Best USB-C headphones

Now that more and more companies are jumping on the bandwagon of removing their headphone jack, the artificial market of alternative audio solutions is now in chaos. What’s good? What’s bad? How do you know? Apple would want you to grab a pair of Beats wireless headphones, but there’s another solution you might not be aware of: USB-C wired headphones. While this market segment is now basically dead—there are some options out there. It’s just that they’re not really very good quite yet.

But I caution you: there just aren’t enough products currently available to offer a credible alternative to Bluetooth or traditional headphones. Despite how promising the tech is, USB-C wasn’t ready to replace the ubiquitous 3.5mm headphone jack—and there’s almost nothing to meet the demand for the new product category. Not to belabor the point, but we saw almost no new releases for USB-C headphones in 2019, save for proprietary phone earbuds, and things really haven’t changed since. That’s a pretty stark reminder that USB-C headphones just aren’t getting the releases they need in order to be a credible product category.

Editor’s note: this post was updated on Arpil 13, 2022, to include the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 and update the formatting.

Related: USB-C headphones are still bad years later

Why is the Shure AONIC 50 the best USB-C headphones?

It took a few years, but finally, finally there’s an option for this list that doesn’t suck out loud. Unfortunately, at $399, they’re also one of the most expensive headphones we recommend on this site.

Currently, the best USB-C headphones are the Shure AONIC 50. While they’re not the traditional USB-C headphones you were expecting, they do allow passthrough listening via the beleaguered connector—technically qualifying this headset for “USB-C headphone” status. As they’re primarily Bluetooth headphones that have a USB-C listening option for those that want it, you’re not locked into the wired listening if you want to swap sources. Only the 1More Dual Driver ANC Pro and some now-outdated Sony headphones offer this option.

Taken on their own merits, the Shure AONIC 50 are excellent noise-cancelling headphones, worthy of anyone’s attention as a set of all-around performers. Unfortunately, they are also just shy of $400USD—making them by far the most expensive option on this list.

How good is the noise canceling on the Bowers & Wilkins PX7?

The Bowers & Wilkins PX7 has excellent active noise cancelling and can isolate well too, should you choose to turn ANC off for a moment. The ear pads and headband clamping force do a great job of blocking out incidental sounds, while the ANC renders low-frequencies one-half to one-eighth as loud as they’d sound without the headphones on.

You can use the USB-C charging port for passthrough audio, rely on the old-fashioned 3.5mm audio port, or connect over Bluetooth with a host of streaming options (SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX Adaptive). We love the many ways to connect the PX7, but if you don’t like bass, this may not be the headset for you. It amplifies bass notes to a silly degree, making them sound twice as loud as mids. This means it may be hard to hear the instrumental detail of your music.

See: The best noise cancelling headphones

Still, there are other redeeming qualities like the nearly 33-hour battery life and efficient fast charging: 15 minutes yields 5 hours of playtime. If you like the look of the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 and have $400 USD to drop, it’s one of the best USB-C headphones on the market.

The 1More Dual Driver ANC Pro allows USB-C listening

While this is primarily a Bluetooth neckband-style set of earphones, the 1More Dual Driver ANC Pro allows USB-C passthrough listening as well. Sure it’s cumbersome, but it works.

It seems like the latest additions to this list are headphones with multiple input options, and it seems like that’s how the future is going to shake out. It’s pretty convenient that Bluetooth headphones alerady have internal amplification and signal decoding hardware, so why not spend a few more cents and let it use USB-C too? Both Shure and 1More might not have a lockdown on the industry, but they’re big enough movers that other companies may start to take note.

Be sure to check out the AiAiAi TMA-2 MFG4

If you’re okay with the on-ear design, the AiAiAi TMA-2 MFG4 is currently the second-best USB-C headphones on the market. It’s a thin field, but these headphones are solid contenders, if a bit pricey. The USB-C audio category is still developing painfully slowly, but these also happen to have a DAC integrated right into the cable. That may seem like a given with a USB accessory, but the category is such a trainwreck that I have to point that out.

As far as the headphones go, the AiAiAi TMA-2 MFG4 sound surprisingly decent, and the totally-modular design lends itself well to tinkerers and klutzes alike, as you can replace any part of the headphones should they break (or displease you). Personally, I could go for bigger pads: the thin ones included with the standard headphones just don’t do it for me.

