Sony WF-1000XM5 Review

We've been recommending Sony's WF-1000XM4 earphones for a couple of years now, so we had admittedly high hopes for the WF-1000XM5. On the audio front, these noise-cancelling true wireless earphones deliver robust lows and crisp highs, plus they benefit from an excellent five-band EQ and support for the high-end LC3 and LDAC Bluetooth codecs. As for active noise cancellation (ANC), Sony one-ups both the Apple AirPods Pro ($249) and the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II ($299) in certain scenarios, though Bose delivers the most consistently effective ANC we've tested. The AirPods Pro, meanwhile, are unmatched in terms of seamless compatibility with Apple phones, tablets, and PCs. That said, the WF-1000XM5 earbuds deliver the best audio quality of the bunch, earning them our Editors’ Choice award alongside the AirPods Pro and the QuietComfort Earbuds, particularly for audiophiles.

Upscale Aesthetics and Eartips

The WF-1000XM5 earpieces are thankfully smaller than their somewhat bulky predecessors, but I still wouldn't call them tiny. They are available in matte black with brass accents or a stone-like beige with gold accents. The accents are subtle; just circular microphone grilles on the outer panels. The interior panels of the earpieces are somewhat glossy, but the outer panels are matte, with a smooth texture. The earphones look handsome and sophisticated overall, plus they're easy to grip. In the box, you get four total pairs of eartips (XS, S, M, and L), which are helpfully color-coded and labeled.

The eartips make for one of the best in-canal fits I've tested. The material feels like a hybrid between silicone (the most common choice) and foam (the most effective for isolation). If you press on silicone tips, the material gives way and then bounces back into shape almost immediately. Foam tips compress and then regain their form slowly. These new tips from Sony take the best of both approaches: Once they compress slightly in your ear canal, they gradually expand to create a more secure seal. As such, they have a leg up on passive noise reduction right out of the box.

Internally, the earbuds have new 8.4mm dynamic drivers (up from 6mm). The company says that each driver features a rigid central section that improves the handling of higher frequencies, while a more movement-oriented outer area focuses on delivering the lows.

The earbuds are compatible with Bluetooth 5.3 and work with the AAC, LC3, LDAC, and SBC codecs. LC3 support makes them somewhat future-proof, while the LDAC option unlocks hi-res streaming on compatible Android devices (or via certain Bluetooth USB DACs). Neither the QC Earbuds nor the AirPods Pro offer these options, though you can surprisingly get them from some affordable alternatives like the $99.99 Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC (LDAC) and the Earfun Air Pro 3 (LC3). Multipoint connectivity means you can pair the Sony earphones with up to two devices at the same time.

The on-ear capacitive touch gestures work essentially the same way as on the previous model, with the notable addition of volume controls to the default layout. Single taps on the left earpiece switch between the ANC and Ambient modes (you can add an Off option to the cycle), double and triple taps can handle Spotify Tap or Endel (a generative soundscape app), and four taps lowers the volume. On the right earpiece, a single tap controls playback, two taps takes you to the next track, three taps takes you to the previous one, four taps increases the volume, and a long press summons your device's voice assistant. Four taps is a tall order for changing the volume, but the controls feel relatively responsive. As is the case with many competing models, however, it's easy to accidentally play or pause music when you insert the earbuds or adjust their fit.

Oddly, you can also use head gestures to operate a select few functions. For instance, you can nod to answer incoming calls or start music via the Auto Play app, and shake your head to reject an incoming call or stop the Auto Play app. (Auto Play is a separate Sony app for Android and iOS that integrates with only Apple Music and Spotify of this writing.) I would have much preferred if Sony had reserved the head gestures for some of the more common actions. Regardless, rejecting incoming calls worked well in testing—I sent an incoming call to voicemail with a simple head shake. You do have to exaggerate your movements and remain in a forward position, however, so this won't be practical in every situation. It's a promising feature that needs a bit more development.

An IPX4 rating isn't anything exciting, but is standard for noise-cancelling true wireless earphones. The earpieces can withstand splashes and sprays of water from any direction, which means neither light rain nor sweat should cause problems. Dunking them underwater or exposing them to faucet pressure likely won't end well, though. If you want a pair of workout earbuds, the JBL Reflect Aero ($149.95) offers a fully waterproof IP68 rating.

