Flying was never the most stress-free way to travel, but thanks to never-ending airline delays, unruly passengers, and the incredible shrinking airline seat, it can be a nightmare. Not to mention the added anxiety of recent airplane crashes. If you’re ready to add some peace to your flying experience, picking up a pair of noise-cancelling headphones can go a long way.
You definitely have options: plenty of headphones, from over-ear headphones to wireless earbuds, offer active noise cancellation. And in 2025, it’s not too hard to find ANC headphones for under $100. That said, we do recommend spending a little more to enjoy maximum calm at 35,000 feet. To make sure your investment is worth it, we’ve tried and tested the top noise-cancelling headphones on the market.
How much should I spend on noise-cancelling headphones?
If you want to find the best noise-cancelling headphones for flying, you should be prepared to pay $250 to $500. Premium headphones offer improved active noise cancellation, customizable settings, and transparency modes that allow you to hear those all-important gate announcements.
Many cheap headphones claim to offer “noise-cancelling” features, but a random pair of $50 over-ear headphones with passive noise cancellation will let a lot of sound through. They’ll also struggle to connect and switch between devices easily, or simply feel uncomfortable.
At the end of the day, going for that good all-around pair is worth it, because on a flight, ANC on its own won’t save the day — otherwise, we’d just direct you to our guide to the best noise-cancelling headphones. For long flights, comfort is also key. It won’t matter if your headphones block sound if you only want to wear them for two out of five hours of your flight. And because this is a flying-focused roundup, we did give extra points to headphones with thoughtful design that makes storage easy.
If that $250-plus price range feels totally out of the question, we’ve included a couple of budget earbuds in the under-$100 category, but they come with tradeoffs. If you’re okay with a mid-range pick, consider buying wireless earbuds with ANC instead of over-ear headphones.
If the cost of a pair of headphones is off-putting, you can always wait for a sale to start. We see headphones from Bose, Sony, and Apple get marked down year-round — if you don’t want to keep your eyes peeled yourself, Mashable’s deals coverage is a great place to find any noteworthy headphone deals. For the picks on our list, we recommend waiting to buy at the following prices:
-
Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones — At least $349, if not $329
-
Sony WH-1000XM5 — At least $329, if not $299
-
Apple AirPods Pro 2 — At least $189, if not $179 or lower ($199 is technically a sale price, but typically what these earbuds go for at Amazon)
What are the best noise-cancelling headphones for flying?
Noise-cancelling headphones are at their most useful on airplanes. It’s difficult to find a moment’s peace when so much is going on around you. Frequent flyers may prefer to rest or work, and the best way to prepare for either is by using the best ANC headphones to block out the chaos.
Because shopping for headphones shouldn’t be as stressful as heading to the airport, we’ve done extensive testing to bring you the top options. Our top pick is the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones, but read on to see other great picks for the best noise-cancelling headphones for airplanes in 2025 — all based on Mashable’s hands-on testing.
Recent testing updates
As of May 2025, we’re evaluating whether the Panasonic Technic AZ100 are a better pick for earbuds over the Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds, and whether the new Skullcandy Method ANC 360 earbuds might be a good budget option.
After testing them for a few weeks, we decided in February 2025 that the EarFun Air Pro 4 earbuds earned a spot on our guide as our top budget pick, knocking out the cheaper but inferior Anker Soundcore P3i earbuds. Shortly after, we added the Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones as one of our recommendations, thanks to their long battery life.
For September 2024, we didn’t change our lineup, deciding against including the Dyson OnTrac headphones — although we really like their long battery life, the 55 hours of charge might be overkill for air travel. Plus, they’re a little too bulky and expensive to recommend as travel headphones.
