10 Of The Best Over Ear Headphones You Can Buy, Ranked

Finding a good pair of headphones can often feel like a needle in a haystack. Prices range wildly: You can find earbuds for as little as $3.50 or go all the way up to the Sennheiser Orpheus, which costs $50,000. In addition, there are also many types of headphones — you have on-ear, over-ear, in-ear monitors, and earbuds. After that, you have various driver types, including dynamic, planar magnetic, electrostatic, MEMS drivers, and balanced armature drivers. As someone who's been big into headphones for a very long time, I've found that there's always something to learn about these music-delivery devices. 

To simplify things, we'll be talking about the two main types of over-ear headphones. The first are closed-back headphones, which feature an enclosed ear cup. They often have more bass and provide isolation from outside noise. The other type is open-back headphones, which have an airier, spacious sound quality but doesn't isolate from outside noise. As an owner of several headphones, I can confidently say that there are times when having either one is preferable over the other. We'll also look at both wired and wireless headphones that help with portability. 

Below you'll find a set of 10 of the best over-year headphones you can buy, ranked by price, from most expensive to least. This ranking system should set your expectations for the amount of cash you'll probably want to spend on any given category, while each entry is in itself what we consider "the best" in its category.

The Focal Stellia costs as much as a used car but few headphones can go toe-to-toe with it. The first thing you'll notice is the striking design and exceptional build quality. Unlike most headphones, which tend to have fairly muted looks, the Stellia wants to be a fashion piece along with being the thing that sends you music. It's made in France and comes with three different cables, a hard-shell carry case, and a three-year warranty.

The Stellia's sound signature keeps it fairly neutral, with a little extra energy in the upper midrange and mid-bass regions. That means it adds as bit of pop and flair to your favorite pop songs but won't go out of control. Treble sound is tuned a little quieter bit to keep any sibilants from sounding harsh, lending itself to being a smooth operator overall. As evidenced by the multiple cables in the package, you can replace the cables and ear cups at your leisure, which bodes well for long-term use. In short, there is very little that these do wrong objectively. Subjectively, whether you like it or not depends on your ears. 

It'll cost you, though. The Focal Stellia costs $2,999 on Amazon and other retailers. If you're looking for other options, the Sony MDRZ1R costs $1,000 less and sounds excellent. The Meze Audio Liric and several Audeze headphones also belong in the conversation along with various headphones from Fostex and HiFiMan as well.

The Sennheiser HD 800 S is for serious audiophiles. These are neutral headphones best suited for analytical listening, with a very even sound signature and small peaks in their frequency response. That means none of your music will sound too veiled or too intense (unless it's supposed to). The HD 800 S itself is a unique looking pair of headphones and it's not one you'll likely take outside, especially because of its open back design. 

However, lots of headphones are good for analytical listening, so what makes the HD 800 S special? Well, reviewers have praised it for its absurdly good soundstage, which means it makes the music sound like it's coming from everywhere. It does an excellent job giving the listener a sense of distance and this headphone does it as well or better than anything else in its price range. Plus, the signature doesn't seem to be affected much by its placement on your head, so you can wear them however you want, and they should sound the same regardless. 

Its performance also comes with a hefty price tag as the HD 800 S costs $1,699.95 on Amazon, although you can find it on sale for less than that during sales events. Some other great premium open back headphones include the HiFiMan Arya and Arya Stealth, Focal Utopia, almost any open back headphone from Audeze, and the Meze 109 Pro.

This is the top of the hill for Bluetooth headphones. There are fewer options up here, but they come with some things that the lower models don't get. For the most part, you're paying for fashion and built quality on top of good sound quality and other features. For this, the B&O H95 is a good place to start. They are beautifully built, sound good, and come with some decent features. 

For sound signature, these headphones are on the more neutral end of consumer-friendly. They lightly boost bass and treble, but the midrange doesn't scoop out like you get with other consumer-oriented headphones. If the sound isn't to your fancy, you can easily change it with the companion app. The headphones also come with excellent noise cancellation. It features an active noise cancelling scroll wheel that lets you adjust the levels to your liking so you can max it out and hear virtually nothing or lower it to hear some of your surroundings. There aren't a lot of gimmicky features like on less expensive Bluetooth headphones, but B&O gets the basics about as right as they can be.

They will set you back a pretty penny, however. They retail for $999 on Amazon although you can usually find them for less money. The air gets a bit thin up here so there aren't a ton of competitors. Some other options include the Focal Bathys, Bowers & Wilkins PX8, Mark Levinson No. 5909, and the Master & Dynamic MW75.

