Best Headphones

Head to head · for music listening

Sony WH-1000XM5 vs Apple AirPods Max

More people recommend the Sony WH-1000XM5 overall (96 vs 44). Only 2 of the 95 comments naming both explicitly choose one (2 for the Sony WH-1000XM5, 0 for the Apple AirPods Max), too few to call a winner.

Comments naming both
95
Say they own both
5
Choose the WH-1000XM5
2
Choose the AirPods Max
0

Counted across 22 review videos, harvested Sep 2026. A comment counts as a choice only when it says so in plain words (prefer X over Y, upgraded from Y to X); questions never count. Quotes are whole sentences of 12 words or fewer, linked to where they were said. How we count.

At a glance the better number on each row is highlighted
Sony WH-1000XM5Apple AirPods Max
Typical price$300cheaper$549
Overall rank#6higher#16
People who recommend it96more44
Say they own it149more45
Mentions1,124more802
Typewireless ANC over-earwireless ANC over-ear
Known forCommuteNoise cancellingBatteryCommuteiPhoneNoise cancelling
Best forThe default noise-cancelling pick for planes and trains, if you can live with plastic hinges.iPhone and Mac people who want one pair that just appears on every device.
BuyAmazon · $300DirectAmazon · $549Direct

#6 overall

Sony WH-1000XM5

11 of the 95 comments naming both come from people who say they own this one.

What owners love

  • Noise cancelling that owners rank at or near the top of anything they have tried
  • Comfortable, light, and the touch controls grow on people
  • Several owners bought them on a deep sale and call them the best headphone they have used

The complaints

  • The hinges and swivels: more than one owner had a pair break within a year
  • No longer folds flat, which travellers miss from the XM4
  • Bass is thick out of the box; audiophile commenters call it bloated and point at the Momentum 4
  • Ear pads are not user-replaceable; not sweat resistant

In their words

#16 overall

Apple AirPods Max

7 of the 95 comments naming both come from people who say they own this one.

What owners love

  • Auto-switching between iPhone, Mac and Apple TV is the feature owners say they cannot give up
  • Metal build that other headphones get compared against
  • Called the most comfortable Bluetooth headphone by more than one commenter, and friendly to glasses

The complaints

  • Price: the single most repeated objection
  • Clamp gets tight after an hour for some heads
  • Condensation inside the cups after long sessions; sweat kills the headband electronics
  • Battery is not user-serviceable and they are dead without it
  • Heavy

In their words

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