If you have definitive preferences regarding your exercise gear — and strong opinions about Hoka versus Brooks (we’re not getting involved in that discussion) — then locating the ideal workout headphones can be especially difficult.
The top headphones for exercising must be durable enough to endure movement, perspiration, and various conditions. Additionally, you want something that doesn’t require constant adjustments; your headphones should facilitate your focus during workouts.
Mashable reviewers have evaluated numerous pairs of headphones and wireless earbuds, and we can inform you which products stay in place during a workout, and which earbuds will fall to the pavement the moment you start running. To ensure we recommend the right items, we tested more than a dozen of the finest sports earbuds, headphones, and bone conduction headphones from brands like Bose, Beats, Apple, and Shokz.
How to choose headphones for exercise
The ideal headphones for you are largely determined by the types of workouts you enjoy and where you prefer to perform them. If you like to run outside, you need headphones that ensure safety in busy areas with dependable noise transparency, such as bone conduction headphones or open earbuds. If you’re lifting weights at the gym, you might favor sports earbuds that shut out the outside world with active noise cancellation, allowing you to concentrate on your sets. Some individuals simply prefer the aesthetics and comfort of traditional over-ear headphones. We discovered trustworthy options in every category, but generally, most athletes opt for the best wireless earbuds for workouts.
For this guide, we searched for two standard specifications in all of the headphones we assessed. First, workout headphones must be wireless, providing you with a complete range of motion. You don’t want to grapple with tangled wires on the stair climber.
Secondly, workout headphones need to be sweat- or water-resistant. This is a given. When you’re exercising, you’re sweating, and you want headphones that won’t malfunction at the first hint of moisture. Your gym earbuds don’t need to be fully waterproof, but this feature is advantageous for outdoor athletes.
So, whether you’re going to the gym or hitting the streets, here are the best earbuds and headphones for exercise.
Recent updates to this guide
For our latest update in September 2025, we replaced the Apple AirPods Pro 2 with the newly launched AirPods Pro 3. Similarly, we exchanged the previous-gen Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds for the QuietComfort Ultra (Gen 2) buds.
In a prior update, we eliminated the discontinued Jabra Elite 8 Active (Gen 2). These earbuds previously held the top position, offering exceptional battery life, fit, and sound quality in a highly durable design. We still suggest it if you’re fortunate enough to locate a pair online at a reasonable price (they retail for $300 on eBay).
We also tried additional products that ultimately didn’t make the list, including the JBL Reflect Aero noise-cancelling earbuds. Despite seemingly having a comparable design to the Beats Fit Pro — referring to the earbuds themselves, not the ear tips — they were so large that they couldn’t fit comfortably in the ear, a concerning design that caused them to continually fall out.