The best over-ear headphones in Australia (2025): Go wireless from $129

Get everything over-ear over here with this list of the best wireless headphones.


Best over-ear headphones
Image of the Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones
Sony WH-1000XM4
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.75
🔥Save: 14% $439$378
Battery life
30 hours
Noise cancelling
Yes
Fast charging
Yes
Best cheap headphones
Sennheiser HD 458BT Over -Ear Wireless Noise Canceling Headphones
Sennheiser HD 458BT
3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5
Starts at$129
Battery life
30 hours
Noise cancelling
Yes
Fast charging
No
Best sound quality headphones
Sonos Ace headphones product
Sonos Ace
3.8 out of 5 stars
3.75
Starts at$699
Battery life
30 hours
Noise cancelling
Yes
Fast charging
Yes
Best battery headphones
Sennheiser Momentum 4
Sennheiser Momentum 4
4.3 out of 5 stars
4.25
🔥Save: 28% $549.95$398
Battery life
60 hours
Noise cancelling
Yes
Fast charging
Yes
Best call quality
Bose NCH 700
Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5
From$389
Battery life
20 hours
Noise cancelling
Yes
Fast charging
Yes
Alex Choros
Feb 06, 2025
Icon Time To Read4 min read

If you're looking for a new pair of cans, the over-ear headphone market has become increasingly crowded and competitive. You've got a lot more choices than you used to, which can be good and bad. 

More competition means better products, but it can also make picking out a pair of Bluetooth headphones feel more overwhelming. To help, we've selected our favourite over-ear headphones from the models we've tested over the last few years. 

In this guide we're specifically looking at over-ear headphones. If you're after wireless earbuds, read our best of here. Looking for something cheaper? Check out our guide to the best cheap headphones here.

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Compare the best wireless over-ear headphones

Product
Rating
Price
Battery life
Fast charging
Noise cancelling
Availability

Best over-ear headphones for most

Sony WH-1000XM4

Image of the Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones
Sony WH-1000XM4
Our Rating
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.75
Sound
4 out of 5 stars
4
Design and Comfort
5 out of 5 stars
5
Features
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5
🔥 Save 14% $439$378
pro Excellent noise cancellation
pro All day comfort
con Finicky touch controls

Why we like them: The Sony WH-1000XM4s might be a generation old now, but they're still our top pick for the best wireless over-ear headphones for most people

To start, they're between $100 and $200 cheaper than the XM5s (depending on where you look), which represents a pretty significant saving. The XM4s also have a more compact, collapsible design that makes them more suitable for travel. 

The newer XM5s definitely offer improvements in sound quality and noise cancellation, but for most, we'd say it makes more sense to go for the cheaper WF-1000XM4s. 

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"Sony’s WH-1000XM4 Wireless Headphones (2019) are a well-rounded, shining example of what a wire-free audio experience can be and even though there aren’t many upgrades from the XM3s, the small improvements make an already exceptional product even better."
Brodie Fogg
Entertainment editor

Best cheap over-ear headphones

Sennheiser HD 458BT

Sennheiser Over Ear Noise Cancelling Alexa Enabled Wireless Headphones HD 450SE Special Edition
Senneheiser HD 458BT
Our Rating
3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5
Sound
4 out of 5 stars
4
Design and Comfort
4 out of 5 stars
4
Features
3 out of 5 stars
3
Starts at $129.99
pro Great sound quality
pro Thick comfy earcups
con Crammed in physical controls

Why we like them: While the Sennheiser HD 458BTs can feel a little cheap and look a little boring, you get great sound quality at a reasonable price. The noise cancellation isn't bad either! 

Note that if you can't find the HD 458BTs around, the HD 450BT and HD 450SE are effectively the same, other than some slight aesthetic differences. Namely, the 458BTs have red racing stripes, while the other models are just black. 

The HD 450SEs also benefit from Alexa support, which is missing on the standard models. We've linked out to the HD 450SEs as they're the cheapest option right. 

