Technologies
Best Clip-On Earbuds for 2025
Earbuds with a clip-on design that makes them look a little like clip-on earrings are the latest trend in the earbuds. Here are my favorite current models.
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What to consider
Budget
Know how much you want to spend before you start researching, because the high end is frequently above $150.
Sound quality
Some of the cheaper clip-on earbuds don’t sound all that good and tend to distort at higher volumes. You may have to pay a little more to get better sound quality.
Comfort
Clip-on earbuds tend to offer a secure fit but their comfort level varies. Having a flexible design to the clip (with some give to it) is important.
Durability
You want clip-on on buds that hold up well over time, so look for models that we note have sturdy build quality and a good water-resistance rating.
Return policy
Be careful where you buy from, so if you aren’t happy with your purchase you can try something else.
Wireless earbuds come in different shapes and sizes, with clip-on buds being the latest style to get some traction in the marketplace. Several affordable clip-on earbuds quietly appeared on Amazon a couple of years ago but Bose’s release of its Ultra Open Earbuds, which I called «daringly different» in my review, really brought a lot of attention to this style of earbuds, which do resemble clip-on earrings in some ways. Currently, all clip-on buds feature an open design, which means they don’t have silicone ear tips that you jam in your ears. Open earbuds let you hear your surroundings, which is great for runners and cyclists, and the clip-on design helps the buds stay securely attached to your ears. I’ve tested all the earbuds on this list and fully reviewed some of them.
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Best clip-on earbuds of 2025
Pros
- Innovative clip-on fit
- Comfortable to wear
- Very good sound for open earbuds
- Decent voice-calling performance
Cons
- Expensive
- Look may not appeal to everyone
- Not great for noisy environments
The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds have one of the most unusual designs of any earbuds I’ve tested in the past several years. They literally clip onto the side of your ears, kind of like earrings, and their open design has micro speakers that fire sound into your ears while still being able to hear what’s happening around you. At $299, they’re somewhat overpriced but otherwise there’s a lot to like about them, including a surprisingly comfortable, secure fit and very good sound quality for open buds.
Pros
- Good sound for clip-on open earbuds
- Comfortable, secure fit
- Good battery life
- Wireless charging
Cons
- Pricey
- Voice-calling performance could be a little better
The well-designed OpenDots One are among the best open earbuds out there right now. While they don’t sound quite as good as the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, they’re pretty close and fit my ears slightly better and have better battery life. Like the Ultra Open Earbuds, which list for $299 but are currently on sale for $249, they’re overpriced, but at least they cost less than the Bose and their case does have wireless charging. Read review.
Pros
- Good sound quality for clip-on earbuds
- Nicely-designed with comfortable, secure fit (flexible joint)
- Good voice-calling performance
Cons
- Somewhat pricey
The Soundcore by AeroClip are Anker’s current flagship clip-on earbuds. Not only do I like their design — they have a premium look and feel — but they’re comfortable to wear and feature very good sound for clip-on buds. Equipped with 12mm drivers, they serve up ample bass with good volume and decent clarity. The buds sound fuller and more open than many cheaper clip-on buds and are among the better sounding open earbuds I’ve tried (Android users should note that they have support for Sony’s high-quality LDAC audio codec). I also thought they worked well for making calls. For the most part, callers said they could hear me clearly — even in noisier environments like the streets of New York City (Anker says they have 4 beamforming mics, wind-blocking meshes and advanced AI). Battery life is rated at up to 8 hours at moderate volume levels and the buds are IPX4 sweat- and water-resistant (they’re splash-proof). Their only drawback is their somewhat high price tag.
Pros
- Affordable
- Comfortable, secure fit
- Decent sound
- Good battery life
Cons
- Somewhat generic design
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 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 but don’t expect business-class performance.
