Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro review: Ideal all-rounders for Samsung fans

I've been testing the Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro – aptly, given the product's name – for four months now. I've tested using the Galaxy S26 Ultra and a bunch of the year's other best Android phones – including Oppo Find X9 Ultra and more.

During my time reviewing these earbuds, I've jostled between a batch of other review units – Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 2nd Gen included – and have also seen various software updates further finesse the Samsung's already solid offering.

Compared to previous generations, the Buds 4 Pro up the comfort and noise-cancelling ante. But in a field that's already full of big-hitters, do Samsung's flagship earbuds stand out? If you've got a flagship Galaxy phone to match then the ecosystem tie-in may well be reason enough.

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Price & Availability

The Galaxy Buds 4 Pro launched in tandem with the Galaxy S26 phone series earlier this year. The initial on-sale price was £219 / £249 / AU$399 – which represented a like-for-like price position per their predecessors.

Since the launch date, however, the price has dipped a bit – as you can see in the live shopping widget above. However, the earlier Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are far cheaper still, if price is your main purchase incentive.

Buds Pro 3 vs 4: What's New?

Paying the extra may well be worth it, however, as the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro bring some tasty extras over the previous model.

Design is the most considerable shift, with the 'Blade lights' of the older model – yes, there were actual lights on the stems – banished from the Buds 4 Pro.

The new model's stems are now finished with a brushed metal, providing a different aesthetic that helps stand them apart from looking like "yet another AirPods replica".

Sound has also been revised, with the 10mm woofer of the previous model upped to an 11mm version. The separate 5.5mm tweeter has also been retuned in balance with that upgrade.

In addition to the promise of better sound, Samsung has also revised the active noise-cancelling (ANC) for greater aspirations, too, with less "hiss" and greater reduction of ambient sounds.

The latest Bluetooth standard and better wide-band call quality are also added to the Buds 4 Pro.

Comfort & Setup

For years I've been an advocate of the best over-ear headphones, but recent years have shown me that in-ear 'buds have come a long way – this Samsung pair very much included.

That's because the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro have been created following "10,000 simulations with global ear data points", Samsung tells me, to create a 'master' average that's more likely to be comfortable for more people.

It's worked a treat for my ears, as even after all these months of on-and-off wearing, from the very first time I put the 'buds into my ears through until now, I've felt largely satisfied with the comfort.

There's no real stress or sensation of pressure, although this can build to some degree after longer periods of wear. I find the Bose QC Ultra Earbuds 2 feel nicer, even if their far larger design might seem at odds with such a statement.

How the 'buds will actually look in your ears is another matter, of course, and this will come down to personal preference. White is the review model I possess, when I'd pick the Black finish all day long – or there's also a Pink Gold, if that's more to your tastes.

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But I'm getting ahead of myself here: as setting up the Buds 4 Pro is the first thing that you'll have to perform after taking the earbuds out of their box and, indeed, the included charging case.

Pairing via Bluetooth is easy: simply place the earbuds into that case, with the lid open, then perform a typical Bluetooth pairing function. That's the most basic connection established, but for fuller functionality you'll need Samsung's Galaxy Wearable app to handle everything.

The app is an important aspect of setting up the finer details, as the Buds 4 Pro can do a lot more than just deliver audio straight to your ears. They can read notifications from specific apps, for example – a feature that I found nothing but infuriating in disrupting my music flow (and which took ages to locate and fully disable – a 'do not disturb' override would be lovely).

Other features include a 'fit test' for how well the 'buds sit into your ears; pinch and voice control settings; a fully adjustable graphic equaliser (EQ) with preset options available; 'Adaptive' automated adjustment between noise-cancelling and ambient modes; plus various tutorials.

Sound & ANC

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Samsung's hardware upgrades have worked some audio magic, as the Buds 4 Pro sound spectacular right off the bat. Make some EQ tweaks and they'll only sound better, in my view – avoiding distortion and delivering more personalised audio.

While the abundance of bass is the obvious takeaway from these earbuds, the rest of the frequency range is well handled, too, with higher frequencies nicely separated thanks to that dual-driver design. It's a very clean, wide and enveloping listen – which is just what you want from a pair of earbuds.

This sound profile can take on the best of them, plus those with a Samsung Galaxy phone can benefit from even better audio thanks to SSC (UHQ) codec support – that's Samsung Seamless Codec (Ultra High Quality – designed for connection stability with up to 24-bit/96kHz hi-res audio sources. There's also Seamless Earbud Connection to flit between Galaxy ecosystem devices with ease.

If you don't have another Galaxy device, however, then no need to fret – the audio quality remains top-notch, as I've experienced on my various test devices, from Google to Oppo and Honor to OnePlus. From a sound perspective, therefore, there's little to criticise about Samsung's top-end earbuds.

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The active noise-cancelling (ANC) has also shown generational improvements, seeing it do a great job at keeping ambient sounds further at bay. You can adjust the degree of ANC through five levels within the app.

You can also permit some 'ambient sound', i.e. the amount of surrounding sounds that can pass through, again on a five-level slider control. This doesn't have to be done manually, though, as Adaptive mode can take control based on your scenario.

Adaptive can be set to maximise ambient sound when there's voice or sirens detected, or during calls, for example. Call quality is very good, by the way, with microphone improvements making a big difference in clarity – whether or not you have Adaptive switched on.

Personally, I'm all about ANC being on and set to its maximum. Even at this setting, however, the Buds 4 Pro can't blot out some 'clickier' high-frequency sounds – which will continue to pass through. So Samsung's ANC solution isn't the best on market for my money – close as it gets.

It's still very good in most scenarios, though. Whether you're surrounded by road traffic or noisy air-conditioning fans, or on an aeroplane where the background "hiss" is abundant – all of which are effectively muted through this ANC system. It just needs a few tweaks to be 100% effective.

Samsung Galaxy Buds 4 Pro review: Verdict

If you're looking for comfortable earbuds for your Samsung Galaxy phone that offer big bass, a broad soundstage, and decent active noise-cancelling, then the Galaxy Buds 4 Pro are an all-round success.

Even if you've got another type of Android phone, while you'll lose the Samsung-specific audio codec and some baked-in operating system controls, these earbuds deliver features to take on the best of the competition.

Indeed, it's only really the ANC allowing some ambient sounds to cut through that hold these 'buds back from near perfection. Battery life is also beaten by Apple's key competitor, at a maximum of 6 hours per charge – but the case will deliver three further full charges.

All in all, though, Samsung's flagship earbuds deliver a raft of improvements in a better-looking and better-sounding design than it's ever managed before. I'm still wearing them months on from acquiring a pair – and will continue to do so.

Also Consider

If you want the best-of-best in ANC, however, then Bose's QC Ultra Earbuds are a winner – and the 2nd Gen is preferable, should the price be on point.

Otherwise, Apple's AirPods Pro 3 do make a strong case for themselves – albeit more for iPhone users. Indeed, Samsung's efforts are the equivalent tie-in for a Galaxy ecosystem.