The Best Running Headphones of 2021

Sony's WF-SP800N are formidable running earbuds offering a ton of features for their price point along with impressive sound, a strong and stable connection, and a sporty, water-resistant design—something Sony's flagship WF-1000XM3 earbuds don’t have.

Packing everything from transparency mode and light noise cancellation to location-based audio adjustment and Bluetooth 5.0, the SP800N are incredibly well-appointed for their cost—especially since you can often find them on sale. They're also highly tunable thanks to Sony's Headphones Connect app, including a five-band EQ with a separate bass control so you can easily pull back (or ramp up) their booming "Extra Bass" feature.

As for negatives, the SP800N’s noise cancelation is nothing to write home about, the buds are fairly bulky, and the charging case stores only one extra charge, though their 9+ hours of playback per charge makes this a lot more palatable. In addition, we found a tear in one of the silicone ear fins after just a few days, but based on over 1,000 user reviews, we’re inclined to write this off as a fluke. Because their fins are fairly involved, it can also be a pain to put them in and take them out, but that’s also what makes them so stable for high-impact running.

Their incredible playback time of 9 hours with noise cancellation—and as much as 13 hours without it—helps make up for their charging case's shortcomings. Add in their wealth of other features and the SP800N are steeped with value, making them a great pair of action-ready sports buds.

If you're an athlete or a fitness enthusiast, you probably know Under Armour and its popular range of workout clothes and wearables. More recently, UA teamed up with JBL for the True Wireless Flash X. This pair is actually the second-gen baby of this fruitful collaboration, and they're a stalwart running buddy you'll definitely want to consider.

The True Wireless Flash X's tank-like design makes them great for getting out there and pounding the pavement. They have multiple useful sound modes for hearing what's going on around you, and the earbuds and case are extremely robust and impact-resistant. They're a bit on the pricey side for headphones that might not be your go-to choice for casual or work situations, but if you've got the budget for a more purpose-built pair of headphones that can moonlight for other use cases, they’re an excellent choice.

Where the Flash X really stand out from the pack is in the details of their design and physical components. The earbuds (and stabilizing wings) have been carefully built to be extremely firm and durable, composed of a firm but gently yielding rubber that makes for an extremely tight fit and seal. This is important for both keeping out exterior noise and stability in workouts. You can jump around, drop to the ground, or (we daresay) do a cartwheel through a waterfall and the True Wireless Flash will stay put.

While they can become uncomfortable over time, and forego some desirable features like active noise cancellation, they make up for it in terms of sheer stability. Combined with the fully aluminum charging case—a product that should be able to withstand even the most grueling situations—the Flash X might just be the saviors of your own personal running universe.

The Jabra Elite Active 65t are nearly identical to their predecessor, the Jabra Elite 65t, except that they're much better equipped to deal with rain and dust, similar to the newer Elite Active 75t. They have great sweat resistance, too. In our testing, the Elite Active 65t performed similarly to the standard Elite 65t: mostly distortion-free sound with great isolation and a fair amount of “oomph” on the low end, all for a great price.

While the AirPods get all the glory, Jabra’s aging 65t lineup helped kickstart the modern true wireless revolution, and they’re still solid running buds (and earbuds in general) today. They offer the basics you want, including transparency mode for keeping aware of your environment (though they don’t have any active noise cancellation). More importantly, these days they can be purchased for a song, especially when compared to most competitors.

They're not perfect, of course: we had some mild connectivity issues. We sometimes found ourselves needing to remove the Elite Active 65t from our phone or computer’s saved devices list and re-establish a connection.

That said, if you're just looking for a solid pair of wireless headphones that won't break the bank, the Jabra Elite Active 65t sound great, stand up to the elements, and offer desirable features alongside a stable fit. As such, they’re a great value, especially if you’re looking for an ultra-affordable, well-vetted pair of earbuds to help you maintain your running habit.

Priced similarly to Apple's AirPods Pro, the Beats Powerbeats Pro are impressive true wireless earphones in their own right. Though they've lost some luster in recent years due to heated competition, they offer impressive playback time per charge, great sound, and a durable, sporty design that stays put under duress.

