The 6 Best Headphones for Glasses Wearers, According to Our Bespectacled Editors

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At A Glance: The Best Headphones for Glasses Wearers

If you feel like your temples are always tense after working all day with headphones on, the culprit might actually be your eyewear. The arms of the frame rest along the side of your temples and can be pushed up against your head when strapped in under a pair of headphones, really putting on the pressure. But with the right pair of headphones, you can ease that tension and not stress about playing your favorite music, taking calls, and or listening to podcasts with your glasses on.

You might think the alternative is getting in-ear earbuds, but when it comes to headphones for glasses wearers (especially if you need a constant prescription and not just the occasional blue light-blocking pair) the best over-ear headphones are comfortable enough to use for long stretches of work. They’re great if you’re looking to help reduce headaches, but can protect your long-term listening health, too.

In This Article

What Are the Best Headphones for Glasses Wearers?

Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best Headphones for Wearing Glasses

How We Tested the Best Headphones to Use With Glasses

What Are the Best Headphones for Glasses Wearers?

We try out a lot of headphones, and brands are making solid options these days with ear comfort in mind. But there are a few specific pairs that offer the cushioning and headband support that our glasses-wearing editorial staff really appreciate. Below are our top picks for glasses-friendly headphones (all tested by our team) that are so light, you might forget you’re even wearing them.

1. Sonos Ace

The new Sonos Ace cans look — and feel — luxurious, sleek, and sophisticated, boasting a modern design that mimics the style of the audio brand’s speakers. They’re also some of those most comfortable headphones we’ve ever tested, thanks to their lightweight frame (11 oz) and soft ear cup cushions.

Sonos kept the Ace design straightforward and minimal, with a single, unique-to-the-touch sliding button for controlling volume (slide up or down), and press for play, pause, or answering a call. They’re extremely functional to use right out of the box, and with the adjustable headband you can easily find the best angle to wear them at with your frames. Now, after wearing them in the heat on a hike, they did tend to moved around quite a bit, but they’re not marketed as workout cans. If you’re looking for over-ear headphones for breaking a sweat or lots of movement, you might consider other options.

Sonos also designed its new headphones to pair with their Arc soundbar, essentially creating a more immersive, surround-sound setup for watching action-packed movies or shows at home thanks to the built-in spatial audio and dynamic head-tracking tech. As a music lover (and a glasses-wearer), it’s impossible not to love the Sonos Ace headphones.

2. AKG Pro Audio K371

Trusted by professional musicians everywhere, these comfortable headphones from AKG offer the most ergonomic fit for glasses we’ve seen on a wired pair of cans, delivering studio-quality sound.

The Pro Audio K371s come with particularly plush, slow-retention foam pads, which is why we highly recommend them for people who wear glasses. The K731 is also equipped with an adjustable headband you can calibrate to your specific fit, which means they’ll stay comfortable when worn for a long time, especially helpful for all-day glasses-wearers. But if you still need to take a break, the ear cups swivel 90 degrees for single-ear listening.

Overall, the K731s are just fairly lightweight, clocking in at just 8.9 oz, so you won’t feel worn down wearing them. Audiophiles will also appreciate how the closed back fit enhances the incredible sound quality of these headphones, with large 50mm drivers that deliver balanced audio precision across a 5 Hz to 40 kHz frequency range.

However, these headphones are still wired, so you might need an adapter for your phone if you’re used to wireless. But these plush headphones will easily become your go-to glasses companion.

3. Bose QuietComfort Ultra

Bose QuietComfort Ultras offer ear pads with almost cloud-like softness, but also have some stellar audio capabilities that push them beyond being just comfortable.

The ear cups are incredibly well-padded, which will definitely give you a high level of comfort against your frames. Though the QuietComfort Ultras doesn’t allow for headband adjustments, the band does spread pressure more evenly, and it’s still fairly lightweight at 9 oz, so it can be worn for hours without giving you any grief.

What we like: you can use the Bose Connect app to adjust the level of noise cancellation, enable music sharing, manage Bluetooth connections, and enable Amazon Alexa all hands-free. These headphones also now feature an “Immersive Audio” feature (essentially their version of spatial audio), which creates a wider, fuller soundstage so that music “floats” around you rather than being blasted directly at you (they’re pretty great with pretty great noise cancellation, too).

With 24 hours of battery life, and a durable, comfortable fit, you can keep the music (or quiet) going all day long.

4. Bang & Olufsen Beoplay HX

Bang & Olufsen’s Beoplay HX headphones were designed to be extremely comfortable, and the company succeeded (and then some) — they’re well worth the price. Over-ear headphones tend to have plush ear pads and a padded headband for maximize comfort, but B&O took things one step further by considering the HX’s clamping force, which is how tightly they press against your head. If the clamping force is too high, you’ll get an ear ache shortly after putting them on; if the clamping force is too low, the headphones will fall off your head easily.

