Best Kids’ Headphones (2023): Volume

Sep 21, 2023

Adrienne So Simon Hill

If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. This helps support our journalism. Learn more. Please also consider subscribing to WIRED

As writers and testers in WIRED's Gadget Lab, we spend all day immersed in personal technology of all kinds. It's probably no surprise that if we work on a computer during the day and enjoy gaming in our downtime, our kids do, too. I (Adrienne) have a 5-year-old and an 8-year-old that attended school remotely and play video games; my colleague Simon Hill has a 9- and a 12-year-old. Between us, we—er, well, our kids—have tested many of the kid headphones on the market.

These are our top picks, along with some advice—such as why you might want a pair of child-specific headphones. Don't forget to check out our other parenting guides, such as the Best Kid Tablets and the Best Kid Podcasts. Looking for a pair for yourself? Check out our list of the Best Headphones.

Updated January 2023: We updated links and pricing and added the BuddyPhones Cosmos+ and StoryPhones.

Special offer for Gear readers: Get a 1-year subscription to WIRED for $5 ($25 off). This includes unlimited access to WIRED.com and our print magazine (if you'd like). Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day.

Some of the criteria that we use for evaluating adult headphones simply don't apply for small children (although it's still worth taking a look). Sound quality matters less, although my 8-year-old has become more discriminating. I look for ease of use, different colors (my daughter won't use anything that's not pink), comfort, and durability. My children will not wear earbuds.

Most headphones that are explicitly for children have a feature called output limitation, which automatically reduces the volume to about 85 decibels. That is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's limit for workplace exposure and about what you'd hear in heavy traffic. However, that's still really high!

Even if your child's headphones have volume output limitation, it's a good idea to check on them every so often. To test whether the volume is too high I note whether my kid can hear me when I sit next to them and say, “Time to give your brother a turn.” If she can't hear me, the volume needs to go down.

These have an all-important option for my 8-year-old—they come in pink! They fit her really well, and I was shocked that the wired version costs only $25. You can spend a bit more for Bluetooth compatibility, although that's just a bit more than I want to fiddle with for a 5-year-old. The build quality is sturdy, and the ear cups have padding.

They also have 30 hours of battery life and are water-resistant. I can just barely squeeze my own head into these, and they sound pretty good, even if they are noticeably stiffer and less comfortable than some of our other picks. If you want a sturdy, affordable, durable pair at a price that's not completely outrageous, this is probably your best bet.

Ages: 2+. Volume limited to 85 decibels.

These were my kids' first headphones, and unlike some of the other pairs here, they came with stickers. The ear cups are tiny—they're designed to fit children ages 2 and up—but they fold for more convenient storage and portability. These are output-volume-limiting and made for wired use. Our pairs saw heavy use for about a year before, er, my kids broke them.

Ages: 2+. Volume limited to 85 decibels.

When my now 7-year-old started remote learning, her public elementary school distributed Chromebooks and these wired headphones, which plug into a 3.5-mm headphone jack. I was surprised by the build quality, considering that they're such an affordable pair. Both the band and the ear cups have plenty of comfortable padding, and they still work after several years of being chucked into a bin at the end of every remote class. They're adjustable and come in several colors.

However, my daughter started to say that they didn't sound very good. My head does not fit into these headphones, so it was difficult to check her assessment, but that's when we moved on to another pair.Ages: 3+. Not volume limited.

David Nield

Adrienne So

Simon Hill

Boone Ashworth

I feel obligated to note here that it's difficult for me to advocate purchasing a pair of over-$100 headphones for an 8-year-old. Nevertheless, we were sent these as a tester, and these are currently my daughter's favorite pick. The PuroQuiets are a full-featured, output-limited, noise-canceling headphone set that is simply very small.

