6 Best headphones for airplane travel under $100: Budget-friendly headphones for the sky’s

Introduction

In this review, I intend to cover the best headphones for air travel that cost under $100.

Everybody knows that to survive a long or short-term flight, you need a pair of quality headphones to pass the time.

If money were not a problem, I would advise that everyone purchase a pair of Sony 1000 XM 3’s or The Bose Noise-canceling headphones 700.

But not everyone wants to spend upwards of $300 for a pair of wireless active noise-canceling headphones.

So here are a pair of headphones made for flying that wont break the bank. I initially thought that this would be an easy choice, but boy was I surprised, at the many options and the range of features out there.

Just because these headphones cost under $100 does not mean that they cannot stand up to the bigger players in the segment.

The technology and the engineering has improved to the point that these headphones can deliver a quality listening experience.

We have made our selection from a variety of headphones including over ear and in/on ear wireless headphones.

Although this article is targeted at those that are looking for headphones that they can use on a plain, the list will also fulfill the needs of those who are looking for a pair of headphones for under $100.

Without Further ado let’s get into the list of the best headphones for air travel costing less than $100.

6.  Mpow H10

This is one of the ANC (Active noise cancelling) headphones that make this list.

With Both Feed forward and feedback dual mic Active noise cancellation technology the Mpow H10 headphones ensure that background noise is significantly reduced to a level of 32db.

The Mpow H10 is the perfect travel, work and home companion. These headphones are excellent for short distance flights, offering a solid balanced sound.

The level of comfort is amazing ensuring that you can wear the Mpow H10 all day long. The quality has been achieved with some innovative engineering.

The headband produces negligible clamping force whilst still being able to fit snugly and tightly on your head. With soft enlarged protein ear pads the Mpow headphones provide comfort all day long.

Mpow H10

With the Mpow H10 you can enjoy up to 30 hours of listening and talk time. With only a single charge you can get almost a weeks’ worth of listening pleasure.

By connecting the headphone cable to your device, you can have uninterrupted access to your music.

If you are making use of the audio cable and the battery is dead, you will not be able to access the noise cancelling functionality.

Mpow H10

The sound quality is high definition. The 40mm drivers and the accompanying CSR Bluetooth provide amazing sound quality and a delightful audio experience.

The well-known CSR 8635 Bluetooth chip guarantees a consistent and stable connection to your device.

The Mpow includes a built in cvc 6.0 noise cancelling microphone, which improves the hands-free calling capability, and provides calls with improved call quality.

Mpow H10

5. SRHYTHM NC-25 Active Noise Cancelling Headphones

As far as the design is concerned, the inside dimensions of the Srhythm NC25 ear cups are: 6×3.5cm, but your ear can be embedded the earmuff, so the inside size should reach 8.3×6.3cm.

As these are noise cancelling headphones they will be great for longer flights where the get engine noise can become unsettling and irritating.

Fortunately, the S RHYTHM NC-25 ANC headphones come with an airplane adaptor. The SRYTHM comes equipped with a 3.5mm audio cable, and even an aviation adapter.

The headphones also include Bluetooth version 4.1, and can be connected to any Smart TV as well as to your PS 4 or other Bluetooth compatible console.

IS Rhythym NC 25

The thing that I enjoyed when wearing the SRYTHM headphones was the fact that there was absolutely no latency, allowing me to enjoy movies and music on my flight without any delays.

With a perfectly adjustable headband the NC 25 headphones will be able to accommodate many head shapes and sizes.

The headphones are also perfect for flying since there is no sound leakage, even at relatively high volumes. This ensures that you will not interrupt the person next to you with your music.

You can enjoy a decent sound quality and volume control. I especially like using the SRHYTHM NC headphones with my apple devices.

With respect to charging. The NC 25 headphones take approximately 1-2 hours until they are completely charged.

The NC 25 headphones will display a blue light or no light dependent on the version that you have. When the battery is low, this will be indicated by a beeping sound.

In case you were wandering the SRYTHM headphones are active noise cancelling headphones. of course, the headphones are not going to compete with Sony or Bose especially at this price point (Link to Amazon)

But the noise cancellation is average. I feel at best it will muffle out a decent amount of noise. But for Under $100 it does a decent Job.

The battery does last for up to 16 hours on a full charge. This is not too bad and will last you at least 2 days.

In fact, this battery life performance is in line with headphones such as the Microsoft surface headphones which retail for 3 times as much.

The NC 25 is also very lightweight and portable coming in at 192 grams. This as well as the protein materials ensure that you can wear the NC 25 for hours on end.

4. Audio Technica ATH ANC7B Active Noise Cancelling Headphones

The makers claim that the ATH ANC7B Active noise cancellation headphones can reduce outside noise by about 90%.

When we tried them on we realized that this may be slightly exaggerated. having said that, I do believe that the ATH ANC 7B headphones do offer a good amount of noise cancelling capabilities.

When sitting on a flight from London to New York, I gave these headphones a try. I was impressed with the ability to reduce low pitched sounds effectively.

