wireless earbuds are one of those ideas that sounded at first like a dream: Pop a tiny little headphone into each ear and listen to music or take calls untethered from everything. The first wireless buds were gigantic, died after a few hours, and had a bunch of other problems. Luckily, times have changed. There are a myriad of new models that sound fabulous and work perfectly. After testing dozens of them for the past four years, here are our favorite wireless earbuds right now, in a wide range of styles and prices.

For more top picks, our Best Wireless Headphones, Best Noise-Canceling Headphones, Best Cheap Headphones, and Best Workout Earbuds guides may help.

Updated September 2021: We’ve added the Samsung Galaxy Buds2 and Sony WF-1000XM4, and updated our list of honorable mentions.

Special offer for Gear readers: Get a 1-year subscription to WIRED for $5 ($25 off). This includes unlimited access to WIRED.com and our print magazine (if you’d like). Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day.

If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. This helps support our journalism. Learn more. Please also consider subscribing to WIRED