Smaller, sleeker, and with awesome sound, the XM5 are Sony's best buds.

Sony’s new WF-1000XM5 doesn’t quite dethrone the Bose Quiet Comfort II earbuds in terms of active noise cancellation, and the second-gen Apple Airpods Pro have a better transparency mode, but Sony’s new buds come very close on both of those scores and Sony’s audio reproduction is superior to both its rivals. And that’s our primary reason for recommending a headphone of any type. These earbuds have a marvelous set of other features, too.

Sony's true wireless WF-1000XM5 earphones offer superb sound quality, excellent noise cancellation, and a dizzying array of high-end features.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 wireless earbuds are one of the most well-rounded wireless earbud packages I've experienced, with best-in-class sound, improved noise cancelation, and a smaller, lighter design.

Getting the earbuds to consistently fit well took some effort, though. I find that a medium or large tip is what generally works best with my ear shape, and the medium worked well for my left ear. But for an easy fit, my right ear needed something between a medium and large.

The WF-1000XM5 are smaller and more comfortable than the XM4 earbuds before them. Sony improved the active noise canceling (ANC) and tweaked the sound quality for a better overall experience too. They may be pricy, but these buds are an easy recommendation for listeners who crave customization and need a powerful microphone system.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 are the best sounding wireless earbuds ever made, beating Bose and Apple in the same price range. Minor quibbles with controls and connection can’t stop me from recommending them.

Sony’s latest earbuds are state-of-the-art listening devices that deliver unparalleled comfort and noise canceling capability in a truly wireless earbud style.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 is one of the most expensive TWS and accordingly has to compete with the best of the best. In the overall package with the outstanding app, the feature set including headset function for making calls and the probably best ANC in its class, it absolutely justifies its high price. Compared to the sonic top dogs, it plays a bit more inconspicuous and less high-end: The slightly more expensive Bowers & Wilkins PI7S2 offers more resolution, bass authority and impulsivity as well as a clever streaming concept. The Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 remains the benchmark for naturalness and transparency, although it doesn’t match the Sony in terms of ANC and feature set.

As I said in my intro, these really are impressive earbuds. No, they're not perfect, and I'm sure Sony will issue some firmware updates to fix some bugs (the Sony Headphones iOS beta app I was using for this review did crash a couple of times on me) and perhaps improve performance a bit. But the key takeaway here is that Sony has managed to make its flagship earbuds significantly smaller while actually improving performance, with incremental upgrades to noise canceling and sound quality and a slightly bigger upgrade to voice calling. And for Android users anyway, there's spatial audio with head tracking.

Creating a sequel to a bona fide legend like the WF-1000XM4 earbuds is a tall task that Sony accomplished with the WF-1000XM5. By bringing welcome, if not always perceptible, sound upgrades, next-level noise cancellation, and improved design without skimping on battery life or drastically raising the price, the audio giant created a stellar product all around. These are the true wireless earbuds to get if you are looking for the best sound, best noise cancellation, and best battery life money can buy.

Sony's flagship true wireless buds remain some of the most musical in-ears you can buy at this price, but the competitors have started to push them on noise cancelling and call quality. They're still a great buy, but its closest competitors are worthy of consideration too.

The latest addition to Sony's flagship wireless earbuds line brings fantastic sound, improved ANC, and a smaller design that's easier and more comfortable to wear. These are now the wireless earbuds to beat.

It’s not perfect but this is unquestionably Sony’s finest effort yet. It’s everything an earbud should be – it’s comfortable, sounds good, and eerily good at cancelling unwanted noise.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 takes notes from the success of its predecessor and runs with it. Featuring a more comfortable design, outstanding ANC performance, and fantastic battery life, they have secured their place as one of the best noise canceling earbuds on the market.

With the WF-1000XM5, Sony improves its already formidable mix of great sound, effective ANC and handy features. These earbuds are undoubtedly the company’s best and most comfortable design in its premium model so far, which was one of the few remaining riddles Sony needed to solve. For all of the company’s ability to add so many features, many of them still need fine-tuning, but that doesn’t make them any less useful in their current state. The WF-1000XM5 are more expensive too, which means the competition has one key area it can beat Sony. As is typically the case, there aren’t many flaws with the company’s latest model and its rivals still have their work cut out for them.

