Where's the Noise › Open-ear
For roads, trails and shared rooms, where hearing the world around you is the whole point.
Links to Amazon are affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a commission, at no cost to you. It does not change our order. Details
| If you want | Buy | Because | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running and cycling | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 | Band stays put; bass driver added | Amazon |
| No band behind the head | Shokz OpenFit 2+ | Clips over the ear; fuller sound | Amazon |
| Spending less | Shokz OpenRun Pro (1st gen) | Previous generation, pure bone conduction | Amazon |
Best overall
The open-ear pair we would buy for running. The added bass driver fixes the thin sound that put people off bone conduction, the band stays put at pace, and IP55 covers rain. Five minutes of charging buys two and a half hours, which rescues a forgotten pre-run charge.
No band
A clip-on alternative for walking, commuting and the office. It sounds fuller than bone conduction and leaves nothing behind your head, but it moves more than the OpenRun at a sprint.
Good if you want open ears without a headband. Skip if you sprint or wear a tight helmet.
Spend less
The original OpenRun Pro uses bone conduction alone. It is the cheaper way into the same safety benefit if you listen mostly to podcasts and do not miss the bass.
Good if you want open-ear for less. Skip if you want fuller sound.
Bone conduction sends vibration through your cheekbones to the inner ear, leaving the ear canal completely open. It is clear for voices and podcasts, and its traditional weakness is bass. Open-ear air conduction, like the Shokz OpenFit, puts a small speaker just outside the ear instead. It sounds fuller, but the speaker has to sit in the right place.
The OpenRun Pro 2 combines both: bone conduction for the mids and highs, a small air-conduction driver for the low end. That hybrid is the reason it is our pick.
Noise cancelling earbuds work by removing the sounds that matter on a road: tyres, engines, a bike bell. Transparency modes help, but they are a setting you can forget. An open-ear design cannot forget. If you run or ride where there is traffic, this is the one category where the headphone that blocks least is the right one.
The OpenRun band wraps behind your head and the hooks sit in front of your ears, so it clears glasses arms and most cycling helmets. If the band sits away from your neck, try the Mini size. Clip-on designs like the OpenFit avoid the band entirely, which some people prefer under a cap or a hood.
IP55 means protection against dust and against water jets, so sweat and rain are fine. It does not mean swimming: for laps you need a model built for submersion, which Shokz sells separately.
Anyone who wants quiet. On a plane, in an open office or on a loud train, open-ear lets everything in by design and you will turn the volume up to compensate. At high volume in a quiet room, people nearby may also hear a little of what you are playing. For those places, look at our noise cancelling earbuds instead.
Yes, specifically because they leave your ears open to traffic. They are less useful anywhere you want quiet.
A little at high volume in a quiet room. At normal volume outdoors, people nearby rarely notice.
No. IP55 covers sweat and rain, not submersion. Shokz sells a separate swimming model.