Anker makes so many value earbuds it’s hard to keep track of all of them. Released in early 2024, its Soundcore P40i buds are arguably the company’s best budget earbuds, with a comfortable fit (they come with six sizes of ear tips) and very solid performance for around $50. Not only do they have decent active noise canceling as well as a transparency mode, but they offer multipoint Bluetooth connectivity and respectable voice-calling capabilities. As far as sound goes, they’re billed as «bass heavy» earbuds, and indeed, they deliver pretty powerful bass, though it’s not boomy or muddy and there is ample detail. They just lean a little warm You can tweak the sound a bit in the sound profile, but I mainly stuck to the earbuds’ «signature sound,» which I thought worked well with a wide variety of music genres. Worth noting: They have a pretty wide sound stage and low-latency modes for movie watching and gaming.

As a bonus feature, the earbuds’ charging case converts into a stand for your smartphone when watching video. That’s a feature more earbuds cases should have. Equipped with wireless and USB-C charging, battery life is rated for up to 12 hours at moderate volume levels, but the number dips to more like 8 hours with noise canceling on. The buds are IPX5 splash-resistant (they can survive a sustained spray of water).

Available in four color options, the Solo Buds are missing some key features found in more premium buds, including a battery in their very compact charging case, ear-detection sensors and active noise canceling. But they get the fundamentals right. They’re lightweight and not only offer decent sound quality and strong battery life but very good voice-calling performance that rivals what you get with the company’s more expensive Studio Buds Plus.

Earfun is one of our go-to brands for value earbuds. Its Air Pro 4 buds aren’t a major upgrade over the earlier Air Pro 3s, but they do have a few enhancements that make them slightly better earbuds. (Note: Please clip the on-page coupon to receive the full 20% off at checkout.)

Earfun has moved from Qualcomm’s QCC3071 to the newer QCC3091 that supports aptX Lossless Audio for a select few Android devices. The buds also support Sony’s LDAC audio codec, which is available with more Android smartphones, and the AAC and SBC codecs.

Like their predecessor, the Air 4 Pro are lightweight and comfortable to wear — I got a good seal with the largest ear tip size — and they feature slightly improved noise canceling and sound quality along with better battery life (up to 11 hours with noise canceling off and 7.5 hours with it on, according to Earfun). While the default sound leans slightly warm with a touch of bass push, you can tweak the sound in Earfun’s companion app for iOS and Android, and I did think the sound measures up well to earbuds that cost twice as much.

As I said, these aren’t a big upgrade over the Earfun Air 3 Pro, but once again Earfun has delivered a set of earbuds that deliver strong performance for their modest price. They also pack in a lot of features, including a wireless charging case and multipoint Bluetooth pairing (they’re equipped with Bluetooth 4 and LE Audio). I do think the voice-calling performance is slightly improved, but the background noise reduction during calls isn’t as good as what you get with higher-end earbuds like Apple’s AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2, as well as Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. I also thought their touch controls could work a little better than they do.

Like Earfun, QCY makes a variety of budget earbuds and headphones that deliver good bang for your buck. The MeloBuds Pro looks a little generic, but they’re lightweight, comfortable, and sound suitable for what they cost, offering decent clarity and well-balanced audio (you can tweak their sound profile with the EQ settings in the QCY companion app). Also, their noise-canceling and voice-calling performance is better than average for sub-$50 earbuds. And finally, they have ear-detection sensors, multipoint Bluetooth pairing, a low-latency gaming mode and support for Sony’s high-quality LDAC audio codec (many Android devices support LDAC).

Battery life is rated at up to 7.5 hours at moderate volumes with noise canceling on, though it dips to around 4.5 hours if you’re using the LDAC codec for streaming over Bluetooth. Sweat-resistant and splash-proof with an IPX5 rating, the QCY MeloBuds Pro may not do anything exceptionally well — and I found their touch controls a bit finicky — but they’re overall a good value, especially when they go on sale for closer to $40.

Released in 2024, the Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC earbuds carry a lower list price than 2022’s Liberty 4 buds and are arguably better. They have improved noise canceling and better sound quality, along with support for the LDAC audio codec for devices that support it. (Many Android smartphones do, and in theory, it offers slightly improved sound quality when paired with a music streaming service that offers high-res tracks.) They’re lightweight buds that should fit most ears comfortably with four sizes of ear tips to choose from. 

The Liberty 4 NC buds have single custom drivers compared to the Liberty 4’s dynamic dual drivers — and a completely different case design — but I thought they delivered a more pleasant sound than the Liberty 4s. Their treble is a little smoother and they feature strong bass performance. They came across as fairly open, with a reasonably wide soundstage. You can tweak the sound profile in the companion app for iOS and Android. 

