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Don’t miss super-cheap AirPods before these deals end! Here’s why I’d skip the $99 deal and get AirPods Pro 3 instead — you’ll thank me later

✇TechRadar - All the latest technology news

Some of the most popular deals of Amazon Prime Day has been the discounts on AirPods, including AirPods 4 for $99 at Amazon (was $129), AirPods Pro 3 for $179 at Amazon (was $249) at Amazon, and AirPods Max 2 for $399 at Amazon (was $549).

However, Prime Day ends today, so these deals may end this evening as well.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

That's not confirmed — AirPods aren't labeled as Prime Day deals specifically, and they're also discounted at Walmart and Best Buy, so it's possible that all three retailers will keep these offers going past today. But what that means is that I don't know exactly when they'll end, and they definitely won't stick around for long, so my advice is to buy today if you want to buy a pair of AirPods.

Ah, but which pair? Surely the $99 pair is the most tempting? Well, I've tested them all, and I'm here to tell you to avoid the AirPods 4 today. $99 is now a pretty standard price for them, but last Black Friday, they fell to just $69. That's the price where they start to get tempting, because frankly they're just not very good value at $99 — the Nothing Ear (a) for $53.20 at Amazon (down from $79) are the better budget earbuds. They're half the price, but they sound better and have active noise cancellation.

So, maybe the AirPods 4 with ANC for $148 are a decent deal? Also no. These have fallen to $99 in the past, and that's a good price for them.

No, the only pair of earbuds here that are a stone-cold bargain are the AirPods Pro 3. Now, they fell to $169 recently, but Amazon's $179 deal is still a phenomenal price for earbuds this good — I wouldn't worry too much about the 10 bucks. If you can afford the extra $80 over the $99 AirPods 4, you'll get way more than that in extra value. If you can't stretch to that extra, that's totally fair — but again, I encourage you to get the Nothing buds and save yourself $45.

(I'm not really going to touch on the AirPods Max 2 here — they're their own thing, in their own price world, but $399 is their cheapest price to date, and is great value.)

In the UK? Scroll down for the best UK deals

Today's best AirPods deals in the US

They're the most popular earbuds in the world for a reason. Apple's newest premium buds feature improved active noise cancellation, outstanding audio, a comfortable in-ear design, and new features such as live translation and heart-rate tracking. My favorite features are the Dolby Atmos spatial audio for movies, and the unloseable case, which has a speaker in it and special location tech so your phone can literally point to where it's hiding. Here's our full AirPods Pro 3 review.View Deal

These are the new new March 2026 edition, with the H2 chip and all of the upticks in performance that brings. And though many might have predicted an Apple-style $50 saving (yawn), this $150-off steal is wild! Nobody had this on their bingo card for Prime Day. Let me be abundantly clear: the noise cancellation here is absolutely fantastic, as is the sound quality — read our full AirPods Max 2 review for more.View Deal

Today's best AirPods deals in the UK

If you want Apple's iconic buds in the UK for cheaper, you're in luck. This is the cheapest we've ever seen them. These do-it-all buds really are 100% flagship when it comes to audio and features, and the noise-cancellation quality is outstanding.View Deal

So why do I rate the AirPods Pro 3 so much better than the AirPods 4? They're better than the cheaper model in every way, offering massively better sound quality, active noise cancellation, and all the same features, plus a load of others that are genuinely useful, and complete game-changers in some cases.

Take the case, for example. AirPods Pro 3's case has a 'UWB' wireless chip, which means your iPhone can detect what direction it's in when it's lost, and can literally point you towards it, so you can see which jacket you left it in. And the case has a speaker in, which you can also trigger to help find it.

Or take the Live Translation of other languages in your ears, or the heart-rate tracking, so you can keep an eye on your fitness without a wearable.

Basically, AirPods 4 are a poor value for budget earbuds compared to the competition. AirPods Pro 3 are an excellent value for premium earbuds compared to the competition. Which means with just an $80 difference — which might easily pay for itself if the case stops you from losing them — the AirPods Pro 3 should be what everyone buys.

More Prime Day deals in the US

More Prime Day deals in the UK

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The cheap headphones and earbuds actually worth buying, as picked by audio experts who really tested them

✇TechRadar - All the latest technology news

Here at TechRadar, we test dozens of pairs of headphones every year. And while we've been won over by many an ultra-pricey set of cans, we also love a cheap pair of headphones that punches above its price tag. This article is dedicated to showcasing these wallet-friendly wonders. I asked TechRadar's audio specialists which headphones they'd recommend to buyers on a budget, and you'll find their suggestions below.

If it's true wireless in-ears you're after, you'd struggle to do better than the Nothing Ear (a) buds, which Audio Editor Becky Scarrott awarded a perfect five stars, calling them "a resounding home run" for the British startup and praising the noise cancellation, sound quality and battery life in particular. In the current Amazon Prime Day deals, they're unbeatable value at under $55 / £50.

