Best gaming earbuds for PC, Switch 2, Steam Deck, PS5, Xbox and mobile 2025
Our truly wireless and low-latency recommendations.
Wireless earbuds used to be an rare choice for gaming, but the advent of PC handhelds like the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally and improvements to battery life, latency and compatibility have changed that. The arrival of the Switch 2 doesn't hurt, either. In 2025, it seems as if we're in something of a golden age, with a huge raft of affordable in-ear headphones that provide a great gaming experience on the go (or indeed at home) without the bulk of traditional on-ear gaming headsets.
In this article, we're rounding up the best truly wireless in-ear headphones we've found and tested for gaming so far, ranging from surprisingly affordable budget options to more premium offerings that offer advantages in terms of performance, comfort and usability. Some work over Bluetooth alone, while more advanced models add in a USB-C dongle that offers significantly lower latency via 2.4GHz wireless.
It's important to note too that all of our options work on a wide range of devices, from smartphones and tablets to more dedicated gaming platforms like desktop PCs, laptops, handhelds and home consoles. You can use the quick links below to jump to the model you're interested in, or scroll on for the entire round-up.
Best wireless gaming earbuds 2025
1. SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds
Our new top choice for all platforms
SteelSeries has produced some of the best gaming headsets in the business, especially their comfy and great-sounding Arctis Nova lineup, and now the Danish firm make in-ear headphones too. The Arctis GameBuds sound great, fit comfortably, last a long time and feature genuinely useful features: active noise cancellation (ANC), compatibility with all gaming platforms and game-specific EQ profiles via mobile and PC apps.
Let's unpick those points one by one. The ANC situation is pretty straightforward: these in-ears block a great deal of sound through passive and active noise cancellation, with a transparency mode so you can still hear the outside world if needed. They're not quite as effective as much larger on-ear headphones, but it's still a brilliant feature for gaming on flights or working in busy cafés.
The compatibility is strong here too, with the Xbox version being the one we recommend. That's because its USB-C dongle supports Microsoft's proprietary 2.4GHz wireless standard when in Xbox mode, but supports every other platform - including PS5, PS4, Switch and PC - via low-latency 2.4GHz as well. There's also Bluetooth 5.3 for connecting dongle-free to phones and tablets, and unlike Sony's Inzone Buds, this isn't limited to a small number of mostly Sony smartphones.
Finally, the app situation is truly impressive. The mobile app lets you choose from dozens of EQ presets for music, movies and specific games, with separate settings for Bluetooth and 2.4GHz modes, while the PC app adds on a full parametric EQ and the ability to save your own EQ settings to the headphones. This makes for a huge upgrade over the Inzone Buds and basically everything else on the market, especially for console players unlikely to have access to game-specific EQs on PlayStation or Xbox - including some created by esports teams.
There's plenty more to discuss here, including the many design wins here - the excellent physical buttons built into each in-ear, the Qi wireless charging case, the water resistance - but suffice it to say, these are the best gaming earbuds we've ever tested.
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2. Sony Inzone Buds
Great gaming earbuds for PS5, PC and more - but limited on mobile
Our second-favourite gaming in-ears are the Sony Inzone Buds, designed for use with PS5 and PC but of course compatible with a wide range of other USB-C devices like the Switch, Steam Deck, smartphones and tablets. Their low-latency 2.4GHz wireless is rated for less than 30ms of wireless latency, offering a significant advantage over Bluetooth-only alternatives, and battery life is good at up to 12 hours. The effective ANC (active noise cancellation) makes it easy to concentrate on what you're doing, and you get active, transparency and inactive modes to choose from therein.
Usability is superb too, with an extremely comfortable fit, reliable touch controls and a well-designed PC app for adjusting settings. The app even includes a guide to selecting the best ear tips from those provided, which is a lovely inclusion given how easily this important step can be overlooked. The one usability stumble here is that the Inzone Buds only work with a vanishingly small list of smartphones via Bluetooth 5.3 LE, requiring my Pixel 6 and OnePlus 12R to connect via the USB-C dongle instead - great for latency, not ideal if you want to charge your phone and listen to your headphones at the same time. This means there's no mobile app option for most phones too.
