Best TV headphones for 2024

The best wireless headphones for TV use will be convenient to use on a daily basis, sound fantastic and be incredibly comfortable to wear for long periods of time.

But setup, compatibility issues, wireless signal interference and atrocious sound and comfort are among a minefield of flaws our experts have found. 

So, for something you’ll use frequently, and with many pairs being rather costly, it’s important to choose well. Whatever type you’re looking for, our experts select the very best pairs, below.

There are two main types of wireless headphones to use with your TV: 

1. Dedicated home theatre headphones that come with a specialised base station and provide wireless connectivity, along with a convenient dock for charging. 
2. Bluetooth headphones, which can only be used with TVs that support Bluetooth.

Our experts assess the ease of use, setup and functionality of each pair of headphones. 

We use an expert listening panel with a range of ages, ear sizes and musical tastes, and decades of experience between them to find the best-sounding and most comfortable pairs on the market.

We’re not biased by advertising and our thorough tests don’t leave anything out. We also test the battery life of wireless headphones to see whether manufacturer claims match up to reality, and check for signal interference to make sure you get a pair of headphones that will deliver clear and amazing sound every time.

Best headphones – see the full list of our top-scoring headphones.

Wireless TV headphones with a docking station

These are the wireless TV headphones to go for if you’re looking for a pair designed specifically for optimum use with your TV. This type can be set up to work with almost any TV without adaptors and the included dock means charging your headphones every day is super easy.

They feature a base station, which acts as both a wireless transmitter and the charging dock. This base station connects into your TV usually via an optical (digital) cable or standard 3.5mm (analogue) auxiliary cable – depending both on what connections your TV supports and the pair of headphones you choose support. An optical connection is recommended if you have a choice, but both can provide a superb experience.

• Pros: Everyday use couldn’t be easier: simply take the headphones off the dock to use, then put them back when you’re finished to charge. A compatible setup can be achieved for almost any TV without needing adaptors.
• Cons: Can be fiddly to set up for the first time, often expensive, difficult (if possible at all) to connect directly to other devices (such as your smartphone).

Examples with wireless base stations include models such as the Sennheiser RS 175.

Best Wireless TV headphones with a base station

Our experts have picked out the very best pair of wireless TV headphones with a base station from our expert tests – find out which is the best pair to buy in the table below.

Only logged-in members can view our recommendations in the table below. If you’re not yet a member, you can get instant access by joining Which?.

Bluetooth headphones for your TV

A lot of newer TVs now support Bluetooth. So if yours does, the good news is that you have far more choice in choosing wireless headphones for TV use – the vast majority of wireless headphones connect via Bluetooth (base station headphones are the only main exception). The only significant downside of using Bluetooth headphones with your TV is they don’t have the easy charging dock base station that dedicated TV headphones have.

While you could connect any style of Bluetooth headphones to your Bluetooth-enabled TV, most will likely choose the added comfort of over-ear headphones, or on-ear headphones if you’d like them to be less bulky, both of which have a headband that goes over the top of your head.

Many excellent over-ear headphones contain noise-cancelling technology to block out sounds on a commute. There’s no harm in using these at home (you can turn the noise-cancelling off, too), but be aware that you’re paying a premium for this technology, so if you don’t plan to use the headphones out of the house, you could save money by avoiding models with this feature.

Pros and cons of Bluetooth headphones for your TV

Pros: Convenient if you’d like headphones to connect to other devices as well (such as your smartphone) and take outside, much wider selection of headphones to choose from

Cons: Requires a Bluetooth-enabled TV, charging isn’t as convenient as with base station headphones and you may find the controls on your headphones (eg to change volume) don’t work with your TV. Many Bluetooth headphones come with very short charging cables that aren’t ideal for use in a living room, so you’ll likely need to buy an (inexpensive) extension cable. If you connect your headphones to several Bluetooth devices in your home (such as smartphone and laptop as well as your TV), you may need to keep switching active connections.

An example of Bluetooth wireless headphones are the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700.

Our experts select the most suitable, great-sounding and comfortable wireless headphones for TV use available to buy in the table below.

Best Bluetooth headphones for TV use

Only logged-in members can view our recommendations in the table below. If you’re not yet a member, you can get instant access by joining Which?.

