JBL Endurance Peak 3 Wireless Headphones
Style: Wireless earbuds | Battery life: Up to 10 hours continuous, 40 hours with charging case | Waterproof rating: IP68 | Driver: 10 mm
Best for: Those who want something to use in rain or shine, but not when submerged.
The JBL Endurance Peak 3 Wireless Headphones are an excellent choice for users who want something they can use no matter what the weather. The earbuds have a water-resistance rating of IP68, which technically means that they’ll survive being submerged 1.5 meters under the water for up to 30 minutes. That, however, is for emergencies—not for swimming with them. Rest assured that while the earbuds themselves (not the charging case) should survive an accidental dunk in the bath, they’ll easily survive jogging in the rain or sweaty ears.
On top of being water-resistant, the JBL Endurance Peak 3 earbuds offer that much-loved JBL sound, with good bass response and solid detail in the high end. You won’t get premium features like noise cancellation, but you do get a very respectable 10-hour continuous battery life, with the charging case bringing the battery up to 40 hours. And, the earbuds offer a great fit, thanks to the ear-hook design, which helps keep them in place even when you’re moving, such as on a run. The charging case is a little big and bulky, but that’s a small price to pay, especially considering it packs a large battery.
What our writers say: Our earbud-testing contributor notes that they would be a great option even if they weren’t water-resistant. “Water resistance here isn’t a gimmick—these earbuds genuinely sound excellent, and offer a great fit. The ability to withstand most day-to-day water-based abuse is a real added bonus.”
Pros:
- Great fit
- Excellent audio quality
- Long-lasting battery
Cons:
- Charging case is a little bulky
Best Budget Waterproof Headphones
Water Resistance Doesn’t Have To Cost A Lot
Anker Soundcore Sport X10 Wireless Earbuds
Style: Wireless earbuds | Battery life: 8 hours continuous listening, 32 hours with charging case | Waterproof rating: IPX7 | Drivers: 10 mm
Best for: Those who want water-resistant sports headphones at a more approachable price.
You can spend a little less on a great pair of wireless earbuds that offer water resistance. The Anker Soundcore Sport X10 earbuds may not sound quite as high-end as the JBL option, but they do offer a decent audio quality and an IPX7 water-resistance rating. IPX7 means that the earbuds can withstand up to 1 meter of water for up to 30 minutes. Again, this basically means that they’ll survive use in the rain or heavy sweat, but aren’t built to be submerged in water, at least for an extended period of time.
These earbuds offer a pretty good battery life, too. They’re able to deliver up to eight hours of continuous listening, with the charging case bringing battery life up to 32 hours. Also, unlike the more expensive JBL headphones, the Anker Soundcore Sport X10 earbuds offer noise cancellation, and while it’s not the best ANC tech out there, it’s hard to expect much better in this price range. Some users have noted some slight discomfort after long periods of listening, but this is true of many earbuds. They may be perfectly comfortable for your needs, especially after experimenting with the different included ear tips. Regardless, the Anker Soundcore Sport X10 earbuds are an excellent option for anyone who wants water-resistant earbuds at a reasonable price.
What the reviews say: One reviewer on Amazon noted that after using other earbuds, these were the best option. “I’ve gone through a few pairs of ‘running’ headphones in the past five or so years due to water issues from sweat. These have been the best ones yet. The sound is great and the clips are super comfortable. These are great for any distance.”
Pros:
- Solid audio quality
- Good battery life
- Noise cancellation
Cons:
- Not necessarily the most comfortable
- No touch controls
Best Premium Waterproof Headphones
Run In The Rain, In Style
Beats Powerbeats Pro Wireless Earbuds
Style: Wireless earbuds | Battery life: 9 hours continuous listening, 24 hours with charging case | Waterproof rating: IPX4 | Driver: 12 mm
Best for: Users who want top-tier audio quality and a strong build—and who don’t mind paying a little more for it.
Those looking for a pair of water-resistant wireless earbuds that offer premium features and a higher-end audio experience should buy the Beats Powerbeats Pro earbuds. These earbuds are part of the Apple ecosystem, so they offer Apple-specific features like “Hey Siri” support—however, since they’re slightly older than some other Apple headphones, you won’t get things like Automatic Switching. You don’t have to be an Apple user to get good use out of these earbuds—they work perfectly fine with Bluetooth, and you’ll really only be losing out on a few features. The audio quality on the headphones is very good, with excellent bass response and good detail in the high-end, plus they offer a long battery life of nine hours of continuous listening. Unfortunately, the charging case won’t get you that much additional time, just up to 24 hours, despite the charging case being quite big and bulky.