The understated but handsome charging case looks more premium than the oversized one for the previous model. It's easy to grip and open thanks to its matte finish—a welcome differentiator from the glossy AirPods Pro case. In terms of dimensions, the case is shorter, but slightly deeper and wider than the one for the AirPods. It has a flip-top lid with the Sony logo in gold lettering, a status LED on the front, and both a pairing/reset button and a USB-C port for the included (but very short) USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable on the back. The case conveniently supports wireless charging.

Sony estimates that the WF-1000XM5 earphones can last roughly eight hours per charge and that the case holds an additional 16 hours of battery life with ANC on. Those numbers jump to 12 and 24 hours, respectively, for the earbuds and the case if you switch ANC off. Your results might differ based on your listening volume and codec choice. The company claims that three minutes of charging gets you an hour of playback time, which is a nice perk.

Sony WF-1000XM5 App Experience

The Sony Headphones Connect app (available for Android and iOS) has some unnecessary bloat, but it gets the important things right. The main screen displays the remaining battery life for each earpiece and the charging case, along with four menus: Status, Sound, System, and Services.

The Status section shows whether the Adaptive Sound Control feature is active, a list of your currently paired devices, and a simple media player for controlling your music. The Adaptive Sound Control feature seeks to memorize your ANC and Ambient-related preferences for your frequent locations and make those changes automatic. Sony says it doesn't upload this data and doesn't use it to track users or their locations.

The Sound menu includes an Ambient Sound Control section at the top. Here, you can switch between Noise Canceling, Ambient Sound, and Off modes. The middle option has a fader for adjusting the mic levels, as well as a voice pass-through option that emphasizes the frequencies related to human speech.

Next up is the Speak-to-Chat feature, which you can enable if you want your music to pause whenever you speak. Playback resumes several seconds after you stop speaking. If you tend to sing along with your favorite bangers, steer clear of this one.

Further down, the Equalizer section offers about a dozen presets (Bass Boost, Bright, Custom 1, Custom 2, Excited, Manual, Mellow, Relaxed, Speech, Treble Boost, and Vocal). You can adjust any of these presets to your taste with five bands that cover 400Hz to 16kHz and a Clear Bass slider (for controlling deep lows). Or you can build a custom EQ profile from scratch. This level of EQ customization surpasses that of many competitors.

There’s also a Find Your Equalizer section that walks you through a blind taste test of the various EQ presets. There's no harm in trying it, but you probably know what sounds good to you already.

The 360 Reality Audio Setup area is something I recommend leaving off unless you just want to try it. It involves analyzing your ear shape for the optimal amount of sonic delay based on your environment, but I didn't find the resultant effect compelling. More problematic is that this requires a subscription to music streaming apps from an approved list, of which Tidal is by far the most popular.

Scroll down more to select your Bluetooth connection preference (stable connection or sound quality), as well as to enable DSEE Extreme (which Sony promises improves the quality of compressed audio files).

In the System menu, you can enable multipoint connectivity and choose between your default voice assistant and hands-free Alexa or Google Assistant integrations. Alexa worked reliably in testing, and commands that involve its wake phrase ("Hey Alexa”) don't trigger the Speak-to-Chat feature.

You may adjust the on-ear controls to a degree by assigning themes of controls to either earpiece, rather than individual commands. For example, you can toggle the head gesture controls, turn sidetone on or off (Sony refers to this as "Capture voice during a phone call"), and update the earbud software. Finally, you can access tutorials and help topics. Use the Services tab to set up the Spotify Tap, Auto Play, and Endel integrations.

The Activity and Information sections aren't very useful. The first (Activity) offers to monitor your headphone usage and reward you with virtual badges based on certain activities. The second section (Information) is a mess: Everything from updates about new firmware to advertisements appears here. I hope Sony cleans up this section in future updates.

