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How to set up your Apple AirPods Pro as hearing aids
Published onAugust 27, 2024
Did you know that there are accessibility settings for the Apple AirPods Pro that allow them to function as personal sound amplification products (PSAPs)? PSAPs are intended for people with normal hearing, but they can be helpful for those with mild-to-moderate hearing loss. If this sounds useful and you want to find out how to set up your Apple AirPods Pro for hearing assistance, read on.
Editor’s note: this article was updated on August 27, 2024, to add research related to using AirPods as hearing aids.
Can you use AirPods as a hearing aid?
A study published in iScience in December 2022 found that AirPods Pro meet four out of five ANSI/CTA-2051 electroacoustic standards for PSAPs, and may be useful for mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss. A different study by the Acoustical Society of America determined that most listeners found the hearing accessibility features easy to use and to be at least a little helpful, regardless of hearing status.
The International Journal of Audiology found that speech intelligibility performance in laboratory testing increased 11.8% with AirPods Pro, relative to unaided, with the earbuds providing a signal-to-noise advantage of +5.4dB. Additionally, a study from Arizona State University using the Live Listen feature on the Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation) showed that word recognition increased from 81.8% to 94.4% and memory retention increased from 43.8% to 59.4%. So if you have some minor hearing loss, it might be worth trying out the Live Listen feature with your AirPods Pro.
How to set up a hearing accessibility shortcut on iOS
Setting up a hearing accessibility shortcut in your Control Center will make it easier to turn on these settings, rather than searching through the Settings app every time you want to enable them.
To set up a shortcut for turning on hearing accessibility features like Live Listen and Conversation Boost, first go into the iOS Settings app and go to the Control Center section. Then, add the Hearing control, which has a blue icon with an ear on it. That icon will be accessible in your iPhone’s Control Center, and you can press it to open accessibility options like Live Listen.
How to set up Live Listen on iOS
The Live Listen feature for iOS-compatible audio devices, such as AirPods Pro, is in the accessibility settings of your iPhone or iPad. Live Listen uses the microphones in your AirPods Pro to feed processed external sounds into your ears, basically working similarly to hearing aids.
To set up Live Listen, first make sure you’ve set up the hearing accessibility shortcut in your Control Center settings. When you press the ear icon in your Control Center, you will have the option to turn on Live Listen using your AirPods Pro or any other compatible audio device.
Headphone accommodations for Transparency mode and Conversation Boost on iOS
If you want to use Transparency mode on your AirPods Pro and need to adjust the way certain sounds come through, you can use the Headphone Accommodations setting to make changes. To do this, follow these steps:
- Go to the iOS Settings app
- Go to the Accessibility menu
- Press Audio/Visual
- Go to Headphone Accommodations, and choose Transparency mode
- Press “Custom Transparency mode” and use the transparency slider to adjust.
To turn on Conversation Boost, go to the Headphone Accommodations menu as per the last section, and choose “Conversation Boost.”
Once these settings have been enabled, you can enable and disable them through the hearing accessibility shortcut in your Control Center.
Which earbuds are compatible with Live Listen and Headphone Accommodations?
Unfortunately, these features don’t work with every pair of earbuds or headphones out there, and the AirPods Pro are the best option. The unsealed AirPods do not meet enough criteria to be comparable to PSAPs. But if you want to know if what you have is compatible with Live Listen and other accessibility features, here is a list of all of them to date:
- Apple AirPods Pro (1st generation and 2nd generation)
- Apple AirPods (1st, 2nd, and 3rd generation)
- Apple AirPods Max
- Beats Powerbeats Pro
- Beats Fit Pro
- Made for iPhone hearing aids
Frequently asked questions about how to set up your AirPods Pro as hearing aids
No, only a select few earbuds and headphones are compatible with these accessibility features. AirPods of all generations, AirPods Max, Powerbeats Pro, and Beats Fit Pro are the consumer audio devices that are compatible as of now, and hearings aids that are made for use with iPhones are too.
Yes, there are a few other accessibility options for hearing. The Sound Recognition feature can help notify you when certain sounds are happening that might not be audible to you, like a baby crying or a doorbell. You can turn on Sound Recognition in the Accessibility section of the Settings app for iOS. It’s not perfect and shouldn’t be relied on for emergencies, but it can be helpful nonetheless. There’s also Sensory Alerts for if you need visual or vibrating alerts for notifications and phone calls, which can also be enabled in the Settings app Accessibility section. Live Captions is a feature currently in beta that gives you real-time transcriptions of conversations on your phone, as well as real life conversations. For an overview of all available hearing accessibility features, check out Apple’s information on hearing accessibility.
Live Listen is compatible only with devices that are “Made for iPhone” hearing assistive devices and Apple-branded headphones.