Open earbuds are booming as fresh stats show sales up while the wider market dips

[Glassy Viper]

TechRadar's Tom Bedford has been championing open earbuds for years, and he now has some numbers to back him up. According to analyst firm Omdia, open earbud sales grew 12 percent year on year through the second quarter of 2026, while the overall wireless earbud market fell by 2 percent. Open designs now make up 13.5 percent of all true wireless sales. That is a sizeable niche for a category many people had never heard of a few years ago

Within that, clip on styles account for 61 percent of open ear sales and hook designs make up the other 39 percent. The most dramatic figure is that open buds under $50 have seen sales jump by more than 320 percent. Cheap models from brands like Soundpeats seem to be driving a lot of the growth, alongside premium options like the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds and the Shokz OpenFit 2+

Bedford frames them as part of a wider anti tech mood, where people are pushing back against gadgets that do too much. Open earbuds let you hear the world around you while listening, which he describes as staying aurally connected to the world. They also tend to be simpler, without the AI features and health tracking that are creeping into everything else

There are practical advantages too. He points out that battery life is often better, around 10 to 12 hours compared with 6 to 8 for many sealed earbuds, and they stay put better during exercise. Running near traffic or cycling is much safer when you can hear what is going on. On the other hand, sound quality and bass are usually weaker, and anyone nearby can hear what you are playing at higher volumes

I switched to a clip on pair for running last year and have not gone back. For commuting on a noisy train though, I still want noise cancelling. Has anyone else made the switch, and which ones would you recommend?

Fresh stats just proved open earbuds are the dumb tech youwww.techradar.com

[Dom_24]

Sound leakage is the etiquette issue nobody talks about. Sitting next to someone with open earbuds on a quiet train is like hearing a tiny radio. Owners often have no idea how much others can hear. Keep the volume sensible, please

[WWFGareth98]

They are useless on public transport. Without any seal, you either turn the volume up so everyone hears it or you cannot hear anything yourself. They are great for some situations, but not a replacement for noise cancelling

I own both types now. Different tools for different jobs

[JayJ]

Clip ons changed running for me. I can hear cars and other runners but still have my podcast. Sealed earbuds always felt a bit dangerous on the road. Battery life is better too, as the article says

The Shokz OpenFit are my pick. Comfortable for hours

[Slate Leopard]

Sound quality has improved a lot. The first open designs were thin and tinny, but the Bose Ultra Open are properly good. Bass is still weaker than sealed buds, which is simple physics. For most music it is fine. Audiophiles will not be converted though

[Gary90]

Anyone with ear canal problems or who finds in ear buds uncomfortable should try these. I get ear infections with sealed buds and open ones solved that completely

It is an underrated benefit. Comfort matters more than specs

[OmegaEvan51]

Office use is where they shine for me. I can listen to music and still hear colleagues when they talk to me. Nobody has to tap me on the shoulder

[Pete]

A 320 percent jump in cheap open buds shows how quickly this has gone mainstream. Budget brands always follow demand

[ArcMage14]

Clip versus hook is a personal thing. Hooks feel more secure for me, but clips work better with glasses

Try both if you can before buying. Fit makes all the difference

[KyleOReilly05]

Thirteen and a half percent of the market is bigger than I expected. These have moved well beyond a running niche

[EventHorizon]

Fewer features is a selling point now. I do not need my earbuds tracking my heart rate or talking to an AI assistant. Just play music well and last all day. It is refreshing to see a product category that does less, not more. More gadgets should follow that approach

[Joel71]

The anti tech angle is a bit of a stretch. They are still Bluetooth gadgets with batteries and apps. Just fewer features than the flagships. Calling them a digital detox is marketing talk

[Hannah]

Omdia's numbers usually track pretty well with actual retail pulse, but I wonder how much of this "boom" is just saturation in the traditional ANC market. Everyone already owns a pair of AirPods or Sony noise-cancellers that work fine, so brands had to invent a new category to get people spending again. Personally, I grabbed a clip-on pair for podcast listening while cooking, and while the sound leakage in a quiet room is hilarious, my ears have never felt more relieved from that suction pressure.