Listening to music while at the gym, working out at home or on a run is an essential part of our exercise routine. Whether you’re listening to a fast-paced playlist to get yourself pumped or clearing out your backlogs of podcasts, having a good pair of headphones goes a long way to help you drown out your surroundings and focus on the task at hand.
Wearing over-the-ear headphones is a great idea in theory, but it’s less than ideal when your ear cups become sweat sponges. A pair of in-ear headphones are a great alternative, but the fear of having one of your earbuds fall out mid-workout is very real. Nothing kills your motivation faster than having to retrace your steps and dig around the sidewalk because an earbud jumped out while running.
Thankfully, a few of our favourite audio brands have also produced earbuds that are designed with exercising in mind. If you’re sick of listening to the chorus of grunting at your gym and want a pair of in-ear headphones that won’t fall out of your ears mid-jog, here are our favourite sports earbuds.
These are the best earbuds for working out
Soundcore by Anker Sport X10
If you want a pair of earbuds that you only plan on using when working out, Anker’s Soundcore Sport X10 earbuds are a solid affordable option.
The Sport X10 has an eight-hour battery life, with a total of 32 hours with the recharging case. It also has a noise-cancellation feature, and transparency mode, so you can control the amount of ambient noise you’ll be exposed to. These particular earbuds include a boosted bass, which is great news if you listen to a lot of doof-heavy music when working out.
If you’re worried about losing an earbud, the Sport X10 include adjustable hooks, which can rotate up to 210° to secure around the outside of your ear.
Where to buy Soundcore by Anker Sport X10: Amazon Australia ($129.99) | Dick Smith ($129.99) | Kogan ($129.99)
Jabra Elite 4 Active Earbuds
Jabra’s wireless earbuds are a perennial favourite here at Gizmodo Australia. The brand has proven time and time again that when it comes to audio quality, comfortability and noise-cancelling abilities it can stand toe-to-toe with the bigger brands, but at a much more affordable price. As its name suggests, the Jabra Elite 4 Active wireless earbuds are designed with exercising in mind. These sweat-proof sport-focused earbuds are designed to fit snuggly in your ears, so you won’t have to worry about accidentally losing one when vigorously working out.
It has a battery life of around seven hours with Active Noise-Cancelling on, with another 21 hours of charge in the case. So if you’re only using these when you work out, you’ll have at least one or two weeks between needing to charge it up. On top of its noise-cancellation, the Elite 4 Active also includes a transparency mode for ambient noise, so you stay aware of your surroundings. An especially helpful feature if you need to cross a few streets while out on a jog or bike ride.
Where to buy Jabra Elite 4 Active Earbuds: Amazon Australia ($179) | Dick Smith ($172) | The Good Guys ($179) | Kogan ($172)
Bose Sport Earbuds
Bose is another audio brand with a great track record for leaving us quite impressed with wireless earbuds.
Bose’s Sport Earbuds are a good addition to this range. These share the unique pill-shaped design of Bose’s QuietComfort earbuds, although a bit smaller. Its winged tips also help to secure the earbuds comfortably in your ears.
These earbuds include customisable touch controls, so you can leave your phone in your pocket while working out or on a run, along with an in-ear detection feature, which will automatically pause your music the moment your right earbud is removed. Handy if you never want to miss a beat. They also sound fantastic, so if you’re a stickler for audio quality and feeling the burn, then these will keep you satisfied.
However, the Bose Sports Earbuds don’t offer a noise-cancelling feature. Compared to the other sports headphones on this list, the Bose Sport Earbuds have a smaller battery life as well. You’ll get around five hours on a full charge, with an additional 10 hours available through the recharging case. If you plan on using these as your everyday earbuds, you might have to recharge them frequently. But if these are for working out only, that shorter battery life is a bit more manageable. The earbuds do offer up to two hours of battery life from a 15-minute quick charge.
Where to buy Bose Sport Earbuds: Amazon Australia ($179) | Catch ($199) | The Good Guys ($299) | JW Computers ($210)
Sennheiser Sport True Wireless
A fair few headphones on this list offer noise-cancellation, high-quality audio or both. But do they have the ability to help silence the sounds of your body? The Sennheiser Sport True Wireless earbuds do.
The combination of “Focus” ear tips and fins helps to give the earbuds a tight and secure fit when in your ear. Which, when combined with its Active Noise Cancellation feature, will ensure you’ll never have to hear the sound of heavy weights being dropped or the heavy breathing of the person on the treadmill next to you ever again. If you want to maintain some situational awareness, the earbuds include “Aware” tips that will let you hear surrounding noises while minimising the sound of your own body (breathing, footsteps, etc.).
Its impressive battery life is around nine hours, with an additional 18 hours available through the charging case. The Sennheiser Sport earbuds also use touch controls, so you won’t need to break your rhythm to pull out your phone. The Sennheiser Sport True Wireless earbuds also sound pretty great, making for a solid package.
Where to buy Sennheiser Sport True Wireless: Amazon Australia ($139) | Dick Smith ($193) | The Good Guys ($139) | Kogan ($193)
Beats Fit Pro
In Gizmodo’s review of the Beats Fit Pro, we called them “basically perfect”, praising its Active Noise Cancellation, battery life and AirPods Pro-level audio quality, with our only issue being the bulky charging case. If that isn’t enough to sell you on them, then we don’t know what will.
In terms of specs, the Beats Fit Pro has a battery life of around six hours with ANC on, with an additional 18 hours available from the charging case. On top of its Transparency Mode, the Fit Pro also comes with an adaptive EQ that’ll adjust your audio in response to how they fit. To help keep your Beats Fit Pro secured and help avoid any accidental slips while you’re working out, the earbuds include winged tips that will hook into the inside of your ear.
If you’re a dyed-in-the-wool Apple fan (these favour their parent brand when it comes to connectivity) or think the Airpods Pro are the best earbuds around, then you’ll get a lot of good mileage from these sports headphones.
Where to buy Beats Fit Pro: Amazon Australia ($299) | Catch ($249) | Dick Smith ($248) | The Good Guys ($299) | Kogan ($248)