In the over-ear arena, standouts are the CMF Pro and the 1More Sonoflow Pro HQ51, both of which earned 4.5 stars in our tests. The former were put through their paces by Becky, who was impressed with the "superb" sound quality in general, and was pleasantly surprised to discover "the sort of... personal sound profile curation [we're] more used to seeing in headphones much higher up the food chain". The latter were reviewed by our review's team's resident headphone specialist Harry Padoan, who praised the "adept audio, noise-crushing ANC and eye-catching design". Both are even better value than usual right now, too, thanks to those Prime (and rival-Prime) deals.

Read on for more budget-maximizing buys — and hit the 'View details' button for a summary of what we thought of them in our tests, plus links to the full reviews.

Top cheap earbuds and headphones

Nothing
Ear (a)

Pros

  • Fun, zealous, expansive sound
  • Vastly improved active noise cancellation
  • Smaller, more pocketable case

Cons

  • No wireless charging support
  • No flagship sound profile curation
1More
Sonoflow Pro HQ51

Pros

  • Customizable, satisfying sound
  • Effective ANC
  • Fantastic battery life

Cons

  • App situation is a bit messy
  • Button controls appear a little cheap
  • Build feels slightly flimsy
Huawei
FreeArc

Pros

  • Top-tier sound
  • Competitive price
  • Comfortable fit

Cons

  • App download pains
  • Middling battery life
  • Would benefit from ANC
CMF
Headphone Pro

Pros

  • Excellent hearing tests; unexpected at the level
  • Emotive, circumaural sound
  • Exemplary battery life

Cons

  • ANC isn't amazing
  • Energy slider feels a tad gimmicky
  • No hard carry case or USB-C charger in the box

Anker Liberty 5 Pro earbuds

Anker
Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro

Pros

  • Strong noise cancellation
  • Rock-solid fit
  • Fun, bassy sound

Cons

  • Charging case on the bulky side
  • Could do with a discount
  • Touchscreen can be unresponsive
Sony
WH-CH720

Pros

  • Great sound balance
  • Lots of detail in audio
  • Effective noise cancellation
  • Full of useful features

Cons

  • Sound feels constrained
  • Noise cancellation leaks in low sounds
  • Plastic feels a little cheap
OneOdio
Focus A6

Pros

  • Sensational sound quality
  • Extensive software features
  • Comfy, quality construction

Cons

  • On-ear controls are a little sensitive
  • ANC is good rather than game-changing
JLab
Go Pods ANC

Pros

  • Solid ANC
  • Lightweight build
  • Truly low price

Cons

  • Poor eartip fit
  • Lean battery life
  • Aggressive transparency mode
Soundpeats
Clip1

Pros

  • Fantastic listening test
  • Comfortable build
  • Competitive value

Cons

  • Low max volume
  • Cheap-feeling case
  • Touch control issues

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I was almost ready to ditch earbuds for good until I picked up these 5-star buds from Cambridge Audio that completely restored my faith

✇TechRadar - All the latest technology news
By: rowan.davies@futurenet.com (Rowan Davies)

I've been a hardcore headphones user for almost four years (thank you, Sony), but when I picked up the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100s a few months back, they restored my faith in earbuds.

Since introducing one of the best earbuds back into my life, I've been using them alongside my headphones interchangeably — headphones are better for certain things, and vice versa — but the performance exceeds the low price, and Amazon Prime Day just made them cheaper.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Your next audio upgrade is waiting for you for less than £80, and Amazon UK has dropped the A100s down to £79 from £119, saving you £40 on a solid pair of earbuds we awarded five stars.

Today's best Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 deal

For a pair of earbuds with surprising noise cancelling and a lengthy battery life, sub-£80 is quite a bargain. According to Amazon's listing, this is the lowest price for the Melomania earbuds in the last 30 days, and though the pricing history isn't available right now, it leads me to believe that this is as good as it's going to get this Prime Day. View Deal

I stopped using earbuds years ago after going through a number of models and being let down each time. From there, I swore that earbuds would never give me what I needed quite like headphones do.

However, since I started using the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100s, all the things I enjoyed about earbuds suddenly came flooding back to me.

For starters, they're just far easier to carry around with you, and though over-ear headphones win in the comfort department, the convenience aspect wins by a landslide. However, that's not to say the Melomania A100s aren't comfortable. If anything, they fit quite pleasantly and come with different-sized sponges for you to swap out.

On the audio side of things, the Melomania A100s' noise cancelling is quite impressive for in-ear buds — I find they block out sounds just as well as headphones. That said, switching between noise-cancelling, normal, and transparency settings is very simple. All it takes is a small tap on the left earbud.

Because of their price, you're not going to get all the health tracking bells and whistles as you do with the AirPods Pro 3, but for earbuds that are centred on dynamic and well-defined audio offerings, these earbuds are really all you need.

More Prime Day deals in the UK

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