The buds come in several color options and are IPX4 splash-proof, so they’re suitable for running and gym use. They feature excellent battery life — up to 10 hours on a single charge at moderate volume levels — and there’s also a transparency mode that lets ambient sound in and sounds pretty natural with only a very faint audible hiss. While the noise canceling is an improvement over the Liberty 4’s and is effective, it falls a bit short of what you get from Bose’s and Sony’s premium ANC earbuds. 

Like the Liberty 4, the earbuds have six integrated mics for noise canceling and making calls, and callers said they thought the buds did a pretty good job of reducing background noise, with my voice coming through relatively clearly. They’re an all-around good-performing set of buds for the money, and they offer a strong feature set, including ear-detection sensors and wireless charging.

What makes these Soundpeats Air3 Deluxe HS buds special is that they sound surprisingly good for open earbuds — they’re pretty close to what you get from Apple’s AirPods 3 for sound. On top of that, they support Sony’s LDAC audio codec for devices that offer it. Not too many cheap open earbuds have good sound but these Soundpeats have good bass response and clarity. They’re also good for making calls and have a low-latency gaming mode. Battery life is rated at five hours at moderate volume levels, and these are IPX4 splash-proof.

These are listed for $60 but are currently on sale with a 25% on-page coupon, that’ll bring your total down to around $35. This is a very good deal if you’re looking for open-style earbuds.

Amazon’s 2023 Echo Buds impressed me in a few ways that I wasn’t expecting. For starters, they sound good for inexpensive open earbuds, delivering decent clarity and ample bass. But they also have a robust feature set, including multipoint Bluetooth pairing, hands-free Alexa and ear-detection sensors that pause your audio when you take one or both buds out of your ears. 

Their sound falls short of that of Apple’s AirPods 4, which deliver better bass performance and overall fuller, cleaner sound (they’re better at handling more complicated music tracks with a lot of instruments playing at the same time). But the AirPods 4, even the entry-level model ($129), cost significantly more.

In short, if you’re looking for open earbuds — or «semi-open» as these types of earbuds are sometimes called — the Echo Buds are good value at their $50 list price and even easier to recommend when they go on sale for $30.

Baseus is known for its value earbuds, power banks and charging products. While its Bowie MC1 aren’t in the same league as Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds, they cost around a sixth of the price and sound pretty decent for this style of of clip-on earbuds, particularly with less demanding tracks that don’t feature heavy bass and a lot of instruments playing at the same time. On Amazon, you’ll find clip-on buds with a similar design, including the Tozo OpenEarRing ($30) and Amazfit Up ($50), so they’re a little generic. But I found the sound quality to be slightly better many competing clip-on value buds. I also liked that they have a single physical control button on each bud for controlling playback and adjusting volume levels.

Battery life is rated for up to 9 hours at moderate volume levels, which is good, but expect to get les than that because you do tend to have to listen to open earbuds at higher volumes, especially in noisier environments. With an IP57 certification, the buds are splash-proof and dust-proof, making them suitable for runners and bikers. Voice-calling capabilities are also decent though don’t expect business-class performance.

The Soundcore Sport X20 has some nice upgrades over Anker’s original Soundcore X10 earbuds. They include an improved design, adaptive noise canceling, superior battery life, slightly better sound and multipoint Bluetooth pairing. Like the previous model, these have an interesting design with rotating swiveling ear hooks. However, they don’t swivel as much as the X10’s ear hooks, which is a good thing (they stayed on my ears very securely). I also liked that the charging case has a smaller footprint than a lot of buds with ear hooks.

Fully waterproof and dust-proof with an IP68 rating, the X20 have slightly larger drivers than the X10 (11mm instead of 10mm). As long as you get a tight seal from the included ear tips (you get 5 sizes), they’re able to deliver good sound with punchy bass and good detail. They lack a bit of clarity, particularly at higher volumes (there was a touch of distortion), and the noise canceling isn’t as good as Sony or Bose’s noise canceling. But the buds are affordable and a good value overall. As for battery life, it’s rated at up to 12 hours with noise canceling off and 7 hours with it on. Voice-calling performance is also decent thought not exceptionally good.

Anker’s Soundcore AeroFit 2 open earbuds have been completely redesigned and look quite different from the original AeroFit buds, which also listed for $100. The second-gen Aerfit are not only more comfortable but look sleeker, sound significantly better and offer all-around improvements. The buds aren’t as light as the Shokz OpenFit 2 buds and don’t sound quite as good, but they cost quite a bit less and offer good all-around performance with augmented bass response. Available in multiple colors, they’re a good option for those looking for ear-hook style open earbuds with a fairly premium design and good sound quality without the high price tag of top-end models.