Pros
- Comfortable, secure fit
- Very good sound for clip-on open earbuds
- Active noise canceling
- Spatial audio with head tracking
- Heart-rate and blood oxygen detection
Cons
- Noise canceling isn’t all that effective
- Touch controls are a little finicky
Bose’s Ultra Open Earbuds may be the best-sounding and most comfortable clip-on earbuds. But they list for $299. In contrast, Edifier’s new LolliClip buds cost $130 and their sound is pretty close to what you get with the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds — and they’re almost as comfortable to wear while fitting my ears securely. They also have some features the Bose buds don’t have, including active noise canceling (it’s not all that effective but you do sense it muffling some noise in the lower frequencies), a heart-rate monitor, blood oxygen sensor and spatial audio with head-tracking. There’s also a low-latency mode for gaming and they support the LDAC audio codec for Android users.
The buds have a battery life rating of up to 6 hours with noise canceling on and 9 hours with it off at moderate volume levels. As for water-resistance, their IP56 rating means they can withstand a sustained spray of water and they’re also dust-resistant. Overall, I was impressed with the sound quality. It’s not going to be quite as good as what you get with noise-isolating earbuds with silicone ear tips that you jam in your ears, but for open buds it’s quite good. With these type of buds, which allow you to hear the outside world for safety reasons, the bass tends to be a little weak. But the LolliClip buds output ample bass (you have a few EQ settings to choose from, including a bass boost mode) and offer decent clarity. Note that you will have to play around with the fit of the buds on your ears to optimize the sound quality — a little adjustment can make a significant difference. Voice-calling performance was good but not exceptionally so.
My only gripe is with the touch controls. They’re a little finicky (you have to figure out just what is the touch zone), but you do get several customization options in the Edifier ConneX companion app.
Pros
- Improved sound quality with better bass and clarity
- More comfortable fit (flexible joint)
- Physical control buttons
Cons
- Battery life could be a little better
In early 2024, Anker released its Soundcore C30i clip-on buds. Not only didn’t they sound all that good (they distorted at higher volumes and were a little bass shy), but they weren’t all that comfortable to wear. The C40i, which came out in October of 2024, are a different story. Equipped with a flexible joint (the C30i didn’t have that), they’re significantly better in terms of fit and sound quality, though the step-up Soundcore AeroClip sounds fuller and more open. They also come with attachable ear grips, although I didn’t use them because they fit my ears securely without adding them.
I liked the C40i’s design and appreciated that they’re equipped with physical control buttons, which makes skipping tracks forward or taking calls easier when you’re running with the buds (they’re suitable for running and biking). While they’re not waterproof or dust-resistant, they’re IPX4 splash-proof and their charging case is reasonably compact. While they don’t sound as good or offer as good voice-calling performance as Anker’s step-up Soundcore AeroClip buds, they’re among the best-sounding clip-on earbuds that cost less than $100. Their voice-calling performance is pretty decent but not exceptionally good.
Factors to consider when buying clip-on earbuds
Budget
Before anything else, you’ll want to figure out how much you’re willing to spend on new clip-on buds. The quality of value-priced earbuds and headphones continues to improve, so you can find decent clip-on buds for less than $50. The premium models, which offer better build quality and performance, tend to cost more than $100 and sometimes more than $150.
Sound quality
All the clip-on earbuds I’ve tried have an open design with the part of the bud that contains the speaker driver resting over your ear canals, firing sound into them. How you attach the buds to your ears will impact sound quality so you’ll have to play around with their placement to optimize comfort and sound quality. Some of the cheaper models don’t sound all that good and tend to distort at higher volumes. You may have to pay a little more to get better sound quality.
Fit and comfort
Clip-on earbuds tend to offer a secure fit but their comfort level varies. Having a flexible joint (with some give to it) is important. Also, note that you typically have to make some adjustments when clipping the bud to your ear, placing it higher or lower on the side of your ear to optimize comfort levels as well as sound quality.
Durability
You want clip-on on buds that hold up well over time, so look for models that we note have sturdy build quality and a good water-resistance rating.
