Noise cancelling technology gets better and better by the day. It’s only natural that more and more people, including you, are in search of new noise cancelling headphones.

This article is about finding the best noise cancelling headphones for your needs. You may just be a casual listener. Maybe you’re after the best headphones for work? Or working out? Do you want to cut out the engine noise with a pair of noise cancelling headphones for travelling?

From Bose to Sony noise cancelling Bluetooth headphones, we’re taking a deep dive into this exciting technology. Active noise cancelling headphones use small microphones to sample the environment around you. The circuitry in the headphones creates a new sample that copies the compressions and rarefactions in the air. This minimises the ambient sound that reaches your ears. This is an emerging technology that has us at the edge of our seats!

Read More: The Best 5 Bluetooth Earbuds For Exercise, Down Time and General Use

Sony WH1000XM4: The Best Noise Cancelling Headphones – £249

First, we have everyone’s favourite headphones to talk about. The Sony WH1000XM3 headphones. Oh, wait. Let us correct ourselves. We have the headphones that are replacing everyone’s favourite headphones: the Sony WH1000XM4!

Sony WH1000XM4 are the best noise cancelling headphones you can buy right now, Source: Pocket-lint

The Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones improve many features of the Sony WH-1000XM3 headphones. The XM3’s are one of the most popular pairs of headphones today. Fortunately, the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones equally stand up to their specifications – and go beyond.

The XM4 headphones are as comfortable as the XM3’s, so much so that you may forget you’re wearing them. We don’t say that lightly. But the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones do have a few new tricks up their sleeve. New useful features for the user experience like ‘Speak to Chat’ allows us to talk to someone while our headphones sit on our head. That’s right. All you need to do is talk and the headphones understand what’s up. Other new features include auto-play/pause (via a built-in sensor) and multipoint pairing!

Thanks to DSEE Extreme upscaling technology, the price the Sony WH1000XM4 ask of us delivers an upgraded, top-notch sound. The WH-1000XM4 headphones have a sound that’s more confident and bold compared to the XM3 headphones. The bass response of the XM4 headphones presents a clean sound that doesn’t compromise on power and punchiness.  

For the lightweight and comfortable design, the Sony WH-1000XM4 present excellent noise-cancellation alongside an intuitive sound.  

The Sony WH-1000XM4 also support Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format for spatial audio on stereo headphones. The LDAC codec can send a total bitrate of 990 kbps too!

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 – Best Headphones for Travelling – £294.99

They’re not quite on the same level with battery life as the Sony XM4’s or XM3’s. Although the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 provide outstanding noise cancellation. Do you travel a lot? If so, we recommend the Bose 700’s. You’ll forget you’re sitting on a busy bus or a plane! We think these are the best Bose noise cancelling headphones by far.

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 are the best noise-cancelling headphones for travelling, Source: Joe’s Daily

As the Sony XM4’s have, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 seek to solve the issue of not being able to hear another person in a phone conversation. The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 6700 apply noise cancellation to your phone calls as well as your music!

The sound quality is tasty with its vibrant character and rich frequency response.

If you find yourself stuck between buying the Sony WH-1000XM4s and the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, it could be a good idea to go for the former. The lower price and better battery life will treat you well! 

Sony WH1000XM3 – Best Noise Cancelling Headphones Under £200

They may no longer be Sony’s top-performing headphones, but the Sony WH1000XM4 are still an amazing pair of headphones. The XM3 headphones are now a much more viable option for those with a smaller budget.

Sony WH100XM3 are the best noise cancelling headphones under £200, Source: Which?

The Sony WH1000XM3 headphones produce spacious audio. Spacious audio that makes sure every element in a song – instruments and effects – has its place in your ears. Vocals have a deliberate and focused sound, and all the surrounding instruments sound like you’re hearing them live. If you’re looking for amazing headphones but the WH-1000XM4’s are a tad out of your price range, we recommend the next best thing!

Apple AirPods Max – Best Headphones for iPhone – £449

At such a high price that makes them the most expensive on our list, Apple’s wireless headphones do pack a real punch. These wireless headphones make the line between wireless audio into wireless hi-fi fairly blurred!

Apple Airpod Max are the best noise cancelling headphones for iPhone users, Source: The Verge

You’ll need an Apple iPhone or iPad to get the most out of the AirPods Max. While they do work with non-Apple products like Android phones with Bluetooth 5.0, you’ll miss out on many of their unique features. If you’re already a loyal Apple fan, these may be for you. If you’re not then you’ll find more value for money elsewhere.

As you may be an Apple fan. If you then then keep reading. The AirPods Max are the best wireless headphones you can buy right now. The only reason they’re number 4 on our list is that the features aren’t available to any consumer.

The detail and crispness, and not to forget spaciousness of the audio reproduced in these headphones is off the charts! The previous best in the wireless headphone range does start to seem a little redundant when standing next to these.

Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless – Best Noise Cancelling Headphones for Working – £249

If your budget isn’t afraid of a challenge, the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless headphones may be what your budget is missing.

Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless are the best noise cancelling headphones for working, Source: NotebookCheck

These are the third attempt by Sennheiser to break into the market after their previous two attempts left as fast as they arrived. But the Momentum 3 headphones have been drastically improved in their sound compared to the previous two models. They’re an energetic, timely and hugely insightful listen that you’ve no choice but to enjoy.

But it’s not only an epic sound these are bringing to the table but better usability functions too. They may have a battery life of only 17 hours, but Sennheiser has long been the expert in sound reproduction.

If you’re okay with fairly frequent charging then the Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless will be perfect. We shouldn’t misjudge a captivating sound because of battery life. These headphones are comfortable and don’t need to pair with your device before every use. They pause or play music automatically when you take them off/put them on! 

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