Nuanced Noise Cancellation

The WF-1000XM5 earphones deliver far better noise cancellation than the vast majority of earphones I've tested. In particular, they prove superior at cancelling out very deep subwoofer-like rumble. They also significantly reduce the volume of an airplane cabin recording (a blend of powerful low frequencies and white noise) and admirably dial back the complex noise from a crowded restaurant sample.

For comparison, the QuietComfort Earbuds II are noticeably more effective when it comes to eliminating typical real-world noise, whether it's the aforementioned airplane simulation or the varied complex frequencies of a busy cafe. But the Sony pair fares slightly better than both the QuietComfort Earbuds and the AirPods Pro against high-frequency content likely due to their isolating, foam-hybrid eartips. And, unlike the Bose earbuds specifically, Sony's don't add much hiss in any scenario.

Note that the Sony earphones, like the AirPods Pro, can adjust their ANC profile to a degree after any in-ear adjustments, so it's worth experimenting with their fit to see if you can get better results.

Sony's adjustable Ambient Sound mode works well and somewhat boosts the mids. Activating the voice pass-through option hones that focus on the high-mids and highs to emphasize speech. However, that latter option doesn't seem to intelligently distinguish between the human vocals and, say, the high-frequency whir of an AC unit, so it might inadvertently boost both. They don't offer anything similar to Apple's adaptive transparency feature.

Overall, Bose remains at the top in terms of noise cancellation, but Sony edges out Apple. All three are highly competitive, however, and one might work better for your typical environment or ear fit than the others. Also keep in mind that ANC is just one of several factors you should consider; check out our in-depth comparison between the WF-1000XM5 earphones, the QuietComfort Earbuds II, and the AirPods Pro to see how they stack up against each other across the board.

Rewarding, Customizable Sound

To test audio performance, I turned off the EQ (which works effectively when used) and set the Bluetooth connection to prioritize sound quality.

On tracks with intense sub-bass, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the earphones produce an excellent low-frequency response. The deep lows on this track sound full at moderate volumes and remain distortion-free even if you max out the volume. The higher frequencies get some complementary sculpting.

They easily handle the sub-bass at the 34-second mark of Kendrick Lamar’s “Loyalty.” In fact, these elements come across in their entirety with a little extra subwoofer rumble. Plenty of models I test struggle to relay the deepest of these notes with as much intensity as the others, so Sony does well here. The various vocal performances come across with lots of detail and enough presence to hold their place in the mix. I do find, however, that the bass depth on the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II is more full-bodied and realistic; their sound signature is thus likely to appeal to more people out of the box.

Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a more varied, natural track, better reveals the sound signature. The drums here sound refined and robust thanks to some additional thump. Callahan’s baritone vocals benefit from a pleasant blend of low-mid richness and higher-frequency detail, while the acoustic strums are bright and clear. Yes, the drivers slightly emphasize the highs and lows at the slight expense of the mids, but you can easily use the EQ to tweak that balance.

On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary, the earphones achieve a lovely balance of slightly boosted lows and crisp highs. The lower-register instrumentation gets some extra depth without ever becoming unnatural, while the higher-register brass, strings, and vocals remain bright and fully prominent.

The mic array promises to zero in on your voice specifically to improve intelligibility on calls. An onboard bone conduction sensor detects when you're speaking and uses those vibrations as a guide to determine which human voice (yours) to isolate. In testing, recordings to my iPhone against a backdrop of conversational chatter were impressively clear. In a quiet environment, the clarity is even better. Overall, the mics are a step up over those on the previous model.

Compared with the mic array on the AirPods Pro, the one here is slightly less bright. But that's not really an advantage in either direction, and both offer exceptional quality.

Continued Excellence

The Sony WF-1000XM5 earphones are a worthy update to one of our most-recommended models, with the best audio quality of the noise-cancelling pairs we've tested. Sony even manages to sometimes outduel the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II and the Apple AirPods Pro in the ANC department, though Bose remains the most consistent. The AirPods offer the slickest experience for users of other Apple devices, though they fall just behind Bose and Sony in terms of noise cancellation. All three pairs are easy to recommend and earn our Editors' Choice award, with Sony's WF-1000XM5 earphones coming in first for anyone who prioritizes audio quality above all else.