Best Bone Conduction Headphones to Buy in 2024
Bone conduction headphones are gaining popularity, but the concept behind them is old. According to the National Library of Science , this technology dates back to the Renaissance. It was even used to create the first hearing aids.
More recently, this has become a popular option for athletes who want to listen to music while working out and still be able to hear their surroundings. Instead of sending sound waves directly into the ears, bone conduction headphones use small transducers that transmit sound vibrations through the bones. This allows you to listen to music without covering your ears. (It will even pass underwater.)
A word of caution: Since there is nothing covering your ears, wearing them in a crowded or noisy place, such as the gym, will lead to poor results. For these conditions, check out my recommendations for the best workout headphones and the best noise-canceling headphones .
Here are the best bone conduction headphones you can buy right now.
Best Bone Conduction Headphones
If you’re looking for the best bone conduction headphones, check out the Shokz OpenRun Pro . They offer the best sound quality in this review, up to 10 hours of battery life, and are very comfortable. Bone conduction headphones don’t offer crystal clear sound, but the OpenRun Pro set the standard for the rest of the competition. They also offer good call quality. While they are great for running as they are IP55 sweat resistant, they cannot be used for swimming. There are two drawbacks worth noting: the case doesn’t charge the headphones, and its size may be limited for people with large heads.
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Shokz OpenRun Pro ($179.99)
Best Bone Conduction Headphones for Swimmers
Underwater headphones have been around for a long time, but bone conduction technology has made them more popular. Because they transmit vibrations through your bones, submersion in water does not affect their performance. If you’re looking for the best bone conduction headphones you can wear while swimming (or just in the shower), then the H2O Audio Tri Multi-Sport is your best choice. They have 8GB of built-in storage, so you can load music straight into the headphones and not be tied to your phone’s Bluetooth connection while swimming. They have an IPX8 rating, which is the highest level of waterproofing, and are a more affordable option than many others.
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H2O Audio Tri Multi-Sport ($99.99)
The best premium bone conduction headphones.
The Zygo Solo takes a different approach than regular bone conduction headphones. Instead of downloading music to internal memory, the Solos use FM radio transmitters to stream music—essentially, they’re the only bone conduction headphones that let you stream music underwater.
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Zygo Solo ($224 off)
The best budget bone conduction headphones.
If you’re looking for affordable bone conduction headphones that are also great for swimming, check out the Creative Outlier Free Pro . They also have an IPX8 rating and internal memory for storing music. Although they have better battery life, the sound is still inferior compared to the H2O Audio Tri Multi-Sport . But if you want to save money, this is a good budget option.
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Creative Outlier Free Pro ($89.99)
Best Bone Conduction Headphones for Runners
If you’re more of a runner than a swimmer, the Shokz OpenRun are the best bone conduction headphones for this sport. They’re smaller and lighter than most comparable technologies, but still deliver great sound. The IP67 water resistance rating makes them ideal for running in rain, sweat or dust/sand. And if you need to answer a call, noise-canceling microphones can pick up your voice even in noisy environments.
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Shokz OpenRun ($129.95)