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"The Sennheiser HD 458BT headphones are a great buy if sound quality and noise cancelling are your priorities, and let’s face it, they should be. The lacklustre design disguises the excellent sound quality, which is a shame, but it shouldn’t stop you from having a listen to these great-sounding headphones."
Joe Hanlon
Managing editor
Little girl wearing white headphones designed for kids

The best kids headphones

Forget the hand-me-downs: kids’ ears are more sensitive to sound, so pick one of these options for kid-friendly headphones.

Best wireless headphones for sound quality

Sonos Ace

Sonos Ace headphones product
Sonos Ace
Our Rating
4.3 out of 5 stars
4.25
Sound
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.77
Design and Comfort
3.7 out of 5 stars
3.66
Features
4.6 out of 5 stars
4.55
Starts at $699
pro Thoughtful design
pro Awesome physical controls
con Very expensive

Why we like them: When it comes to consumer-grade headphones, the Sonos Ace have the best sound quality out of the bunch. And given the $699 RRP, you'd hope that would be the case. That's almost as expensive as the Apple AirPods Max. However, the Sonos Ace do have an edge in more than just pricing. They also lighter and come with a more traditional carry-case.

Not everyone will appreciate the audio prowess on offer, but the complete lack of distortion at high volumes, the throbbing-yet-balanced bass, and the spacious sound stage put the Sonos Ace closer to audiophile territory than most of the competition.

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"The Ace is an undeniably expensive set of consumer-grade headphones, but if you've bought into the Sonos ecosystem before you probably have a good idea of what you're in for. What's here looks and feels just as nice as the company's speakers and the myriad thoughtful touches help elevate an already exceptional on-the-go audio setup."
Fergus Halliday
Gadgets editor

Best wireless headphones for battery life

Sennheiser Momentum 4

Sennheiser Momentum 4
Sennheiser Momentum 4
Our Rating
4.3 out of 5 stars
4.25
Sound
4.8 out of 5 stars
4.77
Design and Comfort
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.45
Features
4.6 out of 5 stars
4.64
🔥 Save 28% $549.95$398
pro Monster battery life
pro Great sound quality
con Design isn't collapsible

Why we like them: The Sennheiser Momentum 4s are basically unrivalled when it comes to battery life. You'll get a massive 60 hours per charge, with noise cancelling switched on. Better yet, a 10-minute top-up will take you from flat to about six hours of playback.  

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"Sennheiser's Momentum 4 Wireless headphones opt for a classy, more subdued design that matches the aesthetic of its true wireless earbuds. They also blow the competition out of the water with a monstrous 60-hour battery life and even take a shot at the noise-cancelling crown."
Brodie Fogg
Entertainment editor

Best noise cancelling over ear headphones

Sony WH-1000XM5

Sony WH-1000XM5
Sony WH-1000XM5
Our Rating
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5
Sound
5 out of 5 stars
5
Design and Comfort
4.4 out of 5 stars
4.39
Features
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.45
From$548
pro Best in class noise cancellation
pro Lightweight build
con Design isn't collapsible

Why we like them: Over the last few years, Sony has been a surprise contender for the noise-cancelling crown, creating serious competition in a space where Bose used to dominate.

While Bose, Apple, and Sennheiser have all made advancements with their noise cancelling tech late, Sony's new WF-1000XM5s are a step above if you care about blocking out as much as the world as possible. It helps they're always very lightweight and offer excellent sound quality. 

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"Sony's latest set of premium noise canceling headphones make a few smart sacrifices, but emerge better for it. The WH-1000XM5 recover ground lost to rivals and issue a fresh reminder of why Sony continue to rule the roost when it comes to making noise cans that feel and look as good as they sound."
Fergus Halliday
Gadgets editor

Best over-ear headphone for phone calls

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700

Bose NCH 700
Bose NCH 700
Our Rating
3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5
Sound
4 out of 5 stars
4
Design and Comfort
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5
Features
3 out of 5 stars
3
From$389
pro Excellent active noise cancelling
pro Great sound quality (sans big bass)
con Average battery life

Why we like them: If you need headphones that will make it sound like you're taking a call from the office when you're actually at the pub, the Bose NCH 700s are the pair for you. On top of great noise cancellation, the NCH 700s can also reduce noise when it comes to phone calls, isolating your noise from background sounds. Your voice comes across crystal clear, even if you're strutting down a busy highway or waiting for a train. 

