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It might not be the ideal moment to discuss this pre-break, but if you’re gearing up to return to school in the upcoming year, it’s highly likely that you’ll be in need of a quality pair of headphones to help you power through those extended study sessions (or perhaps those late-night gaming marathons). Evaluating the finest headphones in each category is our specialty, ranging from outstanding over-ear noise-cancelling marvels to compact true wireless earbuds that can effortlessly fit into your pocket. We’ve extensively tested a wide array of headsets, catering to diverse listeners, and accommodating various budget ranges, all under the banner of “Best Headphones for Students.“
The best headphones for studying don’t just sound great, although of course that’s important. No, they’re also designed to be worn for long periods without becoming uncomfortable or running out of power – and many have additional features such as active noise cancellation (because maybe your housemate just started violin lessons) and access to your voice assistant for quick queries and fact-checking during assignments.
And because you’re buying on a budget, they need to be exceptional value for money too. If you plan on using your new headphones in a busy communal study area, our guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones is another place to cross-reference those listed here.
Best Headphones for Students Comparison Table
Product | Battery Life | Active Noise Cancellation | Microphone | Weight |
Sony WH-1000XM4 | Up to 30 hours | Yes | Yes | 254 g |
JLab Go Air Pop | Up to 8 hours | No | Yes | 4.8 g |
AKG Y400 | Up to 20 hours | Yes | Yes | 238 g |
Sennheiser HD 250BT | Up to 25 hours | Yes | Yes | 125 g |
Soundcore by Anker Space Q45 | Up to 40 hours | Yes | Yes | 250 g |
Bose QuietComfort 45 | Up to 24 hours | Yes | Yes | 310 g |
Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7B | Up to 90 hours | Yes | Yes | 200 g |
Creative Sound Blaster Jam | Up to 12 hours | No | Yes | 83 g |
Sony WH-1000XM4
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | Yes |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 4 Hz – 40,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 30 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth, NFC |
Assistant support | Google Assistant, Alexa |
Weight | 254 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
Quick charging | Yes |
App control | Sony |
If you’re looking for the best headphones you can buy, the Sony WH-1000XM4 have great noise cancellation and sound quality that might surprise you. They’re also very light and comfortable.
Even though they don’t look much different from their predecessors, the Sony WH-1000XM3, they were named the best headphones of 2021 because of new features like multipoint pairing, DSEE Extreme upscaling, conversational awareness, and auto-play/pause using a built-in sensor. Now that they’re on sale, they’re an even better deal: their successors, the WH-1000XM5, are great, but they’re also a lot more expensive.
The Good
- Excellent noise cancellation
- Excellent sound performance
- Lasts a long time
The Bad
- Expensive Bulky design
JLab Go Air Pop
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | No |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 20 Hz – 20,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 5 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Assistant support | N/A |
Weight | 50 grams |
Water resistance | IPX4 |
Earbud charging case | Yes |
Customizable EQ | Yes |
You can buy cheap earbuds without sacrificing the quality of your listening experience or your eardrums. The JLab Go Air Pop is a great low-cost option that lets discerning listeners enjoy good sound at a low cost.
The Air Pops don’t just sound better than everything else in their price range; they sound much better than you’d expect for such a low price. The tests we did on these wireless earbuds showed that the mids handle vocals pretty well, the bass is handled well, and the soundstage is pretty big.
The Good
- A reasonable price
- Easy to carry and not too heavy
- Water-resistant
The Bad
- Battery life is short
AKG Y400
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | Yes |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 16 Hz – 22,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 20 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Assistant support | Google Assistant, Siri |
Weight | 170 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
Quick charging | Yes |
Ambient aware mode | Yes |
The Y400 are a little smaller than the previous model, the wonderful Y500. They have smaller drivers and come with a cable with controls and a mic built in for when you don’t want to use the wireless connection and run down the battery.They come in pink, green, blue, and goldish-yellow with shimmery finishes.
It doesn’t block out noise, but at this price, we wouldn’t expect it to. There is, however, a mode called “Ambient Aware” that lets in sounds like dogs barking and car engines. Useful if you don’t want to get bit or run over. They can tell when you take them off, and when you do, they pause the music and save your battery.
The Good
- Active noise cancellation
- Sound quality that is in tune
- It fits well.
The Bad
- Battery life is average.
Sennheiser HD 250BT
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | No |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 18 Hz – 22,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 25 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Assistant support | Google Assistant, Siri |
Weight | 178 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
Multi-device pairing | Yes |
App control | Sennheiser |
The HD 250BT may not have any luxury flourishes, but they are a set of budget on-ear headphones that have a pleasant sound, are long-lasting, and are very easy to like. As a result, they are some of the most effective headphones for academic work. That is not to say that there is nothing else in the spec. Features include Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity with aptX Low Latency, a battery life of 25 hours, app support, and Sennheiser’s renowned transducer technology, which is popular among DJs.
