Odi Productions
We’ve tested over 60+ pairs of wireless headphones, and these are our BEST cheap wireless over-ear noise cancelling headphones under $100 for 2026. As a professional audio engineer and expert headphone reviewer with over 10 years of experience, along with running the RecordingNow YouTube channel dedicated to reviewing headphones and earbuds with over 25,000+ subscribers and over 5 million views, this is my definitive list of the best bang for the buck.
The headphones we tested for this list include:
- CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro
- JBL Tune 720BT
- JBL Tune 730BT
- JBL Tune 770NC
- JLab JBuds Lux ANC
- Sennheiser Accentum
- Sony WH-CH720N
- Soundcore Space One
- Anker Soundcore Q30
This article will cover the following categories:
- Best Comfort
- Best for Working Out
- Best Headphones for Bass
- Best for Flying and Travel
- Best Noise Cancelling Performance
- Best Sound Quality
- Best Overall Value
These headphones are ALL wireless headphones which we’ve reviewed and thoroughly tested individually on the website for hundreds of hours in total. You can read our review for each headphone inside the individual product boxes below.
We bought EVERYTHING we tested in this article with our own money.
Best Comfort: Sony WH-CH720N
The Sony WH-CH720N is the lightest wireless over-ear noise cancelling headphone we’ve tested at just 186.4 grams.
Combine that with one of the most relaxed clamping forces out of the headphones we tested, and it’s easy to forget you’re even wearing the Sony WH-CH720N.
The earcup diameter is also on the larger side, with decent depth for the interior earcup space, so my ears are barely touching the fabric inside.
Overall, this was one of the easiest awards to give out.
The runner-ups for comfort would be both the Soundcore Space One and Soundcore Q30, which both weigh over 260+ grams to the Sony’s 186.4 grams, for reference.
Read the FULL Review + EQ Settings: Sony WH-CH720N Review
Best for Working Out: JBL Tune 770NC
Although the Sony WH-CH720N wins on supreme lightweight comfort, the JBL Tune 770NC is arguably better for working out and avid gym-goers.
The main reasons for me is that the JBL has stronger clamping force leading to a more secure fit, one of the best bass responses in this price range, and stronger active noise cancelling than the Sony’s.
That said, the JBL can be a bit uncomfortable and has pretty small diameter earcups, so if you’d prefer a more relaxed headphone for working out, the Sony WH-CH720N would be my second choice for this category.
Read the FULL Review + EQ Settings: JBL Tune 770NC Review
Best Headphones for Bass: CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro
This was a close one between the CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro and the JBL Tune 770NC, with the CMF ultimately winning out.
The bass on both of these headphones is easily the most satisfying of the ones we tested, but the CMF edges out the JBL due to its LDAC hi-res codec support and slightly higher quality drivers.
One of the practical advantages of LDAC is that it tends to tighten up bass response and sound less loose than standard AAC or SBC codecs.
I do prefer both headphones with a touch of EQ to tighten things up further, and you can check my EQ settings linked in each individual review.
The rest of the headphones we tested either were lacking in sub-bass extension and quantity, or were simply too boomy and uncontrolled to enjoy.
Read the FULL Review + EQ Settings: CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro Review
Best for Flying and Travel: Soundcore Space One
When I’m judging a headphone to be used for travel and flying, my top two priorities are its active noise cancelling performance and comfort, in that order.
The one headphone that had the strongest combination of active noise cancelling and comfort is the Soundcore Space One, followed by the cheaper Soundcore Q30.
Both Soundcore headphones are equally comfortable, coming second only to the Sony WH-CH720N, but they both have the Sony beat in the noise cancelling department.
Between the Space One and Q30, the Space One has the superior noise cancelling, giving it the crown.
Read the FULL Review: Soundcore Space One Review
Best Noise Cancelling Performance: Soundcore Space One
The Soundcore Space One is the best active noise cancelling performance that I’ve tested under $100.
Most of the sub-$100 headphones we tested have below average noise cancelling for the class, which is to be expected at this budget range.