To find out which brands tend to make longer-lasting headphones, see our Which wireless headphone brand to buy in 2024 page.

Alternatives to TV headphones

Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker (SRS-LSR200)

Many people who are hard of hearing look to buy TV headphones so they don’t to turn up the TV volume too loud. However, listening to the TV with headphones on can be quite isolating and cut you off from others. Sony aims to provide an alternative with the Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker (SRS-LSR200; there is also an older model with minor differences, the SRS-LSR100). This is a small speaker with a carry handle that you can place close by you in addition to the sound from the TV itself.  This means  you don’t need to listen at as loud a volume as you would with the TV alone, and you can even listen a long way from the TV.

In addition, since the speaker only projects its sound to a small area of the room, other people can listen to the TV at a normal volume while you still enjoy the benefits. It has its own large rotary volume knob so you can adjust the sound independently from the sound from the TV itself, along with buttons that mean you can use it for most functions of your usual TV remote, such as changing channels.

The wireless speaker communicates with a dock which you connect to your TV, and the dock also conveniently charges the speaker when you put it back there when not in use, so you don’t have to remember to charge it. It also has a Voice Zoom feature which boosts spoken dialogue, allowing you to listen at a lower volume and still hear what people in the room are saying.

Pros: You don’t feel isolated from others in the room by wearing headphones, can change the volume independently from the TV volume, convenient charging from the dock, large controls for those with limited dexterity, Voice Zoom feature to make voices in films and TV programmes clearer without turning up the overall volume any louder

Cons: Expensive and there are things to watch out for – read our full Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker (SRS-LSR100) review to find out

There’s also a secondary use for this speaker. If you want to listen to the TV through headphones while others are listening to the TV without headphones, one problem people often encounter is being unable to find a volume that works for this. Often the headphones will be too quiet at the right TV volume for other people in the room. The Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker allows you to adjust the volume independently from the TV, and since it also features a standard 3.5mm headphones socket, you can connect wired headphones to the speaker. But as they connect to the portable speaker, you won’t have wired trailing across the room. We haven’t covered any wired headphones in this guide – follow this link for our best wired headphones to pair with this speaker.

Find out all the key details of the Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker, including how good the sound quality is, whether it’s convenient to use, what to watch out for and much more in our comprehensive first look Sony Wireless Handy TV Speaker (SRS-LSR100) review.

Using gaming headsets with your TV

Gaming headsets are designed for use with consoles such as the Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo Switch, but they’ll also work for other TV viewing as well. So if you’re a regular gamer, these can be a good alternative to avoid needing to buy a separate set of TV headphones (you’ll want a pair with a detachable or retractable boom microphone stalk in this case).

TV headphones to avoid

Headphones designed specifically for TV use often come at a premium, and over-ear Bluetooth pairs tend to be costlier as well. All headphones manufacturers say they sound great – including ones we’ve exposed to be dreadful Don’t Buys. Plus it can be particularly difficult when searching online as you can’t try out how each sound.

We’ve found expensive TV headphones with atrocious sound that will make listening a chore – that’s if you’re able to clearly understand the slurred and muddy speech at all. And we’ve even uncovered multiple costly pairs with such poor wireless signal they pick up unwanted interference – one with a constant unbearable background hiss – and from a big-name brand as well.

There’s nothing worse than getting an uncomfortable pair of headphones for TV use you don’t get on with, or ones that only make for a disappointing experience you don’t want to use. 

Wired TV headphones

Wired headphones for TV use are best for those who don’t get on with wireless technologies, or live in a place that suffers extreme levels of interference.

Pros: Just plug in and play

Cons: Messy wires trailing across living room, some modern TVs (eg many Samsung TVs from 2017 onwards) lack a headphones socket, so you’d need to buy an adaptor

If your TV doesn’t have Bluetooth and you don’t like the idea of a base station, consider getting a Bluetooth adaptor for around £25-40, which you can plug into compatible TVs to add Bluetooth support. You can then use Bluetooth headphones with your TV. However, this can be fiddly to set up correctly, and there will likely be compatibility issues, such as controls on the headphones (eg for volume) not working with your TV.

Check out all our headphone reviews to find the perfect set for you.