The build is an affair of black plastic, but it is functional and sturdy, and it features the company’s traditional white S-in-a-rectangle branding on each ear cup. The build is a black plastic affair. However, the headband does not have any padding, in contrast to the nicely padded ear cups.
The Good
- Sound signature that is well-balanced
- Lasts a long time
- Easy to use for a long time
The Bad
- Not getting rid of noise
Soundcore by Anker Space Q45
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | Yes |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 16 Hz – 40,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 40 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Assistant support | Google Assistant, Siri |
Weight | 273 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
Quick charging | Yes |
App control | Soundcore |
If you can’t afford Sony’s WH-1000XM5 or Bose’s QC45, the $150 Soundcore by Anker Space Q45 is a good alternative. There’s a bit of copying going on here, but it’s a good alternative. Even though it might not fit some people with smaller heads, it is comfortable to wear because the ear cups are well-padded and it folds up with two hinges. The sound quality is very good, and the headphones cancel out noise better than the Q35.
They also support multipoint Bluetooth pairing (these have Bluetooth 5.3), and if you have a device that supports LDAC, you can stream high-resolution music tracks over Bluetooth. Samsung’s Galaxy phones don’t, but many Android phones do. When noise canceling is on at a moderate volume level, the battery life is up to 50 hours, which is very good. The headphones also come with a hard carrying case so you can take them with you.
The Good
- Active noise cancellation has gotten better
- Amazingly long battery life
- Wide frequency response range
The Bad
- Not very light
Bose QuietComfort 45
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | Yes |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 20 Hz – 20,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 24 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Assistant support | Google Assistant, Alexa |
Weight | 252 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
Adjustable noise | Yes |
The QuietComfort 45 is almost exactly the same as its predecessor, the QuietComfort QC35 II. Many people thought the QC35 II was one of, if not the most comfortable over-ear headphones. Bose says that it has the same drivers and that the buttons are in the same places. But there are some small but important changes. First of all, these are much better because they use USB-C instead of Micro-USB.
The second difference is how the microphones are set up. Not only have the mics on the headphones been moved, but there is now an extra external microphone for voice pickup. This gives the QC45 a total of six microphones, four of which are beamforming and used for voice. The QC35 II, on the other hand, has four, and two of them are used for voice. There are a total of six microphones on the Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700.
The Good
- Excellent job of getting rid of noise
- The sound is clear and full.
- Foldable design for portability
The Bad
- Not as long of a battery life
Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7B
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | Yes |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 10 Hz – 25,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 40 hours |
Wired connectivity | Yes |
Weight | 200 grams |
Foldable design | No |
Detachable cable | Yes |
Inline microphone | Yes |
The ATH-ANC7B headphones from Audio-Technica are a good choice if you want a pair of noise-canceling headphones that are both cheap and durable. Even though this pair came out in 2009, it was considered high-end at the time. But since they are almost ten years old, the price has gone down a lot, but they are still just as useful and useful as they were nine years ago.
These headphones have a deep bass and great mid-range sound. They also work well at high volumes without distorting or getting worse. The pair does a great job of blocking out real active noise from the outside world, making them perfect for students who are trying to study. The noise-canceling part of the headphones runs on AAA batteries and can be used for up to 40 hours. But even if the batteries run out, the pair does a great job of blocking out passive noise.
The Good
- Effective noise cancellation
- Batteries that last longer
- Cable that can be removed for wired use
The Bad
- Non-foldable design may be less portable
Creative Sound Blaster Jam
Feature | Specification |
---|---|
Noise cancellation | No |
Driver type | Dynamic |
Frequency response | 20 Hz – 20,000 Hz |
Battery life | Up to 12 hours |
Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth |
Weight | 83 grams |
Foldable design | Yes |
On-ear controls | Yes |
Microphone | Yes |
There is no need to look any further than Creative Labs’ Sound Blaster Jam headphones (opens in a new tab), which are an excellent pair of headphones that, when worn, give the impression of being lightweight. It’s possible that you won’t even realize you’re wearing headphones at all if you’re using the Sound Blaster Jam headphones because they only weigh eight ounces and are extremely comfortable.
The pair is wireless, so you have the freedom to move around without being tied to a device, and they deliver up to 12 hours of seamless wireless audio with deep bass and smooth tones. All of this can be yours for less than $60. In addition, they come equipped with complete Bluetooth capabilities as well as NFC technology for simple pairing.
The Good
- Easy to carry and not too heavy
- Foldable design for easy storage
- On-ear controls make it easy to use.
The Bad
- No noise cancellation feature
FAQs
Students often need headphones to listen to lectures, study materials, and other audio content without disturbing others around them. Headphones also provide a better listening experience, allowing students to hear details and nuances in audio content that may be missed through speakers.
Some popular headphone brands for students include:
Sony
Bose
Beats by Dre
Sennheiser
JBL
Audio-Technica
AKG
Shure
Philips
Skullcandy
The best type of headphones for students depends on their needs and preferences. Over-ear headphones provide the best sound quality and noise isolation, while in-ear headphones are more portable and lightweight. On-ear headphones provide a balance between sound quality and portability.