The Beats Powerbeats Pro earbuds have an IPX4 rating, which means that they cannot be submerged in water, but can survive splashes of water. You’ll want to make sure they don’t fall in the pool or bath, but if you do get caught in the rain, you should expect the earbuds to continue working as normal. In general, the build of the earbuds is quite strong, so beyond withstanding splashes of water, they should also do fine in a backpack or bag, or even in a pocket with a set of keys.
What the reviews say: A reviewer on Amazon notes that the earbuds are perfect for their use-case. “These are the best-sounding buds I have used. They are super convenient, easy to connect and won’t fall out of your ears. If you have normal human-sized ears, they will probably be comfortable and the battery life is great.”
Pros:
- Great audio quality
- Strong build
- Long battery life
Cons:
- Charging case is bulky
- A little expensive
Best Multisport Waterproof Headphones
Keep Listening To Your Tunes, Even Under Water
H2O Audio TRI Multi-Sport Headphones
Style: Bone conduction | Battery life: 6 Hours | Waterproof rating: IPX8
Best for: Those who want headphones that can go with them on land,or in the water.
While many of the options on this list are water-resistant, there are still plenty of great waterproof options—like the H2O Audio TRI Multi-Sport headphones. These offer the same IPX8 rating as some of the earbuds on our list, but you won’t have to worry about them losing connection through water. These are bone-conduction headphones with built-in storage, so they’ll be just as usable under water as they are out of water. They’re specifically designed to withstand up to 12 feet or 3.6 meters, so while you won’t want to go scuba diving, these will do for swimming in a pool.
The H20 Audio TRI Multi-Sport headphones have 8 GB of onboard storage, which is important as Bluetooth, unfortunately, doesn’t work very well underwater. Just pre-load music for playback if you do plan on swimming with the headphones, rather than trying to rely on a connection from a device like a smartwatch. Storage of 8 GB isn’t huge, but it should be enough to store at least a few hundred songs of average quality. Also not huge is the battery life, which sits in at only six hours. You’ll want to make sure to charge these headphones pretty regularly.
What the reviews say: A reviewer on Amazon notes that these headphones aren’t just great for swimming, they’re great for other adventures, too. “The H2O Audio TRI Multi-Sport bone conduction headphones are a game-changer for adventurers like myself. Their open-ear design, lightweight build and integrated MP3 player are perfect for outdoor adventures where conserving weight and power is essential.”
Pros:
- Waterproof to 12 feet
- Solid build
- Good audio quality
Cons:
- Battery life isn’t great
- Storage is a bit low
Best Noise-Cancelling Waterproof Headphones
Cut Out The Noise Of The Rain Around You
Jabra Elite 10 True Wireless Earbuds
Style: Wireless earbuds | Battery life: 6 hours continuous listening, 27 hours with charging case (with ANC on) | Waterproof rating: IP57 | Drivers: 10 mm
Best for: Those who want some of the best earbuds in the business, which also happen to be water-resistant.
Jabra has been consistently making some of the better wireless earbuds available, and the Jabra Elite 10 earbuds are a perfect example of this. The earbuds not only offer an IP57 water-resistance rating that means they’ll survive use in the rain and the occasional splash by the pool, but they also have excellent noise cancellation tech that can easily cut out most noise from things like plane engines.
Even without the water resistance and the noise cancellation, these would be high-quality earbuds. They sound excellent, with great bass response and plenty of high-end detail that helps make audio sound its best. They have other premium features too, like Bluetooth Multipoint that allows them to connect to two devices at once, and wireless charging, so it’s easy to keep them topped up by plopping the earbuds on a charging pad when you’re not using them. The actual battery life on the earbuds is pretty good—though you will get a lower battery life if you use the noise-cancellation tech a lot. With ANC turned off, you’ll get eight hours of continuous listening, however with ANC turned on, you’ll get six hours. That’s still not bad though, and a small price to pay for ANC on some of the better wireless earbuds you can buy right now.
What our writers say: Our earbud-testing contributor notes that the Jabra Elite 10 earbuds can compete with the best options out there, regardless of water resistance. “These earbuds may be a little pricey, but those willing to pay for them will find that they perform excellently in all situations, plus with Bluetooth Multipoint, it’s easy to switch between devices.”
Pros:
- Excellent audio quality
- Great noise cancellation
- Bluetooth Multipoint
Cons:
- Expensive
- ANC cuts battery life
Best Waterproof Headphones With Onboard Storage
Store Thousands Of Songs, Right In Your Headphones
Nank Runner Diver2 Bone Conduction Headphones
Style: Bone Conduction | Battery life: 10 Hours | Waterproof rating: IP68
Best for: Swimmers who want to make sure they can access their entire music library right in their headphones.