The stock speaker elements are very straightforward and work quite well. The bass isn’t crazily-overdone on the TMA-2 MFG4 like it is on many consumer headphones, meaning your music will sound a lot clearer than you might be used to if you have a pair of Beats or similar cans. However, that’s all assuming you can get a good seal on your head. While it may sound a little obvious to say, on-ear headphones aren’t really known to be predictable in how well they isolate you from the world around you. If you can’t hear the bass, the headphones probably aren’t fitting well. You need a fairly even frequency response (all notes at roughly the same possible max loudness) to hear everything in your tunes, so when there’s a crazy deviation, audio quality drops.

If you want USB-C audio over Bluetooth, the TMA-2 MFG4 is currently the set of headphones to get. They aren’t amazing, they cost $150, and they don’t offer any killer features. However, they work well—without an app—on both Android and Windows. That’s enough to be the king of the USB-C hill currently.

The Master & Dynamic USB-C to 3.5mm Audio Cable turns any headset into a USB-C headset

There’s not much to say about this other than it connects to any 3.5mm port on a pair of headphones and terminates in a USB-C connector. This allows you to take your favorite pair of headphones and plug it directly into your phone’s USB-C input.

The cable is 1.25 meters long and works on all USB-C ports, including the one found on Apple’s iPad. It’s a fair bit pricy at $49 USD but if you want a cable with solid construction, this is a good pick with a control module.

The Razer Hammerhead ANC earbuds are worth checking out as well

Razer is most known for its gaming peripherals, but the company also has a smartphone that has, wouldn’t you know it, no headphone jack. Luckily, Razer already has a pretty solid option for USB Type-C earbuds dubbed the Hammerhead ANC. While the active noise cancelling isn’t Bose-level quality, it’s not bad at all especially when you pair that with the Comply memory foam ear tips that come in the box. If you’re looking to block out the world on your commute, these will get the job done.

They also have a good build with a braided fabric cable that avoids getting knotted too easily and decent sound quality that lets you hear the bass in your songs without over-emphasizing the lower notes. Overall, they’re a great option at under $100, but there is a caveat. The Razer logo on each earbud glows green when you plug them into your phone, which we found to be a bit much. But if you’re into that, or don’t really care, then these are the best option you have when it comes to USB Type-C earbuds. Just make sure your phone is compatible first.

The best USB-C headphones: Notable mentions

• Google Dongle: If you already have a pair of in-ears that you love and aren’t ready to give up on the 3.5mm connector just yet, then the Google Dongle isn’t a bad option at only $12. It lets you connect your headphones of choice with the only downside being that, well: it’s a stupid dongle.
• Shure RMCE-USB Earphone Communication Cable with Integrated DAC/Amp: If you’ve already invested money into something in Shure’s line-up then it’s also worth checking out their (RMCE-USB) terminating in MMCX connectors that can turn its entire lineup of in-ear monitors into USB-C powerhouses that will undoubtedly mop the floor with the existing pack performance-wise. Coming in at $99, this can make the following IEMs USB-C enabled:
  • Shure SE215
  • Shure SE315
  • Shure SE425
  • Shure SE535
  • Shure SE846
• If you own a Samsung Galaxy Note 10 or Note 10 Plus, there are USB-C earbuds included in the case. They seem to be USB-C versions of the S10 Plus’ earbuds.

Do not buy anything else

I’m serious: don’t. It’s not that all the models are bad, but buying something for the sake of buying it is unwise when better investments exist. Not everyone likes in-ears (myself included), and you’re 100% out of luck if you want on-ears or over-ears. If you don’t want USB-C in-ears for your jack-less phone, you need to grab something Bluetooth. And I hate Bluetooth headphones. All the other options on the market currently—yes, all of them—suffer from one of our extremely few and reasonable dealbreakers.

Amazon dreck

Don’t believe me? Let’s run down the list of the other Amazon dreck we tested.

1. The Viotek Aqua is well-built and a credible set of in-ears. Unfortunately, the USB housing is so big you can’t use a phone case, and while the tip options are plentiful and otherwise laudable, they made my ear canals burn—as in a chemical burn. Whether or not that was a fluke, I can’t recommend them.
2. Next up was the Smart&Cool 3D Surround. Much like the Viotek option, these have a surprisingly decent build quality. The nozzles on these in-ears were also big enough to cause my ear problems. Never in my 6+ years of reviewing consumer audio products has this happened, and the Smart & Cool is easily the most painful set of in-ears I have ever used.
3. The Trilink USB Type C headphones don’t work with the Galaxy S8 or Pixel 2, so those are gone.
4. We also had to rule out the Sunwe Type C Headphone for compatibility issues.
5. Amazon only had two other models of the crappiest personal audio design ever: the outside-the-ear earbud. Those suck and we’re not considering them.
6. I was heartened to see that Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi had an entry into this category, but then I ran into a brick wall on availability. It’s not that you can’t or shouldn’t buy these headphones—but I have serious questions about the only vendors with stock at the moment. Maybe an Amazon retailer will have them by the holidays, but as of right now, the most reputable storefront with these in-ears is AliExpress.
7. Most of the third-party dongles don’t have a properly-functioning DAC, so they won’t work with modern phones. Just get the Google Dongle.

