Best Headphones
Sony WH-1000XM5

#6 overall · wireless ANC over-ear

Sony WH-1000XM5

The default noise-cancelling pick for planes and trains, if you can live with plastic hinges.

CommuteNoise cancellingBatteryWireless (for commuting)
People who recommend it
96
Say they own it
149
Mentions
1,124
Posts read
1,500
Check price on Amazon · $300Buy direct from the maker
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Typical price, checked Sep 2026. Sony sale price $299.99; list price $399.99 (read 2026-09-26)

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

Where owners disagree: XM4 owners split on whether the XM5 is worth the upgrade; the ANC is better, the build and foldability are worse.

The 12 sources

Owner = the person says they use it. Recommendation = passed on without saying so. Dates are when the thread or video was posted.

Owners name it for

Compared with

The headphones people weigh against this one most often, counted from comments that name both.

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