The matte plastic charging case is a little unwieldy too, with a rounded but tall shape that doesn't fit easily into smaller pockets, but it's at least light at 65g with in-ears and dongle inside. That's somewhat explained by its relatively small battery, which doubles battery life rather than tripling it or better as we see on other models.
Of course, audio is key, and the Inzone Buds are the best-sounding wireless in-ears we've tested for gaming. The drivers, which are also seen in the popular WF-1000XM5, deliver slightly muddy and warm bass but plenty of detail in the mids and pleasant (if slightly veiled) treble. The sound seems well-suited for FPS gameplay out of the box, with very evident footsteps, but you can select more neutral and music-friendly EQs in the app provided. Mic performance is also reasonable for in-ears. I also appreciated the fact you get separate chat and game mix devices in Windows, making it easier to balance their relative volume. Surround sound is also available, though as usual I don't rate it for competitive play and I would recommend sticking with your chosen game's stereo output.
The Sony Inzone Buds aren't quite perfect in-ears - but despite a few limitations, they hit enough the right notes when it comes to comfort, usability and audio quality for the second place spot overall.
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3. Creative Aurvana Ace Mimi
Good sound and a comfy fit, while lacking effective ANC or 2.4GHz wireless
The Creative Aurvana Ace Mimi are the company's best in-ears yet, offering excellent sound quality, a stylish design and a choice of several Bluetooth codecs, including low-latency and high-res LDAC, activated in the Creative mobile app. (Mimi sound personalisation, game- and genre-specific EQ selection, input rebinding and tuning into Auracast broadcasts are also available in-app, which is sometimes unresponsive on Android but eventually does the job.) I particularly like the look of these in-ears, with a midnight blue colourway and shiny chrome inside the charging case, and they also wear comfortably - with five earbud tip options to ensure a good fit.
Battery life is reasonable but not category-leading, with seven hours of ANC-off listening and an extra 21 hours with the charging case, which can itself be recharged wirelessly. There is no USB dongle for even lower-latency wireless, allowing the case to be a bit sleeker and smaller than the two picks above. I wouldn't choose these for multiplayer gaming or particularly timing-sensitive single-player games for that reason, but for watching films and playing most game genres these are perfectly acceptable in the latency department. The active noise cancellation here isn't as reliable as that from SteelSeries or Sony above, but is still a useful feature for concentrating on work or games.
Sound quality is thankfully a strong point, with the xMEMS drivers delivering good detail in the mids and treble, while bass is perhaps a little over-emphasised - though not to the detriment of the highs. This can be adjusted via the sound personalisation and equaliser settings in-app, so I'd suggest using both options to get these buds sounding the way you like them.
Given the relatively moderate pricing here, good audio quality and reasonable battery life, the Creative Aurvana Ace Mimi deserve their podium placing in our round-up, only being held back by slightly less effective ANC and the lack of low-latency 2.4GHz wireless. Overall though, this is still a great value set of in-ears that we are happy to recommend.
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4. Edifier NeoBuds Planar
A good value option with great battery life
Like the other Edifier options below, the Edifier NeoBuds Planar support rapid pairing on Android, offer good but not great active noise cancellation and reasonably low latency - a good start. Where the Planar get interesting is with their namesake planar magnetic drivers, which deliver exquisite detail and clarity across a wide range of gaming genres, not to mention music and spoken word audio. Bass is tight and controlled here, in contrast to the more exciting v-shaped response curves that are popular amongst many gaming headphone brands.
