Here’s a look at the best AirPods alternatives among the current crop of budget true wireless earphones I’ve tested: All of these cheap true wireless earbuds are under $100, several cost less than $50 and all are truly wireless. Equipped with Bluetooth 5.0 or higher, they also all maintain solid wireless audio connections with minimal Bluetooth audio-pairing hiccups. These budget wireless earbuds also worked well for making phone calls, and, in some cases, really well. I’ve also included info on battery life, as well as how water-resistant they are in case you’re interested in using these for running or gym use. I’ll update this list as new affordable earphones are released.
Read more: Best wireless earbuds for 2021
Do cheap earbuds sound as good as the AirPods 3rd gen and AirPods Pro?
Apple improved the sound quality of the third-gen AirPods so it raised the sound bar. That said, many buds that cost less than $100 or even less than $50 offer surprisingly good sound for the money and measure up pretty well against the AirPods and AirPods Pro, which sound good but not as quite good as they should for their high price.
What’s are the biggest differences between cheaper buds and more premium buds?
Often, the biggest difference is build quality. Premium buds tend to feel sturdier and tend to be built with more premium materials. They also have a more premium look and feel to both the buds themselves and their charging case. In theory, premium buds should hold up better over time. Additionally, they tend to have more features such as ear-detection sensors and they pair with a companion app so you can upgrade the firmware (as well as tweak the sound and possibly customize the controls). Finally, while some cheaper buds have active noise canceling, the performance of the noise-canceling and transparency modes tends to be better with more premium buds.
Do cheap earbuds work well for making voice calls?
Some do. Many cheaper buds now feature multiple microphones and some do a surprisingly good job when it comes to voice calling. A few models on this list have surprisingly good noise reduction and measure up well against the AirPods, which are known for their strong voice-calling performance.
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The Earfun Air Pro 2 not only feature solid active noise cancellation but their sound is also impressive for their relatively modest price, with overall well-balanced sound, decent clarity and solid bass performance. Some of Earfun’s buds have had a bit too much treble push — sometimes referred to as “presence boost” — but these mostly manage to avoid that. They do sound better than the original Air Pro.
The earbuds have some extra features, like an ear-detection sensor (your music pauses when you take the buds out of your ears) and a case that has USB-C and wireless charging, that you don’t often find at this price. Equipped with Bluetooth 5.2, they’re splash-proof with an IPX5 rating and offer up to seven hours of battery life on a single charge at moderate volume levels, though you’ll probably get closer to six hours with noise canceling on.
There’s also a transparency mode that lets ambient sound in. It actually sounds pretty natural and is closer than I thought it would to the AirPods Pro’s excellent transparency mode. Alas, there’s no companion app that allows you to tweak the sound or upgrade the firmware.
Earfun talks up the Air Pro 2’s voice calling capabilities — the buds have three microphones in each earbud — and I thought call performance was good but these didn’t reduce background noise as much the new Soundpeats T3, which are also good for the money ($36). However, while the Soundpeats T3 are better for calls, the Earfun Air Pro 2’s noise-canceling and transparency modes are superior and the Soundpeats don’t have the ear-detection sensor. Also, the Earfun Air Pro 2 buds sound better, with richer, more dynamic sound.
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The Tranya T20 remind me a little of a cheaper version of Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 2 without the noise canceling. They’re pretty no-frills and is missing more premium features such as an ear-detection sensor that automatically pauses your music when you take a bud out of your ears. But they sound surprisingly decent for their modest price, if you get a tight seal, they sit pretty flush with your ears (they don’t really stick out much) and they have decent battery life — up to eight hours at moderate volume levels. They also work pretty well for making calls and are IPX7 waterproof.
The case feels a little cheap and the buds are lightweight. The Galaxy Buds 2 definitely feel more premium. However, the buds are well tuned and have a relatively wide soundstage. Don’t expect the world from them and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
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Edifier has a few different new true-wireless earbuds and most, including the TWS 330NB, are very good true wireless earphone values. While the TWS 330NB buds are missing a sensor that automatically pauses your music when you take them out of your ears, this true wireless earbud features very good sound quality for the money, decent active noise canceling with a transparency mode, and solid voice calling….