They come with a protective case that's great for traveling and can switch between wired and wireless use. The build quality is very nice, and there's extremely soft padding on both the band and ear cups. The ear cups swivel for even greater adjustability. They're labeled with a very large “L” and “R” in the ear cups for little kids to make sure they're oriented the right way. They have 35 hours of battery life, and I squeezed my head into these to listen to Taylor Swift on Spotify and found the sound quality to be very good. If you can handle the price, or if grandparents want to give your child a birthday present, these would be a great pick.

Ages: 2+. Volume limited to 85 decibels.

The Cosmos+ are a pair of full-size cans with active noise cancellation, Bluetooth, and volume limitation. The 3.5-mm audio port allows for plugging in, and we love that you can also use it to link two pairs of BuddyPhones and share audio (handy if your kids are sharing a tablet to watch a movie). The Cosmos+ are brightly colored, with cartoons of pirates and unicorns on the side, and fold into matching protective cases. The sound quality is fine, with at least some bass. Battery life is solid. We got around 20 hours between charges, and there’s a USB-C port for recharging. There’s also a detachable boom mic and study mode that enhances voices.The BuddyPhones Cosmos+ have three volume limitation modes, capping it at 75, 85, or 94 decibels. Unfortunately, the latter, designed for noisy flights and other travel scenarios, is too high, so we don’t recommend using it. That said, it’s fiddly to change, so it’s unlikely your kids will do it accidentally. While you can adjust the size a little, these might be too big for very young or small kids. Ages 3+. Volume limited to 75, 85, or 94 decibels.

A good gaming headset is essential, but it can be tricky to find a reasonably affordable option for your kids. I (Simon) would be lying if I said that my 9-year-old daughter’s obsession with cats had nothing to do with this pick, but Edifier’s G2 II headset also supports 7.1 surround sound and has a detachable noise-canceling microphone. She finds this headset comfortable for long gaming sessions, loves the light-up RGB cans, and chats away to her friends while playing on her Chromebook or my desktop PC.

Sadly, the cat ears come separately and must be stuck onto the headband, and one already fell off and had to be reapplied (you can get a black set without ears for less). These headphones are not specifically for kids, so you have to drill them about safe volume levels as they are not limited to 85 decibels. They also have a USB-A plug, so can’t be used with an Xbox or PS5.

★ Alternative: We have a Razer Kraken gaming headset ($93) with a 3.5-mm jack that my daughter uses for playing on the Xbox. It’s a durable and comfy headset, though it’s a bit big and chunky for small heads.

Ages: 5+. Neither pair is volume-limited.

David Nield

Adrienne So

Simon Hill

Boone Ashworth

While my (Simon) eldest is not “in love” with this gaming headset, it has been a faithful PC gaming companion for a year now and it is still going strong. It’s lightweight, comfortable, doesn’t get too warm, and has a volume knob and mute mic button on the left can. There’s also 7.1 surround sound that boosts immersion and decent noise cancellation, and this headset works with anything you can plug a 3.5-mm jack into, with a splitter to plug in the mic separately for PC.

You have to install Razer’s software to get the surround sound working, though that’s less annoying if you have other Razer peripherals. We had some concerns about longevity, too, as this headset feels potentially fragile, but it has survived some rough handling. While you can undoubtedly do better, you will have to spend a lot more, and this has proven to be a solid buy for the entry-level asking price.

Ages: 5+. Not volume limited.

These headphones did not pass muster, for either us or our kids.

StoryPhones for $107: While the idea of headphones that play stories based on “StoryShields” you attach is clever, enabling kids to switch stories easily, the StoryPhones are too expensive for the build and sound quality, extra stories are pricey, and the shields are easily lost.

Scott Gilbertson

Brenda Stolyar

Medea Giordano

Adrienne So

Adrienne So

Simon Hill

Adrienne So

Parker Hall

TurboTax coupon: Up to an extra $15 off all tax services

20% OFF All H&R Block 2023 Tax Software | H&R Block Coupon

Instacart coupon: $50 off $100+ orders + free delivery

Extra 20% off sitewide - Dyson promo code

GoPro Promo Code: 10% Off all sitewide purchases + Free shipping