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AirPods vs. AirPods Pro: Should you spend the extra $80?

Should you buy the standard AirPods or the AirPods Pro? Here's how Apple's truly wireless earbuds stack up.

David Carnoy Executive Editor / Reviews
Executive Editor David Carnoy has been a leading member of CNET's Reviews team since 2000. He covers the gamut of gadgets and is a notable reviewer of mobile accessories and portable audio products, including headphones and speakers. He's also an e-reader and e-publishing expert as well as the author of the novels Knife Music, The Big Exit and Lucidity. All the titles are available as Kindle, iBooks, Nook e-books and audiobooks.
Expertise Mobile accessories and portable audio, including headphones, earbuds and speakers Credentials
  • Maggie Award for Best Regularly Featured Web Column/Consumer
David Carnoy
5 min read

We're still waiting for the arrival of the AirPods 3, but in the meantime, Apple currently offers two true wireless earbud models: The second-gen AirPods (which list for $159, but are generally sold for closer to $120 in the US) and the $249 AirPods Pro (which frequently sell for around $200 but have dipped as low as $170), which feature active noise cancellation. The Pro offer wireless charging by default, while you can get that feature on the standard AirPods by spending about $40 more

I personally prefer the AirPods Pro and rated them higher than the standard AirPods in my review. But they cost around $60-$100 more than the base AirPods without wireless charging and not everyone likes their noise-isolating design, which leaves you with a silicone ear tip pushed slightly into your ear canal. If you don't want to spend $180 or more on earphones, especially ones that are easy to lose, the looser fit of the AirPods has its advantages. 

Read more: AirPods 3 review: Big sound upgrade

AirPods vs. AirPods Pro Comparison


AirPodsAirPods Pro
Apple Store price $159$249
Street price $100-$120$180-$200
Active noise cancellation NoYes
Noise-isolating design NoYes
Battery life (between in-case charges) 4.5 hours5 hours
Wireless charging In $199 modelYes

That, in a nutshell, is why some people aren't sure about which AirPods to buy. And while there are plenty of excellent non-Apple true wireless earbuds out there -- just peruse my list of the best true wireless earbuds of 2021 -- you're presumably here because you're on the fence about the AirPods or AirPods Pro. Hopefully, we can help you make a decision.

Note that recent rumors suggest that the AirPods 3 will arrive later this year and will look similar to the AirPods Pro -- with shorter stems, interchangeable ear tips, a new Apple chip and a smaller charging case. That could make choosing between the standard AirPods and AirPods Pro even trickier.

Read more: Best cheap true-wireless earbuds in 2021: Top AirPods alternatives for $100 or less

Sarah Tew/CNET
Battery Life Rated up to 5 hoursNoise Canceling NoMultipoint NoHeadphone Type Wireless earbudsWater-Resistant Yes (IPX4 -- splash-proof)

Simply put, the main reason to buy the standard AirPods is to save money. The model with the regular charging case currently sells for around $120 while the model with the wireless charging case sells for around $160 ($199 if you buy at the Apple Store). Occasionally, the prices dip $10 or $20 (the all-time low is $99). I personally think wireless charging is a bit overrated (when it comes to headphones, anyway), so I wouldn't pay the extra money for it. If I was buying the standard AirPods, my goal would be to pay as little as possible for them.

All that said, there's a second big reason many people opt for the standard AirPods: comfort. Some people don't like having silicone buds stuck in their ears. And the way the AirPods just sort of nestle in your ear is a huge selling point for many -- when they fit right, they're really comfortable. A few folks at CNET have told me that even though the AirPods Pro sounded better, they still preferred the fit of the regular AirPods.

I'm among those who can't get the standard AirPods to stay in my ears securely without using third-party stabilizing wings (and you have to take off the wings to get the AirPods back in their charging case, which is a nuisance). That's the main reason I prefer the AirPods Pro. 

The biggest drawback of the standard AirPods' "open" design is that it allows ambient sound to leak in. They sound decent in quieter environments -- and their performance as a headset for making calls is almost as good as the AirPods Pro -- but the listening experience deteriorates in noisy environments.

While plenty of people use the standard AirPods for working out and even running, Apple does not say they are sweat-resistant -- they have no IPX water-resistance rating -- and any water damage isn't covered by their warranty. The AirPods Pro have an IPX4 water-resistance rating, which makes them splashproof and sweat-resistant. 

Read our Apple AirPods 2019 review.

Sarah Tew/CNET
Battery Life Rated up to 6 hoursNoise Canceling Yes (ANC)Multipoint NoHeadphone Type Wireless earbudsWater-Resistant Yes (IPX4 -- splash-proof)

The standard AirPods fit some people's ears perfectly (some people have no trouble running with them), but plenty of people can't get a secure fit. If you're in the latter group, I highly recommend you spend the extra money on the AirPods Pro. The AirPods Pro design simply fits more ears than the original AirPods. I hesitate to call it a universal fit because there are always exceptions, but they're close.

As noted, the only issue is that some people simply don't like having silicone buds stuck in their ears, even if they're as soft and pliant as these tips are. Also, some people are sensitive to the pressure sensation, albeit slight, that's a byproduct of active noise canceling.

The first thing you notice about the AirPods Pro is that they simply sound better than the standard AirPods because they have more bass. The reason they have more bass is largely due to their new noise-isolating design and new drivers that are tuned for that design. The standard AirPods sound decent enough in quiet places but due to their open design, they just don't do well when confronted with external noise -- the bass frequencies get drowned out. The AirPods' noise cancellation, which is effective, also helps with external noise, and the combination of the tips' seal and the ANC means they sound much better in noisier environments such as city streets.

The standard AirPods are quite good for making calls. With the release of the second-gen model in 2019 -- the ones discussed above -- Apple improved their noise-reduction capabilities, particularly when it comes to wind noise. The AirPods Pro have three microphones on each bud, one of which is a beamforming mic that's designed to pick up your voice. They also have similar noise-reduction capabilities, plus a vent system that's not only supposed to relieve some of the pressure that can build up in your ear from a noise-isolating design coupled with noise-canceling features, but can help cut down on wind noise a tad, an Apple rep told me. More importantly, you can simply hear callers better because of the Pros' noise-isolating design.

As noted, the AirPods Pro have an IPX4 water-resistance rating, which makes them splashproof and sweat-resistant, while the standard AirPods have no water-resistance rating.  

Since the debut of iOS 14 in 2020, the AirPods and AirPods Pro offer automatic switching between Apple devices. However, only the AirPods Pro now have the  "spatial audio" feature that simulates surround sound. It works surprisingly well when watching movies and television shows with video services that support the feature (many now do). 

Read our Apple AirPods Pro review.

Watch this: AirPods Pro after 3 months: Worth it?

Read more: Apple's new spatial audio feature should have Bose and Sony worried