Flying is by no means the most stress-free way to travel, but it can be a nightmare thanks to endless airline delays, unruly passengers and incredibly narrowing airline seats. Not to mention the anxiety of the plane crash recently. If you’re ready to add some peace to your flight experience, picking up a pair of noise-cancelling headphones can be a long way to go.
You definitely have a choice: a large number of headphones from headphones to wireless earbuds provide active noise cancellation. In 2025, it’s not difficult to find ANC headphones for under $100. That said, we recommend spending more money to enjoy the maximum peace at 35,000 feet. To make sure your investment is worth it, we have tried and tested the top noise-canceling headphones on the market.
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How much should I spend on noise-cancelling headphones?
If you want to find the best flight noise headset, you should be prepared to pay between $250 and $500. Advanced headphones offer improved active noise cancellation, customizable settings and transparency modes that allow you to hear these most important door announcements.
Many cheap headphones claim to have “noise cancellation”, but a random pair of $50 flow-ear headphones passively eliminate noise, which will allow a lot of sound to pass through. They will also have difficulty connecting and switching between devices easily, or just feeling uncomfortable.
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Ultimately, it’s worth fighting for that all-around pair, because on the fly, the ANC itself won’t save a day – otherwise, we’ll just guide you into our guide The best noise-cancelling headphones. For long-distance flights, comfort is also key. If you want to make sounds from your headphones only within two of the five hours of the flight, will your headphones block the sound? And since this is a flying-centric review, we do offer more points for headphones with thoughtful designs, which makes storage easy.
If a price range above $250 is totally impossible, we include several budget earbuds in the under $100 category, but they have tradeoffs. If you have the option of a midrange pick, consider buying wireless earbuds with ANC instead of earphones.
If the cost of a pair of headphones is offensive, you can always wait for the sale to begin. We see Bose, Sony and Apple’s headphones are tagged year-round – if you don’t want to let your eyes peel, Mashable’s deal coverage is a great place to find any headphone deal worth noting. For the draft picks on our list, we recommend waiting for purchases at the following prices:
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Bose Quietcomfort Ultra Headphones – At least $349, if not $329
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Sony WH-1000XM5 – At least $329, if not $299
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Apple Airpods Pro 2 – At least $189, if not $179 or less (technically $199 is the sale price, but usually the price of these earbuds on Amazon)
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What are the best noise-cancelling headphones for flying?
Noise-cancelling headphones are most useful on airplanes. It’s hard to find a moment of peace when so much is happening around you. Frequent flyers may prefer to rest or work, and the best way to prepare is to use the best ANC headsets to stop the mess.
Because buying headphones shouldn’t be as stressful as heading to an airport, we’ve conducted extensive testing to bring you the best choice. Our top pick is the Bose Quietcomfort Ultra headphones, but keep reading to see other excellent choices for the best noise-cancelling headphones in 2025 – all based on Mashable’s hands-on tests.
Recent test updates
In July 2025, we switched the Sony WH-1000XM5 headset to the newer Sony WH-1000XM6 headset.
As of May 2025, we are evaluating whether the Panasonic Technic AZ100 is a better choice for the Bose Quietcomfort Ultra earbuds, and whether the new Skullcandy method ANC 360 headphones may be a good budget option.
After a few weeks of testing, we decided in February 2025 Earfun Air Pro 4 Earplugs earned a place in our guide as our top budget pick, eliminating cheaper but inferior Anker Soundcore P3i Earplugs. Soon after, we added Sennheiser Momentum 4 Due to the long battery life, the headset is one of our recommendations.
In September 2024, we did not change the lineup and decided not to include Dyson ontrac Headphones – Although we really like their longer battery life, a 55-hour charging can make air travel too big. Plus, they are a bit bulky and expensive and cannot be recommended as travel headphones.