To say that the Sennheiser HD600 series headphones are iconic would be an understatement. Sennheiser has been selling this series in its various forms since Sennheiser HD 580 came out in 1994. Since then, we've seen the HD 600, HD 650, HD 660 S, and the HD 660 S2. In addition, Sennheiser partnered with Drop.com to remake the HD 580 as the HD 58X Jubilee and the HD 650 as the HD 6XX. 

We're lumping these all together because the only difference between them is their color and sound signatures. All of the housing elements are interchangeable, and you can tear a pair of any of them apart, replace virtually any piece, and put them back together. Few headphones have the repairability of the HD 600 series. In terms of sound signatures, we'll keep this as simple as possible. The HD 580, 58X Jubilee, and the two HD 660 S headphones provide a more fun, more colored sound signature with boosted highs and boosted bass with each one doing so in a slightly different way. The HD 600 is among the most neutral headphones on Earth while the HD 650 and 6XX offer a more laid-back version of the HD 600 sound. 

The only real caveat is that both headphones can be a little more difficult to drive, and you'll get the best sound with a headphone amp of some sort. Other than that, for a couple hundred bucks, there are few headphones that are this good in the open back category. 

The midrange Bluetooth headphone segment is arguably the most competitive one in over-ear headphones right now. Sitting at the top of that pile is the Sony WH-1000XM5. The headset comes with a sleek design, the ability to twist the earcups so they lay flat on your chest, and the price tag is higher but not so much so that it's no longer affordable. It also comes with a bunch of bells and whistles. 

In terms of sound signature, the 1000XM5 sports a consumer-friendly sound with boosted bass and treble. It never sounds harsh and even if it does, Sony has an app that lets you dabble with the EQ so you can customize the sound for you. It gets 30 hours of battery life with its outstanding active noise cancelling on and it supports all of the highest quality Bluetooth codecs for the best possible sound quality. You also get Alexa built-in and a neat feature where you can palm one of the ear cups and hear the world outside if need be.

You'll pay for the privilege as these go for $398 on Amazon in four different colors. As mentioned, this is a highly competitive space, so you also have the Apple AirPods Max, Bose Quietcomfort, Bowers & Wilkins PX7, Sennheiser Momentum 4, Sennheiser M4AEBT, and a few Beats headphones to choose from.

Planar magnetic headphones don't use the dynamic drivers of regular headphones. Due to their constructions, they generally have a bass response that extends into lower frequencies than most dynamic drivers. They're also generally larger and heavier. Planar magnetic headphones are a bit niche but have found a home in audiophilia. If you're interested in giving them a shot, check out the HiFiMan Sundara. These headphones are a good midrange open back headphone that can give you the clarity and detail of planar magnetic audio without breaking the bank. 

Sporting a simple design, the Sundaras look like any old pair of headphones. For sound signature, they sport a mostly neutral sound. There is a bit of roll-off in the lower bass ranges but that's mostly due to it being an open back headphone. Otherwise, the headphone has excellent clarity and detail for its price point. Like every other headphone on the list, it has replaceable cables and ear cups, allowing you to replace wear items to keep the headphone in proper form as long as possible. 

The HiFiMan Sundara used to be a lot more expensive, but you can get usually get for under $300 on Amazon these days. Other excellent planar headphones include the Audeze CRBN, various headphones from HiFiMan and Abyss, the Meze Audio Liric, Audeze Maxwell, Dan Clark Audio E3, and Dan Clark Audio AEON 2. 

Meze doesn't have the name recognition of brands like Sennheiser or Audio Technic yet, but it's definitely getting there. One of its success stories is the Meze 99. These headphones come in two variants. The original is the Classics, which features a brightly colored wood side panels with either gold or silver accents and the Noir, which is a collaboration with Drop.com and features darker wood and black accents. Since the Noir variant is over $100 cheaper than the Classics while still being otherwise the same, that's the variant we'll talk about.

Most of the headphones on the list to this point have been more analytical than fun. The Meze 99 is the opposite. It features boosted bass and treble, which will make music sound more exciting and aggressive. The Noir variants also come with a second set of ear pads that slightly change how the headphones sound so you can pick whichever one you want. Like many other headphones on the list, the cables and pads are interchangeable so you can replace them as they wear out. They also have an excellent build quality, even if they look a little unconventional. 

Drop sells the Meze 99 Noir for $199 while Meze sells the Classics for $309. This is also a very crowded space so if this isn't what you're looking for, check out the Beyerdynamic DT1770 Pro or DT 770 Pro, the AKG K553 MKII, V-MODA Crossfade M-100 Master, or the Shure SRH-1540. 