The HXs found the perfect middle ground between those extremes, which allowed us to listen to music far longer wearing glasses than we’d have been able to with the average pair of over-ear headphones. It doesn’t hurt that music, from Laura Nyro to Lorde sounds excellent when listening through them. B&O even managed to balance powerful active noise cancellation and all-day battery life with these headphones.

If you’ve traditionally shied away from using over-ear headphones because of the way they feel, Bang & Olufsen’s HX headphones may change your mind.

5. Sennheiser HD 450BT

Sennheiser’s HD 450BT is a pair that offers no compromises for its pricepoint — it’s chock full of features, and still one of the most glasses-friendly headphones around.

The HD 450BT’s have larger, over-ear pads to make sure the headphones fit comfortable for anyone, regardless of whether or not you wear glasses. But you won’t have to worry about the plastic arms of your lenses being crushed by the earcups — the fit is just secure enough to provide a wall of sound, while still remaining pretty soft.

These also clearly live up to Sennheiser’s reputation delivering clean and clear sound. We’ve found it has a deep, dynamic bass, and for videos or Zoom calling, the Bluetooth 5.0 tech, including AAC and AptX, with AptX Low Latency, will keep the audio perfectly in-sync with on-screen action.

We wish the controls for features like Siri and Google assistant were more hands-free (they’re attached to the ear cups), but the Active Noise Cancellation is impressive, and the Sennheiser Smart Control App allows you to create a customized sound experience. Combined with a whopping 30-hour battery life, these headphones are well worth it.

6. Sony WH-1000XM5

We’ve already sung the noise-cancellation praises of Sony’s headphones before, but the updated design on their latest pair really delivers long-lasting comfort.

Wearing glasses while using the WH-1000XM5 won’t be a problem, as the ear cups are softly padded, and incredibly comfortable. The headband is also lightwight and adjustable, but still a little rigid. At this price range, though, you want that kind of robust stability so you can get daily usage out of these headphones for years to come.

Using touch sensor controls, you can pause, pause, and skip tracks, control volume, activate your Alexa voice assistant, and pick up calls. But Sony’s also integrated enough hands-free modes too, such as pausing the playback when headphones are removed, or placing your hand over the right ear cup to turn off noise cancellation.

Speaking of noise cancellation: these headphones have adaptive sound which automatically adjusts noise cancellation levels to your location around you. Dual microphones in each ear cup also help process out ambient noise.

The crazy good fit also means you’ll get crazy good sound quality — 40mm drivers reproduce a full range of frequencies, with crystal-clear high, mids and lows. There’s a lot to like about these headphones, and with a pleasant, comfortable fit, there’s no denying that Sony WH-1000XM5s are a great investment.

Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best Headphones for Wearing Glasses

Even top-of-the-line headphones have some variation in comfortability. Below are a few considerations to keep in mind while choosing the best headphones for wearing with glasses.

Ear Pad Material: When you’re looking for headphones for glasses, comfort should be your main concern. Ear pads made of rigid materials like synthetic fabrics or leather will leave gaps around your glasses (the improper fit can affect audio quality, too).

Over-ear vs. On-ear Headphones: Over-the-ear headphones are your best bet, since they distribute pressure more evenly, rather than placing pressure directly onto your earlobes. The ear cups typically cushion around the plastic arms of your glasses, and while not limiting discomfort entirely, offer unparalleled comfort compared to in-ear, or on-the-ear headphones.

Headband: Wearing glasses will only amplify any pressure you feel on your head, and pain escalates quickly if you have a too-tight headband. Make sure the headband isn’t made of material that’s too rigid, or too heavy.

Glasses Frames: Beyond looking out for the right headphone design, there are a few things you can do that don’t have much to do with your headphones at all, like choosing the right-fitting frames. It’ll feel more uncomfortable in the long run to wear headphones with the thick-armed glasses than thinner, flat frames. Springing for a pair of lightweight frames will also reduce tension on your face and temples.

How We Tested the Best Headphones to Use With Glasses

When testing for this guide, we looked for headphones with softer, pliable ear cup padding that would go around the arms of our frames — including materials like memory foam fabric, suede, or velour. Padding on the headband can help, but we also favored headphones with adjustable headbands so we could get that perfect fit. We wore each pair for several weeks (including during a typical work day, taking flights, and commuting by train), and saw how many hours it took on average for the headphones to become too uncomfortable to wear at all and which were the most comfortable.