBC and AAC.

The Bose NCH 700 do have an IPX4 rating, however, which might appeal to you if you anticipate light moisture being a problem, such as when you’re sweating at the gym. They offer proven reliability along with a comfortable fit, too. And as mentioned, they sound a bit more neutral by default. Plus, they’re a little cheaper than Sony’s model.