Soundcore by Anker Q30 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones, Black

Why it's worth it

The Life Q30 has been the default budget ANC recommendation for years, and the reasons still hold: 40 hours with ANC on, three tuned modes, and low-frequency cancellation that handles a plane cabin. It costs meaningfully less than our top pick.

This is the safest cheap ANC headphone you can buy. SoundGuys measured 40 hours with ANC on and 60 with it off in standardized discharge testing, with a full USB-C charge in under two hours. Anker claims up to 95% reduction of low-frequency ambient sound from its dual noise-detecting mics. Years of owner feedback back that up on flights and commutes.

The three ANC modes are manual rather than adaptive, and honestly that's fine. Transport targets airplane engine noise, Outdoor handles traffic and wind, Indoor works on office chatter and background talking. You pick one and forget it. It's less clever than the Q45's automatic switching, but it's one fewer thing to go wrong.

From our review of 8 budget noise canceling headphones, by Ben Carter, Tech Editor

What we like

• +This is the safest cheap ANC headphone you can buy
• +The three ANC modes are manual rather than adaptive, and honestly that's fine
• +Comfort is where the Q30 quietly beats headphones above its price
• +Sound is warm and bass-forward, with 40mm silk diaphragms and Hi-Res certification

What to know

• –ANC on the Q30 is good, not great
• –There's no multipoint here, so switching between your laptop and phone means re-pairing