But the Soundcore Space One is slightly above average in noise cancelling for the class as a whole, which is seriously impressive for the price.
This is what also makes the Space One our choice for flights, as the active noise cancelling is tuned quite well for jet engines and airplanes.
Runner-ups for active noise cancelling performance would be a tie between the Soundcore Q30 and CMF Headphone Pro.
Read the FULL Review: Soundcore Space One Review
Best Sound Quality: CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro
Here at RecordingNOW, we tend to have an audiophile emphasis when it comes to sound quality, having reviewed wireless headphones upwards of $500, to $1,000, and even $2,000.
Believe me when I say that the CMF Headphone Pro is delivering sound quality that I didn’t think was possible at under $100, and even under $70 on sale.
Although I was somewhat impressed by some of the headphones in our ultra budget roundup under $50, none of those hold a candle to what the CMF Headphone Pro can do for a bit more money.
One unique feature of the CMF Headphone Pro is having hi-res LDAC support, delivering higher bitrate source quality that is typically reserved for much more expensive headphones.
The stock tuning is quite V-shaped, but with a touch of EQ (like in my settings) and LDAC activated, the CMF Headphone Pro is seriously impressive.
The runner-ups for sound quality are a tie between the Sennheiser Accentum and JBL Tune 770NC, followed by the Sony WH-CH720N which has the most appealing stock tuning of all.
Read the FULL Review + EQ Settings: CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro Review
Best Overall Value: CMF by Nothing Headphone Pro
Although I’ve gushed about the CMF Headphone Pro’s bass response and sound quality above, it actually didn’t do too bad in the active noise cancelling department either, tying with the Soundcore Q30.
And even though it weighed in at the heaviest 280.8 grams, the comfort is still decent due to nice earcup space and plush cushions.
Did I mention that the battery life is also the best we tested of this group at 50 hours with ANC on, and a whopping 100 hours with ANC off?
In short, the CMF Headphone Pro has very little to no weaknesses for the price bracket it competes in.
These would be my personal choice under $100 currently, and you can watch the full review on YouTube if you’d like to learn more.
See our Full CMF by Nothing Headpone Pro Review on YouTube below
“Best Overall” Runner Up: Anker Soundcore Q30
In a bit of a twist, the Soundcore Q30 scored higher than the more expensive Soundcore Space One on our V2.0 scoring system.
It helps that the Q30 can be found for under $60, while the Space One is just under $100, making the Q30 a stellar value.
Although the Soundcore Q30 didn’t win any individual categories outright, it was quite competitive in every category while having superior sound quality to the more expensive Space One.
The Q30 had the second-highest cumulative score behind the CMF Headphone Pro, and I do agree with this.
Read the FULL Review: Anker Soundcore Q30 Review
How We Tested and Our Methodology
RecordingNOW.com is a 100% independent publisher with over 10 years of experience testing and reviewing consumer electronics and headphones.
We currently purchase all of the products we test with our own money, and are not paid by any company or manufacturer to influence our opinions or decisions.
After purchasing the product, we conduct up to hundreds of hours of detailed hands-on testing in a controlled, acoustically-treated environment. Noise cancelling performance is tested in the real-world, primarily on airplane flights, coffee shops, and walking around large metropolitan city environments.
ODi Productions is our resident expert and author of this article, with 10 years of experience as a professional music producer, tech journalist, and audiophile.
Post Update History
- August 2026: Original publication date.
Conclusion
After having reviewed over 60+ pairs of wireless headphones and earbuds to date, I was pleasantly surprised by the hidden gems found for under $100.
In our roundup of the best wireless headphones under $50, there were a couple standouts that performed above expectation, but I think this sub-$100 class is even more impressive.
The biggest upgrade going from the $50 to $100 class is definitely sound quality, followed by noise cancelling and build quality.
Most of the $100 headphones sounded much better than all of the $50 headphones for sound quality.
I think the CMF Headphone Pro is a dark horse compared to the more popular JBL, Sony, and Soundcore headphones, and could even compete with sub-$200 headphones.
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