To back this up, the Planar support a wide range of higher quality codecs, including LDAC, LHDC, aptX, aptX Adaptive, aptX Lossless, aptX HD and Snapdragon Sound. Battery life is relatively modest at 7.5 hours with ANC disabled and only five hours with it on, though you can get an extra 22.5 hours (ANC on) or 15 hours (ANC off) from the included wireless charging case. Fast charging is also available.
The provided ANC is OK, proving somewhat effective at blocking out noise on a half-full off-peak train, but not quite at the level of the SteelSeries buds nor more established names like Bose or Sony. These are also IP54 rated for dust and water resistance, denoting temporary protection from rain or sweat. I also found the fit had improved compared to the Edifier NeoDots below. The Edifier ConneX app remains good, offering the usual swathe of controls, but not matching industry leaders SteelSeries in terms of fine-grained control nor game and genre-specific presets.
Are the NeoBuds Planar worth their premium asking price? If you are in love with planar magnetic headphones - or just want to enjoy maximum detail in your music - with battery life and ANC being secondary considerations, these are a good fit for gaming and music on the go. However, most people will be better served by cheaper alternatives.
Note that the NeoBuds Planar have shot up by $100 to $300 in the US due to recent tariff changes, making them a much better deal outside of that territory - eg in the UK, they retail at £199 and ought to see discounts below that figure.
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5. Edifier NeoDots
A good value option with great battery life
The Edifier NeoDots are convenient to use with an Android phone right out of the box, with a simple pop-up and extremely rapid, button-free pairing when you tap 'pair'. Like the Creative options above, the NeoDots are Bluetooth only, no 2.4GHz wireless, with options for LDAC high-res audio or a low-latency connection rated at 80ms.
The stockier build of these headphones allows for a larger battery, good for 17 hours with ANC disabled or 12 hours with it on. That battery case is also on the larger side, and adds a further 39 hours of playback - so you can pretty much see out a full work week with a single charge, which can be done via USB-C or Qi wireless charging if you prefer.
The ANC is a touch better than that of the Creative Aurvana Ace Mimi, though it doesn't do as well on higher frequency noise. The thicker build here makes for slightly less comfortable headphones that didn't fit into my ears as well as most others I've tested, though they didn't come out even when running outside or working out at the gym. These are also IP55 rated for dust and water resistance, so you can use them in a rain shower or while sweating heavily without worry.
The Edifier ConneX app worked well in our testing, with a ton of options overall but only three EQ presets and a "custom" four-band EQ, which feels restrictive versus the dozens of game and genre-specific presets available on other in-ears.
In terms of audio, the NeoDots are great but not quite top-quality, with a bass-heavy mix that you can tune to be more neutral using the in-app EQ. Mids and treble still deliver a good amount of detail, and the bombastic sound signature suits more cinematic games and bass-heavy musical genres.
Given the lower asking price of these in-ears versus those that we've ranked higher, they're still well worth considering - especially if you don't need the 2.4GHz wireless found in the SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds or Sony InZone Buds. A good value option only a few small tweaks away from greatness.
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6. Urbanista Seoul
Stylish and affordable earbuds, but not the lowest latency
The Urbanista Seoul mobile gaming headphones are comfortable, stylish, relatively long-lasting at 8 hours and even IPX4 water-resistant. The silicone tips provided here provide good passive noise isolation, while the low-profile charging case is easy to tuck into your pocket and adds a further 24 hours of play time. If you don't like the look of the blue model above, black, white and purple options are also available.
The Seoul sound good for the money too, with a fairly bass-heavy sound signature that suits some genres of games and music. In others, though, the relatively underwhelming mids and treble can result in a slightly tinny sound.
The only other downside I could identify was latency, which at a quoted 70ms is more than double some of the other headsets on this list. Therefore, I'd recommend looking elsewhere if you play games with timing-sensitive inputs, though for slower-paced gaming the Seoul still perform just fine.
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Those are all of our picks for now! Stay tuned for more updates as we have them, and feel free to leave a comment below or reach out on Bluesky (@wsjudd) if you have questions or suggestions.