They're relatively stylish (as you might expect from Beats), available in ivory, black, navy, or moss colors, and their adjustable ear hooks help to keep them in your ears during just about any workout.

They offer great water resistance and vastly improved sound quality over previous Beats earbuds, making them a good choice for general use, though their ear-hook design can get uncomfortable over time. They come with a pocketable charging case (thanks to their ear hooks, it’s a lot larger than most), but their impressive 9 hours of battery life per charge allows you to leave the case behind.

The Powerbeats Pro are less minimalist than Apple's AirPods, and come at a premium price point—especially for headphones that don’t include active noise cancellation or even any form of transparency mode. This makes them less-than-ideal for jogging in busy areas, but you can use just one of them at a time in such cases to keep aware of your surroundings. Their price point has also dropped a fair bit over time.

If you’re looking for fitness first, and don’t hold transparency mode as a must-have feature, the Powerbeats Pro are a fine choice—especially if you grab them on a good sale.

The 4th-gen Beats Powerbeats are basically the same headphones as the Powerbeats Pro—they simply aren't "true wireless," featuring a small cable that runs between the two buds and behind your neck.

However, what you're sacrificing by way of true wireless freedom, you're making up for in cost. People love the Powerbeats Pro, but they're often just too darn expensive (at full price anyway) for many budgets. The Powerbeats are a great stand-in, priced well below the Powerbeats Pro's suggested retail price, and their price tag is only falling. Not only that, but you'll also get longer battery per charge (though there's no charging case for a top-off).

Outside of the wire situation, Beats fans will be happy to know that the connected Powerbeats sound just as good as the "Pro" model, and offer similar levels of flexibility and style (i.e., they come in a bunch of colors). Like other Beats headphones, their sound profile is still bass-forward, but it’s thankfully restrained here for excellent clarity to power you through your workout. As you’d expect for fitness headphones, the Powerbeats are also sweat- and water-resistant so you won’t have to worry about going for the gusto.

They also offer shockingly good connection quality that outdoes their siblings, as well as any other true wireless earbuds we've ever tried. Seriously, they've got such good range you may actually forget where you put your phone. We do wish Beats included transparency mode to keep you safe on the road, but if you mostly run at the gym or don’t mind pulling out one earbud in dicey areas, the Powerbeats are a great buy.

Bose’s Sport Open Earbuds finish lowest in the rankings, partly because they simply don’t have the features that many of our top picks offer. But that’s also because the Sport Open are unlike virtually any other earbuds in existence right now, and given the right use case, they could be the perfect choice for your running adventures.

So what makes the Sport Open so different? Quite simply these are open-ear headphones (as the name helpfully spells out) meaning they don’t go in your ear canals, but sit above them to beam sound in from tiny speaker vents. What’s remarkable about this technology isn’t so much that you can hear things clearly, or even that it offers very minimal “bleed” into the world around you. No, what’s most impressive is that the Sport Open Earbuds actually sound good. And when you don’t have ear cups or even ear tips, that’s a feat in itself.

The Sport Open use an advanced version of Bose’s OpenAudio technology, which can also be found in the company’s distinctive audio sunglasses, the Bose Frames. The sound has been upgraded, however, adding the crucial element of full and rich bass to their already impressive upper register. The result is an enjoyable audio experience that also keeps your ears fully open and free to explore (and keep you safe from) the world around you. This makes them great for running and hiking, but they're also great for cycling, where the transparency mode of traditional wireless earbuds is rendered almost useless.

Bose adds to the package with impressive design, including simple setup, a relatively hearty chassis for each bud, and (crucially) IPX4 water resistance to protect them from the elements. They also offer around 7-8 hours of battery per charge alongside a minimalist, but relatively effective control system accessed via a small button on the bottom of each earbud.

There are some drawbacks to being different, starting with the fact that, unlike every other pair of true wireless earbuds we’ve tested, the Sport Open don’t come with a charging case to top off their battery on the go. They also have a relatively austere feature set (as you can imagine, there’s no way to add active noise cancellation here), including a pretty bare-bones app. And, for our ears anyway, they became relatively uncomfortable over time, making their use cases all the more limited.

That said, if you’re looking for groundbreaking buds that sound good and keep your ears naturally free in any environment, the Bose Sport Open Earbuds stand alone.