If you’ve been waiting the whole year to grab a new pair of headphones or earbuds, then your patience is going to be rewarded during Black Friday. With the event rapidly becoming a month-long bonanza, we’ve already started seeing a lot of great deals on headphones and earbuds that you can grab right now so that you don’t have to wait for the actual Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend. You’ll also be delighted to know that deals are happening across the board, whether you want something budget-oriented or high-end audiophile equipment.
There are also deals coming in from everywhere, including Amazon, Walmart and even Apple, so you can take advantage of any membership or cards you might have with them. Either way, be sure to check back regularly as we find more deals and retailers.
The Apple AirPods 2 are probably some of the most popular earbuds on the market, and for good reason. You can grab a pair at Walmart for just $69, one of the lowest prices its ever been, saving you $60 in the process.
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Read our Apple AirPods 2019 review.
They’re back: Best Buy again has the JLab Audio JBuds Air earbuds on sale for $30. JLabs makes a lot of true-wireless earphones, and these are its most affordable and are a decent set of true wireless earbuds at a relative bargain at this price. Also, if you buy two or more, you can save 4%, so if you and a friend or family want to grab a couple, you can save a little extra.
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Most cheap noise-canceling headphones aren’t great, but Anker’s Soundcore Life Q20i are an exception. They’re quite decent for their regular list price of $70, but you can get them for just $40 if you’re a My Best Buy Plus or Total member, which knocks $30 off the price tag.
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The Beats Solo3 have gone through quite a few iterations since they were originally released, and they’re a great all-around set of headphones that you can grab for just $100.
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Read our Beats Solo3 Wireless review.
You can save $80 on the Sennheiser HD 458BT model right now at Best Buy. The only difference between it and the HD 4.50 BTNC version CNET reviewd is that the accent color is red instead of silver. At this price, this is a solid budget alternative to premium models from Bose and Sony.
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Read our Sennheiser HD 4.50 review.
As CNET’s David Carnoy found, the AirPods Pro 2 are some of the best lightweight earbuds you can buy, especially if you’re in the Apple ecosystem. You can grab them from either Amazon or Best Buy for just $200, a $50 discount from the regular price.
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Read our AirPods Pro 2 review.
Should you buy headphones on Black Friday?
Black Friday is usually one of the best times of the year for electronics deals, and that includes things like headphones and earbuds. While there are some deals that happen throughout the year, such as Prime Day, that also have some good deals, these are few and far between, and we’ve already passed both Prime Day events for this year. As such, this is probably the best time for buying headphones until next summer.
Where is the best place for Black Friday headphone deals?
The big retailers often have the biggest deals, so places like Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and even places like Target might have some good deals. That said, a lot of the brands offer deals on their own websites as well, so you might want to take a look at the websites for Samsung, Sennheiser, JBL, and potentially Apple.
What makes a good Black Friday headphone deal?
One thing to keep in mind is that the list price of a product doesn’t always tell you the real value, especially as retailers have started offering day-one deals on products. Often the list price is artificially inflated to make the deal look more attractive, so you’ll want to check around and see what the true value or “street price” of a product is. There are handy historical price checking sites out there that can help you check if the deal is actually notable or if it’s been discounted to the price regularly. You might also want to install CNET’s Shopping plugin to give you a bit of help with all of that.
More Black Friday deals from CNET