Sony WH-1000XM4

The XM4's noise cancelling is still the best you can buy, and users rave about the comfort and multipoint. Battery life sometimes misses the 30-hour mark, but you'll easily get a full workday. At current sale prices around $250, it's a no-brainer for anyone who values silence.

Look, the Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones have been around for a few years, and they're still the noise cancelling benchmark. We've tested a ton of over-ears, and nothing hushes airplane drone or chatty coworkers like these. The moment you slide them on, the world gets quiet. And yes, users agree: the ANC is borderline magical.

Beyond the silence, you get a solid 30 hours of battery, multipoint that actually works, and sound that's balanced if not the most exciting out of the box. The companion EQ lets you tweak things to taste, so you can add a little bass punch or pull back the treble. They fold flat, which is a win over the newer XM5, and the speak-to-chat feature is a neat trick for coffee runs.

ANC is where these shine, landing in the 98th percentile of our database and still the best you can get without going wired. Connectivity is similarly impressive, with Bluetooth 5.0, LDAC for hi-res, and buttery-smooth switching between two devices. Sound quality sits around the 62nd percentile, which sounds underwhelming on paper, but the clarity and soundstage are solid for mixed usage, and the EQ easily fixes the slightly recessed mids. Call quality is a pleasant surprise: five mics and noise-reduction processing make your voice come through clearly even in a breeze. The only head-scratcher is our comfort metric, which puts these at a dismal 6th percentile. We think the spec weight of 748g must be a typo—the actual weight is around 250g—because owner after owner says they're light and comfy for hours. Still, if you have larger ears, clamping force can build up over long sessions.

Price is all over the place right now. We've seen listings from $224 to a laughable $4,761. At the low end, around $250, the XM4 is an absolute steal for the ANC performance you're getting. Even at $300, they're competitive, but you'll want to shop around. The sweet spot is finding a sale that puts them under $270. For the top-tier noise cancelling, solid battery, and a build that's held up for years in people's bags, this is one of the best audio bargains you'll grab.

Against the Sennheiser Momentum 4, the XM4 trades blows: the Sennheiser sound more refined out of the box, but the Sony's ANC is noticeably better. The Bose QuietComfort Ultra trail slightly in ANC but are often called the most comfortable, so if that's your priority, check them out. The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 offer a livelier, wider soundstage, but cost more and lack the same level of noise blocking. If you want to save some cash, the JBL Live 770NC does a respectable job for less, but you give up the premium build and mic quality. Despite being not the newest kid on the block, the XM4 still sits at the top for all-around ANC performance, and that's why it remains the go-to for frequent flyers.

If you need the absolute best sound quality for critical listening, look at the Sennheiser Momentum 4 or Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3, which both offer more natural tuning out of the box. And if you rely on wired ANC without battery drain, these won't do it—once the battery dies, you lose all smart features. Also, if you've had issues with touch-sensitive controls in the past, the XM4's pad can be finicky, and you might find the physical button controls on some Bose models less frustrating.

The Sony WH-1000XM4 is still the headset to beat for noise cancellation. You're getting a proven design that's light, foldable, and packed with features that just work. Buy these if you fly often, work in a noisy office, or need dead-quiet focus. The sound is good enough, the calls are clear, and the battery will get you through a cross-country flight. It's not the absolute last word in audio fidelity, but for 95% of listeners, it's more than enough.