The only other options we could find that was remotely credible come standard with HTC phones: HTC USonic Adaptive Audio. Don’t worry, I got my hands on those, too. They don’t work with non-HTC devices (minus the Huawei Mate 10… for some reason), and even worse: the phones also block the use of many 3.5mm conversion dongles through their use of a proprietary standard. That’s a needlessly antagonistic level of baloney that we’re not going to reward on this site as long as I have a say in the matter, so it’s really a shame that they’re probably the best mix of cost and performance on this list.

The USonic Adaptive Audio work fine enough—great, even—as we got to test them out with the HTC U11, but the only sore spot is the crappy mic. If you’re using them with an HTC phone, the sound is customizable to a degree. Our own Kris Carlon was a fan, but also noted that the buds don’t sound the best out of the box. You’ll definitely want to use the companion USonic features to create a custom sound profile for you, but the process is dead-simple. If you get a new HTC phone, the USonic buds will treat you right.

I also took a look for Android-compatible USB-C DACs and amps… and the only one I found with the kind of love such a device deserves is the miniDSP IL-DSP. This dongle allows you to upload your own equalizer correction for your headphones, and connects to your phone via USB-C. Unfortunately, this is not a very accessible buy, as it requires you to buy not only the $99 dongle, but also a $199 measurement fixture to create the DSP profile of whatever headphones you’re using. While it’s an excellent little gadget—and I encourage anyone who’s looking to audio as a hobby to invest in DSP hardware—$300 total is a bit much for most people (especially in an economic downturn).

Will companies continue to produce USB-C headphones?

While we were optimistic about seeing a plethora of USB-C headphones at CES 2019, we were terribly disappointed. What’s worse is that now the lack of a headphone jack is also spreading to tablets, meaning we’ll soon need USB-C headphones for those as well. Unfortunately, CES 2020 has come, and we still haven’t seen any new headsets with a USB-C connector that consumers may want to buy. It seems like true wireless earbuds and Bluetooth headphones have completely eaten the market share that would have been occupied by USB-C headphones, and the already scant releases have dried up entirely. This seems to be a dead category.

How we select candidates for the best USB-C headphones

The absolute bare minimum criteria we use for our best lists isn’t very discerning, but most models failed this easy test:

1. The products have to be reasonably easy to buy for your average shopper
2. The products have to work on popular devices
3. The products cannot be discontinued, or cause physical harm

I’ll admit, selecting candidates was the hardest part. Not only are people simply not searching for this term yet, but the number of products available when I started this article was extremely scarce. They were so scarce that most of my results were initially just leaked products that weren’t even released yet. We did find a handful of products out there—some by reputable companies—but the line-up is still too thin for our liking.

How we test the best USB-C headphones

After buying whatever I could find, getting pre-orders in, and begging for help: we were able to build a corpus of candidates to assess. Considering the compatibility issues with USB-C at the moment, the first bar to clear was “the product has to work on a Pixel.” We thought that’d be an easy one to clear, but we were wrong. Despite my gut feeling that I should skip the low-end in-ears on Amazon, I forged ahead anyway… and wasn’t surprised when I got more enjoyment out of a bottle of low-shelf whiskey than the most of the bunch. Some models, as noted above, were actually painful to use.

From there, we assessed sound quality, features, and comfort in that order. Obviously, that’s not a scientific test, but we did have more than one person testing these things. My esteemed colleague Adam tested the Libratones, Kris Karlon tried out the HTC USonic, and I took care of the rest.

I used the handful of models that almost met our criteria, and found that I couldn’t recommend any of them in good conscience unless you absolutely can’t wait to get USB-C headphones. The listing of only these products on this list isn’t a mistake: they’re the only USB-C products that I’ll let carry SoundGuys’ recommendation. It’s so dire, that this article exists solely because it would be dishonest to not say the segment is currently incomplete.

Why you should trust SoundGuys

We make sure to perform objective tests to measure the battery life, isolation, and frequency response of the headphones and earbuds that we get our hands on. We want each of you to enjoy the earbuds that you choose, and none of our writers may benefit from directing readers to one product or another. For the sake of transparency, we have our full ethics statement available on the site.

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