If you want a pair of headphones for swimming, you’ll likely need to store audio straight on the headphones themselves—in which case, a decent amount of storage comes in handy. The Nank Runner Diver2 headphones offer an impressive 32 GB of storage built into them, so you’ll be able to store thousands of songs in average MP3 quality and avoid repeatedly listening to the same ones.
Apart from the impressive storage, the headphones have an IP68 rating, and you should be able to use them when swimming without any issue. While technically the IP68 rating only allows devices to survive in 1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes, you likely won’t be swimming 1.5 meters under the surface for more than a few seconds at a time, and these headphones are specifically designed for swimming. They also support Bluetooth 5.3 for wireless use when you’re not in the water, and have a 10-hour battery life, which is more than many other similar headphones. You’ll still need to stay on top of charging if you use the headphones for extended periods of time, but with a swim of 30 to 60 minutes every day, you’ll get at least a week or two of use out of the headphones. They won’t sound quite as good as some of the earbuds on this list—but for what these headphones are, you might be pleasantly surprised with the audio quality.
What the reviews say: One reviewer on Amazon noted the headphones’ versatility. “Most swimming headphones are either very clunky or they only have MP3 options. The nice thing about these is that you can use MP3 files while swimming (Bluetooth physically can’t work while swimming but that’s not unique to these headphones, its just physically impossible) and then connect them to your phone for running, biking or just working around the house/gym.”
Pros:
- 32 GB of storage
- Decently long battery life
- Bluetooth 5.3
Cons:
- A little expensive
- Audio quality is only fine
Why Trust Forbes Vetted
Christian de Looper, the writer of this story, is an audio expert, and has written extensively on soundbars, headphones and other audio gear. De Looper fully tested our top choices for the best gaming headsets. With years of experience in the tech space, de Looper’s other bylines include CNN, Wall Street Journal, Tom’s Guide and many more.
How I Chose The Best Waterproof Headphones
In creating this list of the best waterproof headphones, I looked at the most reputable models and brands, then considered the specifications that are most important to have. I looked at metrics like connectivity options, battery life and waterproof rating, ensuring that all of our picks fit meet our criteria.
Not only did we look at the top models on offer, but we also considered cheaper models and the overall value that they presented. And, of course, we also looked at the general consensus of actual users of the headphones. Each pair of waterproof headphones needed to have overwhelmingly positive reviews, with not less than a 4- out of 5-star rating.
How To Choose The Best Waterproof Headphones For Your Needs
Picking the best waterproof headphones for your needs can be a little complicated, thanks to the number of options available. Here’s an overview of the features you should prioritize when buying a pair of waterproof headphones.
There are standards for testing water resistance, and most headphones that are marketed as being water-resistant or waterproof have one of these ratings. The most common rating is the “Ingress Protection” rating, or the IP rating. This rating gives you a sense of the kind of water resistance that the product can offer—from no water resistance at all to being able to fully submerge in water without any damage. Generally, the higher the second number in the IP rating, the more water-resistant a product is.
The vast majority of headphones these days connect to a device wirelessly—and all of the options on our list are wireless. They all connect to a device like a phone or computer through Bluetooth, and some of them support tech like Bluetooth Multipoint, which allows them to connect to multiple devices at once. Unfortunately, Bluetooth doesn’t work very well in water—so most headphones designed to be used while actually swimming have onboard storage for your music.
When buying any audio product, sound quality is paramount. Unfortunately, audio quality is pretty much impossible to judge based on a spec sheet. Sometimes, headphone manufacturers tout a product as offering a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz. The only problem? That’s the full range of human hearing, and if you’re an adult, there’s a slim chance you can even hear that full range. It also says nothing about the actual tuning of a pair of headphones, or where they boost or cut frequencies. All that to say, it’s a good idea to look at reviews of a pair of headphones to determine if they actually sound good.
Because all of our water-resistant headphones are wireless, they’re all battery-powered. Most wireless earbuds and waterproof headphones can continuously play audio for at least five hours, though that’s on the low end. Wireless earbuds are also usually stored in a battery case that charges the batteries of the earbuds when you’re not using them, allowing you to use them for 20 or 30 hours without having to plug them in or wirelessly charge them.
Comfort is another thing that’s hard to judge based on specifications—largely because everyone’s ears are different. That’s why most wireless earbuds come with multiple different sizes of ear tips. Most reviewers take this into consideration when reviewing a pair of earbuds, so you should still be able to get a sense of overall comfort by reading reviews.
There are plenty of other features that may or may not be important to you. Some headphones support tech like noise cancellation, which helps block outside noise from disrupting your listening experience. Some work with a smartphone app that allows users to tweak things like the frequency response of a pair of headphones. And others may support convenient wireless charging.