The headphones are lightweight, and have a fordable design which make them very good for storage.

Audio Technica 7b

The headphones can connect to multiple devices, including Apple® iPod®, iPhone™ and iPod touch® portable music and DVD players, laptop computers, in-flight entertainment systems and other devices.

The drivers are the huge 40mm drivers that most quality active noise cancelling headphones come with.

The drivers deliver quality sound through neodymium magnet systems for impact bass, extended treble and higher fidelity.

The ear cups are nice and large and include a generous amount of padding to ensure maximum padding to protect the ears from discomfort.

Audio Technica 7b

The included audio cable is 3.5mm, and the headphones also come with a specialized adapter as well as a decent carrying case.

Refer to the following link for the Audio Technica ATH ANC7B Active Noise Cancelling Headphones manual

Audio Technica

3. Sennheiser HD 559 Open Back Headphone

These are closed back, dynamic headphones. The headphones are accompanied by 40mm drivers that deliver amazing sound.

The design has been made to look like a pair of headphones from the early 1990’s. I recon Sony wanted to bring back the classic look.

These headphones are a very fitting entry into the best headphones for air travel under $100.

This is because even with headphones under $100 Sony are still able to provide quality sound at an amazing price.

HD559

I found that the sound was a balanced sound that did not focus extensively on Bass or any other audio frequency. What you will get is a beautiful experience with detailed sound.

The headphones are compact, lightweight and portable. This ensures that they will fit on your head and you will not feel them at all.

I was a little let down by the amount of padding as I felt that this did get in the way of very extended listening sessions.

Never the less if you listen to headphones for a maximum of 2 straight hours these will do a great Job.

Sennheiser HD559

Again, I reckon that these headphones are probably amazing for the shorter flights. On longer, international flights they may not be the greatest.

But if your budget is just on $100, they are worth the try.

What also makes the headphones good for air travel is the included 3.5mm cable, allowing you to make use of the in flight entertainment system.

For those of you who are fans of noise cancellation, you will be disappointed. At best, you will get some decent isolation from the headphones, but nothing on the level of the Great noise cancelling headphones. 

Having said that, if you just want to have a good time with your entertainment and listen to quality sounding cans at a good price, then check out the price on the Sony MDR-7506 below.

Sennheiser HD 559

2 Paww WaveSound 3 Bluetooth 5.0 Wireless Active Noise Cancelling Over Ear Headphones.

The name is a mouthful. I am guessing from the title alone that you can see that these headphones come with the latest in Bluetooth technology, with Bluetooth 5.o and are equipped with active noise cancellation.

So why are they on the list of the best headphones for air travel. Well the number 1 factor must be the sound quality.

Of the headphones on this list I will stick my neck out and say that these headphones have he best sound quality.

Paww

The Custom-tuned twin 40-mm beryllium dynamic drivers accurately reproduce balanced sound across the entire frequency range.

The WaveSound 3 headphones have been designed with built in aptx low latency, and as a result produce some of the best hi def music over a Bluetooth connection.

Low latency implies 34ms, which the human ear could never make out.

These headphones have been designed almost exclusively for reducing low frequency noises. So, for the frequent flyer they are perfect at getting rid of jet engine noise.

Fortunately, you can still make out human voices and thus will be able to here announcements from the flight attendants and pilots.

Paww

The extra padding provides maximum comfort. At 198 grams the headphones are easy to wear on your head for the whole day.

The ear pads have been designed with super soft protein materials which make them nice to the touch.

The ear cups even swivel for easy packing and storage. The Soundwave 3’s also come with a Share me function that essentially allows 2 people to listen to music or movies on the same source device

Without being tethered to each other by an audio cable Splitter.

Paww Carrying Case

The wave South 3 can even connect to multiple devices and can even evoke digital assistants such as Siri or google assist.

The headphones contain advanced a cvc 6.0 microphone technology which ensures excellent call quality.

1. Avantree New ANC031

This is probably not the biggest name in audio around the world, but they deserve to be on a list for headphones for air travel.

Avantree is middle priced audio company that focuses on good quality budget headphones. the company also produces PC gamin adapters.

Active noise cancellation can be activated with a single click of a button. The ANC button sits on the bottom side of the left ear cup and doubles as the on off button.

The dynamic 40mm drivers along with a Bluetooth CSR chipset ensure that the listening experience is smooth and fulfilling.

The sound has been optimized for bass and if you are a bass head you will not mind these cans.

Get engine noise can be almost eliminated by these cans.

The headphones also come in a durable carrying case so that they can be easily stored and packaged.

With the user-friendly interface, you can answer phone calls, adjust the volume, control the playback and even mute the microphone.

When the headphones are in wired mode the ability to control your microphone and your volume is disabled.

The most amazing feature of these headphones is the fact that they come with somewhere around 28 hours of battery life when wireless mode is off. This is quite impressive especially when compared to most other noise cancelling headphones that retail for twice the price.

The headphones come with a 3.5mm jack for wired listening if your battery dies out.

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