The Audio-Technica M40X is an excellent pair of budget closed-back headphones. It sports a decently natural sound signature with a bit of a bump in the bass range without being overbearing. That means you can get some decent music through these while also being able to do things like amateur studio work. They're also about $50 less expensive than the more popular Audio-Technica M50X and feature most of the same build quality and sound quality.

The key ingredient here is the same as you'll find on a few other headphones on this list: The M40X headphones have replaceable ear cups and a replaceable cable, so you can switch out worn down items as they go bad. The stock ear cups on the M40X are a weak point, though, so an upgrade is recommended. You can also pick up a cable with a microphone attached and use it as a gaming headset. There are only a few downsides that aren't terribly uncommon for headphones in this price range. For example, the M40X tends to distort a bit more at higher volume than more expensive headphones, but that's to be expected for sub-$100 headphones.

The Audio-Technica M40X is available on Amazon for $99. Other options in this space include the AKG K361, Sennheiser HD 280 Pro, and the Shure SRH440. Most of those press up against the $100 range. There are few headphones under $50 that

When it comes to good, budget-oriented open-back headphones, the list is pretty short and the Phillips SHP9500 is either toward or at the top of it. In terms of sound signature, the SHP9500 is more neutral than most. In other words, you won't get excessively pounding bass or sizzling treble, but every sound has its place and the SHP9500 will let you hear everything in the mix. The headphones are also quite easy to drive, so you won't need a DAC or an amp like the Fiio E5 to get the most out of them. 

In addition to sounding surprisingly good for their inexpensive price tag, there are a few other things that make the SHP9500 a good option. The cable and ear pads are removable and replaceable, which bodes well for longevity, especially given these are some of the most durable headphones around. Plus, the cable jack on the headphones is a standard 3.5mm jack, which means finding replacement cables on Amazon is a breeze. If you were so inclined, you could also purchase something like the V-MODA BoomPro — which connects to 3.5mm jacks — and turn your $80 pair of open back headphones into a gaming headset with a swap of a cable. 

Between the neutral sound signature, general versatility, repairability, and its cheap price tag, there are few headphones as value oriented as the SHP9500. They sell on Amazon for around $80 these days, which is a great deal.

Wireless headphones are a whole different category. Not only do you have to care about audio quality but also battery life, sound isolation, supported Bluetooth codecs, and other features. Thus, finding a good pair of inexpensive Bluetooth headphones can actually be quite difficult — most of them compromise on something to get down to their price level. For its price and performance, the JBL Tune 720BT has fewer compromises than most. 

Despite its lower price tag, the sound signature of the 720BT is actually quite good. It follows the Harman target curve pretty closely, which means it'll be a consumer-friendly sound with boosted bass and treble but not by so much that it's unpleasant. Its design lets you fold it flat for easy transport and while its lack of noise cancelling could be a mistake for Bluetooth headphone shoppers with certain needs, it is a closed back headphone, so it'll drown out much of the outside noise. It also supports hands-free phone calls and up to 50 hours of battery life per charge. It also supports the aptX Adaptive codec, giving you CD quality audio over Bluetooth. 

You get all of that for around $80 on Amazon. That's a hard deal to beat, but there are some competitors in this space, including the AKG K361-BT, JLab JBuds Lux, and the Sony WH-CH520.

Ranking headphones can feel like an impossible task. Sound quality and enjoyment is highly subjective. Some people enjoy more treble and a crisper overall sound while others enjoy pounding bass they can feel. Headphones can be analytical, letting you hear all of the nuances in an inoffensive way and others still may enjoy a more colored sound signature that makes the music more exciting. There are no wrong answers, so technically speaking, there is no such thing as a "best headphone." There is, however, such a thing as a bad headphone and we made sure to avoid those.

So, for this list, we looked at what was popular and what reviewers tend to like. Thus, you'll see some favorites on this list like the Sennheiser HD 650 and the Sony WH-1000XM5. However, we also included some favorites of the audiophile community like the Focal Stellia, Meze 99, and the HiFiMan Sundara. We reference both professional and personal reviews using a variety of websites and YouTube personalities along with user reviews on Head-Fi, Reddit's r/audiophile subreddit, and, of course, SlashGear reviews when they're available.  

There is a real chance that your personal dream headphones didn't make it on this list, but hopefully we've given you a place to start looking. Those honorable mentions in each category are there to give you even more to look at, too.