Return policy
It’s critical to buy your clip-on buds at a retailer that has a good return policy in case you have buyer’s remorse. Some people who are having trouble deciding between two models sometimes buy both, try them out for a few days and then return one.
How we test clip-on earbuds
We test true-wireless earbuds based on five key criteria, comparing similarly styled and priced models. These criteria are design, sound quality, features, voice-calling performance and value.
- Design: We assess not only how comfortable the earbuds fit (ergonomics) but their build quality and how well the controls are implemented. We also look at water- and dust-resistance ratings.
- Sound quality: We evaluate sound quality by listening to a set playlist of music tracks and comparing the earbuds to top competing products in their price range. Sonic traits such as bass definition, clarity, dynamic range and how natural the headphones sound are key factors in our assessment.
- Features: Some great-sounding earbuds aren’t loaded with features but we do take into account extra features. These include everything from noise-canceling and transparency modes (ambient sound mode) to special sound modes to ear-detection sensors that automatically pause your music when you take the headphones off your ears.
- Voice-calling: When we test voice-calling performance, we make calls on the noisy streets of New York and evaluate how well the earbuds reduce background noise and how clearly callers can hear your voice.
- Overall value: We determine value after evaluating the strength of the earbuds against all these criteria and what the buds are able to deliver compared to other models in their price class.
Other sports wireless earbuds we tested
Baseus Eli Sport 1: The Eli Sport 1 can be had for about $80 (currently $41 on a discount). While they may not sound quite as good as some of the premium open earbuds out there — there can be a touch of distortion at higher volumes with bass-heavy tracks — they sound quite decent for their modest price and I found them comfortable to wear. They look more premium than their price would indicate. They have 16.2mm drivers, are IPX4 splash-proof and are rated for up to 7.5 hours of battery life at moderate volume levels.
Samsung Galaxy Buds FE: Carrying a list price of about $100, Samsung’s 2023 Galaxy Buds FE feature a single driver (Samsung isn’t saying what size it is), three mics on each earbud and active noise canceling. They charge in a case that’s the same size and shape as what you currently get with all of Samsung’s latest Galaxy Buds, including the Galaxy Buds 2 and Galaxy Buds 2 Pro. And they look a lot like an updated version of Samsung’s discontinued Galaxy Buds Plus earbuds, which also came with a set of swappable fins that helped create a secure, comfortable fit. Like those buds, the Galaxy Buds FE are sweat-resistant with an IPX2 water-resistance rating that protects against splashes.
Bose Frames (Tempo) (Out of Stock): The Bose Frames are one of those products you have to try to fully appreciate — or dismiss. The concept is that you’re getting a decent pair of sunglasses with a pair of headphones that don’t actually go in your ears. Rather, integrated micro speakers in each arm direct a beam of sound to your ears. That design could be appealing to people who don’t like having headphones in or on their ears and also offers a degree of safety for runners and bikers who want their ears open to the world.
Jabra Elite 8 Active: Equipped with six microphones instead of four, slightly improved adaptive noise canceling and wind-reduction technology along with a higher durability rating, the Elite 8 Active looks, feels and performs like a modestly upgraded version of the Elite 7 Pro and Elite 7 Active. Jabra is billing them as the «world’s toughest earbuds» and based on our tests (they survived several drops without a scratch), that may very well be true.
Soundpeats Air3 Deluxe HS: 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 5 hours at moderate volume levels, and these are IPX4 splash-proof.
Clip-on earbuds FAQ
Technologies
Amazon Unveils AI-Using Warehouse Robot With Human-Like Sense of Touch
Amazon’s new Vulcan robot uses physical AI to carefully stow and pick everything from socks to fragile electronics at fulfillment centers.
Amazon’s new Vulcan fulfillment center robot doesn’t look humanoid, but it has some very human characteristics, like the ability to «feel» the items it’s handling.
Amazon introduced Vulcan at its Delivering the Future event in Germany on May 7.
