Best Noise-Cancelling Headphones in India 2020: Great Choices for Every Budget

Some of the best noise-cancelling headphones offer a solution to the current work-from-home situation. Since the pandemic, most people have been working in less-than-ideal work conditions from their homes, which possibly includes uncomfortable seating position and constant noise by kids. The bad seating position can be remedied by a proper chair and a desk, but how do you kill noise and distraction? Well, you have to invest in noise-cancelling earphones or headphones.

If you are in the market for a good pair of noise-cancelling headphones, we have made your job easier by narrowing down some of the best noise-cancelling earphones and noise-cancelling headphones that are available in India in 2020.

Best Over-Ear Noise-Cancelling Headphones in India 2020

If you want a decent set of noise-cancelling headphones in India, you have to shell out at least ₹10,000. Headphones priced between ₹10,000 and ₹15,000 have acceptable audio and noise cancellation performance, but they generally have sub-par build quality and comfort and may not have features like a USB Type-C port or fast charging.

Spending a bit more can get you noise-cancelling headphones with better audio and build quality, Alexa and Google Assistant integration, better controls, a companion app, a USB Type-C port and fast charging. Spending more than ₹20,000 gets you top-of-the-line audio quality and noise cancellation performance, additional features like water splash resistance, fast connect, and multi-point connection.

1. Sony WH-1000XM3 – ₹22,000 Onwards

The Sony WH-1000XM4 are the best noise-cancelling headphones in the world right now. However, I think that Sony’s older model, the WH-1000XM3, makes more sense for most people as they are priced lower and have all the necessary features. At ₹8,000 less than the WH-1000XM4, the WH-1000XM3 offers a similarly comfortable design, largely similar audio quality, same battery life (up to 30 hours), and almost all the features.

The Sony WH-1000XM3 sounds amazing and offers extremely good noise cancellation performance. While the WH-1000XM4 offer wear detection for automatically pausing music playback when you remove the headphones and resuming music playback when you wear them back, they miss out on the aptX wireless audio codec, something that’s available on the WH-1000XM3. Overall, the WH-1000XM3 are great for the price and you can’t go wrong with them if you have the budget.

Pros

• Very good audio quality
• Strong noise cancellation performance
• Comfortable design, swivelling earcups, foldable hinge
• aptX, AAC, LDAC codecs
• Long battery life, fast charging
• USB Type-C port
• Bundled carrying case, additional accessories
• Companion smartphone app for customizations
• Alexa built-in, compatible with Google Assistant

Cons

• Uses Bluetooth 4.2 instead of Bluetooth 5.0
• Slightly pricey
• Call quality could be better

2. Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 – ₹34,500

The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 are great for those who attend a lot of calls. They offer slightly better call quality when compared to the Sony WH-1000XM4 and a slightly sleeker and more modern design. The audio quality is balanced, the noise cancellation performance is great, the battery life is decently long, and the headphones are comfortable to wear. They even offer adjustable noise cancellation levels so that you can adjust transparency when you have to hear your colleagues or wife. The headphones also feature Alexa voice assistant.

The headphones don’t have a foldable hinge, which could pose a problem while travelling and if you don’t have a lot of space in your bags. The Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 also miss out on aptX and LDAC codecs and depend on the lower-quality codecs such as AAC and SBC. The company’s companion smartphone app isn’t as mature and feature-rich as that of Sony’s. They are also slightly pricey.

Pros

• Balanced audio quality
• Excellent noise cancellation performance
• Great call quality
• Good battery life
• USB Type-C port
• Built-in Alexa

Cons

• No aptX or LDAC
• No foldable hinge
• A half-baked smartphone companion app
• Pricey for the features offered

3. Sennheiser Momentum 3 – ₹34,990

Sennheiser is a German audio brand that is popular with audiophiles, and the company has delivered with its Momentum 3 headphones. They offer enjoyable and punchy audio. However, the noise cancellation performance isn’t as good as on headphones from Bose and Sony. Its design feels solid, and features like fast auto-connect and multi-connect make it easier to use these headphones with multiple devices. Plus, there’s Tile integration, which means that you can find them using the Tile app when you lose them around your home or office.

They are pricey compared to the Sony WH-1000XM3 and the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700. Moreover, their controls are fiddly and the companion app is buggy. Battery life could have been longer, too, as rivals are longer-lasting headphones at a lower price. If you are a Sennheiser fan and love their audio tuning and build quality, you will love these headphones.