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"If you haven’t had the aural pleasure of trying the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 are legitimately a solid set of noise-cancelling cans. Still, they’re premium priced and questionably pitched as an upgrade to Bose’s iconic QuietComfort 35 line, and the sound logic behind that is debatable."
Nathan Lawrence, Editor-at-large for Reviews.org AU
Editor-at-large

Over-ear and wireless headphone buying guide

What to look for when comparing Bluetooth headphones

If you're looking for a new pair of wireless over-ear headphones, you'll find options available at almost every price segment. In many cases, spending more gets you a more premium product, but there are also plenty of cheap options. If you're struggling to make up your mind, here are some key questions you'll want to consider.

  • How long do you want the battery to last?
  • Where are you going to wear these headphones? Are they for home, the office, commuting, or travel?
  • Are you going to be taking hands-free calls with these earbuds?
  • How important is noise-cancelling to you?
  • Are you hoping to be listening to high resolution audio using these headphones?
  • Do you care about having headphones that neatly integrate with the operating system of your connected device?
  • How portable do you want your headphones to be?
  • How much money feels like too much money to spend on a set of earbuds?

Everyone's needs are different, but getting a sense of the features you care about most helps when it comes to picking the right pair of headphones.

Check out our open-ear vs in-ear vs over-ear headphones guide to know which type of headphones you should buy for your situation.

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How we review over-ear headphones

Every single set of over-ear wireless headphones we review is based on our first-hand experience using the product over a period of time. This review period is typically a few weeks but can sometimes be longer or shorter depending on the nature of the product.

Value is ultimately the lens we evaluate headphones through. It’s never a question of whether headphones are good, but whether they’re good for the money. When we review over-ear wireless headphones, we start off by evaluating the product according to following five main considerations.

The first of these is the sound they produce. Audio quality is pretty important for headphones, after all. While audio products can be quite subjective for many reasons, we have standardised testing procedures across the team designed to help us look at the category in a consistent way. 

When it comes to assessing sound quality, we use a standardised testing playlist. This is typically embedded in the review itself and available via Spotify if you want to play along at home. Meanwhile, every microphone we test is available online via SoundCloud if you want to judge for yourself.

After that, we consider the amount of thought that's gone into the overall level of comfort & design. Are they comfortable to wear over extended periods of time? Do the headphones feel well made, or a bit cheap?

Next up, we evaluate the features. How long does the battery last? Is the connectivity reliable? Is the noise-cancelling good? Do they pass the headbang test? Does the product have something worth calling out, like Apple’s unique approach to multipoint in the AirPods family? 

Finally, we consider the vibe and overall experience offered by the hardware (and software) involved. What's the overall experience? The intangible, expressed in a slightly more tangible way. The parts that you can’t just encapsulate through a checklist of features.

After more information? You can read more about how we review over-ear headphones here.

Best over-ear headphones frequently asked questions

For best wireless over-ear headphones, try the Sony WH-1000XM4. The Sony WH-1000XM5s are the better product but the difference in form-factor and sound quality isn't nearly so big as the difference in price. If both are a little too expensive, then it might be worth checking out the Sony CH-520 or Sennheiser HD 458BT.

Beats was bought by Apple in 2014 for $2.3 billion and is currently owned by the same company that makes the iPhone, AirPods, iPad and Mac.

Alex Choros
Written by
Alex Choros is the Group Reviews Editor for Clearlink Australia's local websites - Reviews.org, Safewise, and WhistleOut - and the Managing Editor for WhistleOut Australia. He's been writing about consumer technology for over eight years and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. He also contributes to Gizmodo and Lifehacker, and makes regular appearances on 2GB. Outside of tech, Alex loves long hikes, red wine, and death metal.