Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) vs Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation

The new Bose QuietComfort Earbuds and Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation were both released in September, 2024. They also both cost $179. So which should you buy? We put the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds and AirPods 4 through our testing lab to find out.

Editor’s note: this article was published on October 1, 2024, and is the first version of the article. Updates will follow as the market changes.

What’s it like to use the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) compared to the Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation?

The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have a new shape compared to their predecessors, but it’s still a one-size-fits-all approach. There are no ear tips or fins included with the AirPods, which means if they don’t fit your ears out of the box you’re out of luck. On the other hand, the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) come with three different sizes of ear tips and three different sizes of ear fins to lock the earbuds in place.

While Bose may have the upper hand when it comes to earbud design, the AirPods definitely have the upper hand when it comes to the charging case. The AirPods 4 charging case is significantly more portable than that of the Bose Quiet Comfort Earbuds. I can easily fit the AirPods 4 case in most of my pockets, whereas I struggle to fit the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds case in the pocket of my jeans. Both cases support USB-C and wireless charging, though the AirPods 4 also support Apple Watch chargers and MagSafe chargers.

The AirPods 4 have a slight edge when it comes to durability. The AirPods 4 earbuds have an IP54 dust and water resistance rating, whereas the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are only IPX4 water resistant. That extra dust resistance might help you at the beach, but ultimately shouldn’t be a deciding factor in your purchase.

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are available in a variety of colors, whereas the AirPods 4 are still only available in white. While you get more color options with Bose, I find the build quality of the AirPods 4 superior. The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds case is made from a matte plastic material that just feels cheap.

Do the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) or Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have more features?

To access all the features for the Bose earbuds, you need to download the Bose QC Earbuds app. The app has a custom five-band equalizer to tweak the sound quality, the option to customize the controls, and a battery prediction feature to estimate how much playtime you have left on a charge.

On the other hand, you’ll only get access to all the AirPods 4 features if you have an Apple device, there’s no companion app for Android users. There are lots of AirPods features to explore within your device OS. From directly within the Control Center on your Apple device, you can switch listening modes, adjust spatial audio, and use the Conversation Awareness mode that automatically lowers the volume of your music when you start talking to someone. While the AirPods don’t have a native equalizer, they do have Adaptive EQ, which automatically adjusts the sound of the earbuds to compensate for how the earbuds fit in your ears.

How do the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) and Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation connect?

As with all AirPods, the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation work best with Apple devices. Thanks to the H2 chip inside the earbuds, after connecting to one Apple device, the Airpods 4 will automatically connect to all your other Apple devices. If you want to connect to non-Apple devices, you can still do so using Bluetooth 5.3 over SBC or AAC.

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds also support Bluetooth 5.3 with SBC and AAC. You can use Bluetooth Multipoint to pair the QuietComfort Earbuds to multiple devices at the same time. In our testing lab, we experienced a few connection issues with the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, though these may be resolved by a firmware update.

Is battery life better on the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) or Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation?

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds have a promised battery life of up to 8.5 hours, whereas the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation are only rated to last up to 5 hours on a single charge. Your experience will vary depending on listening mode and volume. In our test of the AirPods 4 without ANC enabled, we got 6 hours and 21 minutes of continuous playback. Combined with the charging cases for a few additional charges, either set of earbuds can last a full week of normal use.

Do the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) or Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation block noise better?

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are significantly better at blocking out noise than the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation. This is thanks to the ear tips of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds that ensure a snug fit with a tight seal in your ear canal to block out noise. In the chart above, you can see that the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds block out a significant amount of low, mid, and high frequency noise with ANC enabled. On the other hand, the AirPods 4 struggle to block out low-frequency noise without a physical barrier. Depending on how well the AirPods 4 fit in your ears, your experience with the noise canceling may vary.

You can also amplify surrounding noise to stay aware of your surroundings with either set of earbuds. Bose refers to it as Aware Mode, while Apple calls it Transparency Mode. The AirPods 4 also have a mode called Adaptive Audio, which automatically switches between ANC and Transparency modes depending on the level of noise around you.

Do the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) sound better than the Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation?

A tight seal from the ear tips means the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds have significantly more bass than the AirPods 4. If the AirPods 4 don’t fit your ears properly, the sound quality suffers. It’s also easier to customize the sound quality of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds thanks to their five-band equalizer.

On the other hand, the AirPods 4 have spatial audio features, something noticeably absent from the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds. Listening to Dolby Atmos mixes in Apple Music with the AirPods 4 is a treat, and you can also use the Spatialize Stereo feature of AirPods to spatialize any media.

Multi-Dimensional Audio Quality Scores (MDAQS)

According to a simulated panel of hundreds of listeners, more people will prefer the default sound of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds to the sound of the AirPods 4. That said, your experience with the AirPods 4 is heavily dependent on how well they fit in your ears. The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds score a near-perfect 4.9 on a scale from 1-5, which means these are some of the best-sounding earbuds on the market for most people.

Objective Measurements

Due to their unsealed design, the AirPods 4 struggle to reproduce sub-bass frequencies below 100Hz. On the other hand, the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds have thumping sub-bass, even more so than our headphone preference curve. The Bose earbuds also have a lot more treble than the AirPods 4, from 2kHz all the way up to 9kHz. If you like a U-shaped frequency response, with elevated bass and treble, you will definitely prefer the sound of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds to that of the AirPods 4. The AirPods 4 have a less exciting sound with under-emphasized bass and treble, but more focus on the mids.

Do the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) or Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have a better microphone?

You will notice the AirPods 4 microphones perform better when paired with an Apple device. This is because AirPods 4 lean on the iPhone that they are paired with to assist with microphone noise rejection. Our microphone demonstrations below for the AirPods 4 were recorded while paired with an iPhone 15 Pro.

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds microphones work similarly across a range of devices. We found they don’t handle background noise quite as well as the AirPods 4, but let us know what you think below.

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) microphone demo (Ideal conditions):

Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation microphone demo (Ideal conditions):

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) microphone demo (Office conditions):

Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation microphone demo (Office conditions):

Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) vs Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation: Price and availability

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) and the Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation both have a starting price of $179. You should have no problem finding either at a plethora of retailers.

Should you get the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (2024) or Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation?

Should you get the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds instead of the AirPods Pro 2?

The AirPods Pro 2 are still the best Apple earbuds for most people ($189.99 at Amazon). The only people who should get the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation instead of the AirPods Pro 2 are those who can not stand inserting ear tips into their ear canal. If you don’t mind silicon ear tips, the AirPods Pro 2 offer better noise canceling, better sound quality, and more features such as hearing aid functionality.

If you can get the AirPods Pro 2 on sale for around the same price as the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, you should probably buy the AirPods Pro 2. This is assuming you have an iPhone, of course. If you have an Android phone on the other hand, the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds are clearly superior.

If you still aren’t sure which earbuds to buy, we have an entire list of the best wireless earbuds to check out.

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