Pros

• Detailed, punchy sound
• Decent noise cancellation performance
• Premium design
• Bluetooth 5.0 with AAC, aptX, and aptX LL
• Fast autoconnect, multiconnect features are handy
• Tile integration feature to find lost headphones
• USB Type-C port

Cons

• Very pricey
• Fiddly controls
• Battery life could’ve been better

4. Bowers & Wilkins PX7 – ₹36,999

Sure, the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 are the costliest wireless noise-cancelling headphones in the list, but they have a lot of things going for it, including premium-feeling design, extremely detailed audio, competitive noise cancellation, and even adjustable noise cancellation levels. Along with Bluetooth 5.0 and all the high-resolution codecs, long battery life, and a USB Type-C port, the Bowers & Wilkins PX7 is among the most complete offerings in the segment. It lacks touch controls, though, and its earcups don’t collapse, so storing them in tight places is an issue.

Pros

• Detailed, balanced audio quality
• Competitive noise cancellation performance
• Adjustable noise cancellation
• Bluetooth 5.0 with AAC, aptX, aptX Adaptive, aptX HD
• Premium design, wear detection
• Long battery life
• USB Type-C port

Cons

• Very pricey
• No touch controls
• Earcups don’t collapse

5. Jabra Elite 85H – ₹24,990

The Jabra Elite 85H is Jabra’s first product that competes directly with the chart-toppers, and it succeeds to a large extent. The noise cancellation is close to the likes of the Sony WH-1000XM3 and the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700, but the audio quality isn’t as good. There’s Bluetooth 5.0 with support for AAC and multipoint connection. Yes, aptX is missing. If you make a lot of calls, you would be extremely satisfied with the Jabra Elite 85H.

These headphones even feature wear detection for pausing music when you remove them from your ears. The Jabra Elite 85H are bulkier than other headphones in its category, but they have water splash resistance and very long battery life. It also features a USB Type-C port.

Pros

• Good noise cancellation performance
• Bluetooth 5.0 with AAC and multipoint connection
• Great call quality
• Water splash resistance
• Wear detection
• Very long battery life
• USB Type-C port

Cons

• Heavy
• No aptX support
• Audio quality could be slightly better

6. Sony WH-H910N (₹19,990) or WH-XB900N – (₹18,990)

If you don’t have the kind of budget that is needed to buy premium noise-cancelling headphones, you can have a look at two Sony headphones: Sony WH-H910 and WH-XB900N. They are very similar headphones, but the former has a neutral sound tuning and the latter has bass-focussed audio. Both headphones are priced slightly below the ₹20,000 mark and they feature decent noise cancellation. The audio quality on the WH-H910 has a close-to-neutral tone, while the WH-XB900 is tuned for bass heads. So, you can choose between them as per your preference.

They feature a comfortable design, AAC and LDAC codecs, USB Type-C port with fast charging, and long battery life. They are also compatible with Alexa and Google Assistant, and they have touch controls on the earcups. They last for more than 30 hours each and have a companion smartphone app to customise controls and use additional features.

Compared to more premium noise-cancelling headphones, the noise cancellation performance is slightly below that of premium headphones and the audio tuning isn’t as neutral, so you’ll have to adjust your expectations.

Pros

• Decent audio quality / Punchy audio for bassheads on the WH-XB900N
• Satisfactory noise cancellation performance
• AAC and LDAC codecs
• Alexa and Google Assistant integration
• Companion app
• Long battery life
• USB Type-C port

Cons

• Bass-heavy audio on the WH-XB900N
• No aptX codec
• Below-par call quality

7. Sennheiser 450BT – ₹14,990 Onwards

The Sennheiser 450BT are mid-range wireless noise-cancelling headphones, and they come with some quirks, which are acceptable for the price. They have decent noise cancellation performance, but the audio is bass-heavy. Build quality and controls aren’t great. There’s a USB Type-C port and battery life is very long, but they don’t support fast charging. At least, there’s a companion app to make up for its downsides.

Pros

• Decent noise cancellation for the price
• Bluetooth 5.0 with AAC, aptX, and aptX LL
• Long battery life
• USB Type-C port
• Relatively affordable

Cons

• Bass-heavy audio
• Below-par build quality
• Controls aren’t great
• No fast charging

8. Anker Soundcore Life Q20 – ₹9,999

The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 are the cheapest noise-cancelling headphones with acceptable audio quality and noise cancellation performance. They last very long, too, but they use a microUSB port instead of a future-proof USB Type-C port. The headphones also feel a bit flimsy compared to pricier noise-cancelling headphones in this list. Plus, they take almost three hours for a full charge since they lack fast charging. And Anker’s Soundcore smartphone app is not compatible with the Life Q20 headphones, so you can’t customise controls or change the equaliser.

Pros

• Affordable
• Acceptable noise cancellation performance
• Long battery life

Cons

• Audio quality could have been slightly better
• The build could feel a bit flimsy
• No USB Type-C port
• No fast charging

We hope that you have found the best noise-cancelling headphones for your needs and budget. If you think we have missed a model that deserves to be in this list, let us know via the comments section below.