How much do headphones cost? Today’s prices
Middle price today $59.00; by brand, $69.95 for JBL, $97.99 for Skullcandy and $143.70 for Sony. Half of the 245 headphones we can price sit between $26.99 and $149.95.
Most headphones on the shelf are inexpensive, and a small number of premium noise-cancelling models pull the average well above what a typical pair costs. The middle price and the brand table below are the figures to plan with: today’s Amazon prices for every new pair we track.
Updated · BasketPrice editorial
Noise cancelling is the line the price crosses
The largest single step in price is active noise cancelling. Below it sit wired pairs and basic wireless earbuds; above it, the flagship over-ears and earbuds from Sony, Bose and Apple. Those flagships are replaced every two or three years, and the previous generation usually keeps selling beside the new one for less.
That older model is often the better buy for the money. Our guide to what a new model costs over the old one prices the pairs we track against each other today.
Earbuds and over-ears share this shelf
The figures cover in-ear, on-ear and over-ear headphones together, so the middle price describes the whole shelf rather than either kind. A pair of earbuds and a pair of over-ears at the same price are different purchases; compare within one kind.
Beats and AirPods
Apple has owned Beats since 2014, and the two are sold as separate lines. Beats appears in the brand table below whenever we can price enough of its models; AirPods count under Apple.
Headphones: the prices we see today
Half of the 245 headphones we can price today sit between $26.99 and $149.95, with the middle one at $59.00. The cheapest today is $7.99 and the dearest $1,799.95. The average is $124.26, pulled above the middle by the dearest few.
- JBL: middle $69.95, from $19.95 · 29 priced
- Skullcandy: middle $97.99, from $8.99 · 21 priced
- Sony: middle $143.70, from $7.99 · 19 priced
- Soundcore: middle $39.99, from $20.99 · 14 priced
- Bose: middle $359.00, from $169.00 · 11 priced
- Sennheiser: middle $239.95, from $89.98 · 11 priced
- Beats: middle $135.50, from $49.99 · 10 priced
- SHOKZ: middle $139.95, from $79.95 · 7 priced
- Samsung: middle $97.72, from $42.99 · 6 priced
- TOZO: middle $24.99, from $14.99 · 5 priced
Measured across the 245 products in this category we could price in the last few hours — one price per product, the cheapest live offer, new condition only. Not list prices.
Questions people ask
- How much do headphones cost?
- Half of the 245 headphones we can price today sit between $26.99 and $149.95, with the middle one at $59.00. The cheapest today is $7.99 and the dearest $1,799.95. By brand, the middle price is $69.95 for JBL, $97.99 for Skullcandy, $143.70 for Sony, $39.99 for Soundcore, $359.00 for Bose, $239.95 for Sennheiser, $135.50 for Beats, $139.95 for SHOKZ, $97.72 for Samsung, $24.99 for TOZO. One price per product — the cheapest live offer in new condition — read in the last few hours, not list prices.
- What is the average headphone price?
- $124.26 across the 245 headphones we can price today, against a middle price of $59.00. The average sits above the middle because a few of the dearest models pull it, so the middle price is the better guide to what a typical one costs. One price per product, the cheapest live offer, read in the last few hours.