«Built on key advances in robotics, engineering, and physical AI, Vulcan is our first robot with a sense of touch,» the company said in a statement. The event is a showcase for Amazon’s technology innovations.
Vulcan can stow or pick items from the fabric-covered pods Amazon uses for inventory storage. It has a human–like finesse when handling objects. Force feedback sensors help the robot avoid damaging the merchandise.
A suction cup and camera system comes into play when Vulcan is pulling items out of bins.
«While the suction cup grabs it, the camera watches to make sure it took the right thing and only the right thing, avoiding what our engineers call the risk of ‘co-extracting non-target items,'» Amazon said.
Vulcan is in place at fulfillment centers in Spokane, Wash. and Hamburg, Germany. It’s primarily tasked with reaching items stored low that require a human to bend down, or items stored up high that require an employee to use a stepladder.
The rise of robots in traditionally human-powered workplaces can be a sensitive subject. Amazon makes it clear it sees Vulcan as an assistant to its employees rather than a replacement for them.
Vulcan can handle 75% of the types of items stocked at the fulfillment centers. It’s designed to know which ones it can move and which ones it needs to ask for human help for — like a robot-human tag team.
The robot uses a physical AI system that includes «algorithms for identifying which items Vulcan can or can’t handle, finding space within bins, identifying tubes of toothpaste and boxes of paper clips and much more.» The AI was trained on everything from socks to electronics and continues to learn as the robot works.
Humans and robots can effectively coexist in distribution centers, said logistics and operations researchers Rene de Koster of Erasmus University in the Netherlands and Debjit Roy of the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
«Right now, at least, distribution center automation with people in the mix is often a more efficient, flexible and cost-effective bet than a completely automated center,» the team said last year in a summary of their research for the Harvard Business Review.
Robots have long been part of Amazon’s operations with over 750,000 robots deployed in its fulfillment centers, the company said.
Vulcan will roll out to more centers in Europe and the US over the next couple of years, increasing the chances of your future Amazon shipments having Vulcan’s unseen «fingerprints» on them.
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Xbox Handheld Console Seemingly Glimpsed in New Asus Leak
Rumors of a handheld gaming device made by Asus in collaboration with Xbox got a shot in the arm after an alleged prototype surfaced in leaked photos.
Remember those rumors about an Xbox-branded handheld gaming machine? While nothing’s official yet, things are looking a bit more concrete after a big new leak from the FCC.
On Wednesday, images surfaced online from the FCC certification of unannounced new handhelds supposedly on the way from Asus, specifically the successors to its ROG Ally handheld PC, as reported earlier by Engadget. Microsoft’s plans for an Xbox handheld were previously speculated to involve partnering with another company, and now it appears that the ROG Ally 2 could boast an Xbox-branded model, with some different hardware under the hood.
Originally launched in 2023, the Ally is a handheld gaming machine running Windows that allows PC games to be played on the go. It’s emerged as one of the main competitors to Valve’s Steam Deck, which kickstarted a new wave of interest in handheld PCs.
Based on the images circulating online, the Ally 2 appears to be a bit thicker than its predecessor, with grips on the side of the unit redesigned to more closely resemble traditional controller handles. Not much appears different with the Xbox model, aside from a branded Xbox button on the top left.
According to the leaked FCC filings, the Xbox version would run on an AMD 8-Core 36W Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor and 64GB or LPDDR5X memory, while the standard edition will boast an AMD 4-core 20W AMD Aeirth Plus chip with an unspecified amount of memory. Both models at this time feature 7-inch 120hz screens.
Aside from those hardware differences, the Xbox edition of the Ally 2 is expected to be differentiated by a greater integration with features like the Xbox Game Bar and services like Game Pass. As a Windows PC, the ROG Ally is already compatible with Game Pass for PC, so it remains to be seen what a deeper integration with the service will look like.
Xbox and Asus did not respond to requests for comment before publishing.
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