That said, for Android users for whom AirPods aren’t really a great option, and who have standard ears and don’t want to move around too much while wearing them, then I definitely recommend the XM5. They just sound so, so good, and the battery and noise cancelling blow me away. These are fantastic headphones that, were they $100 cheaper, would be easy to recommend.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 are a masterpiece that package intelligibly powerful ANC, superior sound and tons of features into one of the most attractive true wireless designs ever created.

The surface of the buds is more rounded than last gen. A flat surface is generally better for the touch controls, but it’s not really an issue. There are a bunch of different features that take some getting used to. There’s the standard play/pause with a tap on the right bud, while the left toggles noise canceling and passthrough. Two and three taps on the right advance and back up the track, respectively, while offering programmable quick access functions on the left. The newest addition is a four-tap feature, which raises volume on the right bud and lowers on the left. Once you get to four taps, it’s generally just easier to control the volume on the source device.

The 1000x series had to grow on me, but I think Sony’s earbuds in particular have really impressed me. They’ve really developed their sound into something that isn’t so constricted. There are necessary enhancements like the new “Find Your EQ” option, redesigned look, call clarity, and sensor feedback. Noise-canceling will always be the main highlight, and it’ll keep the XM5 at the top of the market for its entire lifecycle.

These feel like such a vast advancement over the WF-1000XM5 on so many levels. It’s a smaller compact size, longer battery life and improved audio and call quality. There are a nice number of features if you go digging around the settings. There isn’t much to dislike about these earbuds is trying to get the perfect fit and maybe getting them in your ears to get that great seal. The only thing that may scare people is the cost. They are $299.99 making quite pricey earbuds but possibly some of the best out there.

Sony’s WF-1000XM5s feel like a natural evolution of the company’s flagship line. Crucially, they’re more comfortable than any previous version in your ears — even if the new glossy coating is testing my patience. The active noise cancellation and sound quality have each been amped up a discernible amount — even if the results aren’t game-changing. And I can confidently take calls while using them without any dread of sounding like a muffled jerk. These are the most well-rounded execution of Sony’s vision yet. But I’ll be keeping an eye on battery longevity.

That said, the sound here is ideal. If you subscribe to a streaming service compatible to the company’s 360 Reality Audio program, I couldn’t see you ever going back to another pair of earbuds. Even without the 360 (I was only able to test it, as I use and plan to stick with Spotify), this is excellent audio for earbuds — once you find your ideal equalizer setting (there’s a test on the app) you’ll probably be smitten.

Sony has thrown everything it can into these much smaller earbuds, and given us an extra set of foam tips so they fit perfectly. LDAC, the firm's top-tier DSEE upscaler, and Bluetooth 5.3 are all here, battery life is competitive, and the sound is 100% bona fide Sony quality. However, for us, connectivity drop-outs, average ANC performance, and an app that looks a little busy at this flagship level add up.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds feature a more compact design than their predecessor while retaining excellent sound quality and active noise cancelation.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 are excellent for commuting and travel. These lightweight buds are easy to take with you on the go. Their ANC system can block out the low rumbles of bus engines well, and with the ANC on, they last over eight hours continuously. There are three additional charges in the case if you need it too. Not everyone will find their memory foam ear tips comfortable, especially if you have small ear canals.

Detailed, balanced, and upbeat sound. Extensive functionality. Small, light, and comfortable. Impressive control options.

The excellent WF-1000XM5 are Sony’s most accomplished and analytical wireless earbuds yet

The WF-1000XM5 is another excellent headphone from Sony that represents a step forward for its true wireless series. An improved design leads to better comfort levels, the noise-cancellation is better, they come with a bevy of smart features and an audio performance that’s clearer and more detailed than before.

Improves on what were already some of the best noise-cancelling in-ears around, with even better ANC, a more comfortable fit and stellar audio. They’re pricey, but the WF-1000XM5 are absolutely worth it.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 are excellent all-rounders but, attractive new design aside, aren’t a huge improvement on their predecessors