Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Still top of the earbuds table?

Sony doesn't drop new headphones and earbuds every year, but when it does deliver upgrades to its best earbuds they tend to be pretty big news.

Last year we got the long-awaited WH-1000XM6 over-ears, which I loved. That still left the brand's in-ears getting long in the tooth.

Now, however, some two-and-a-half-years after the WF-1000XM5s came onto the scene, it's time for the WF-1000XM6 earbuds to take the stage.

I've been using Sony's top-tier earbuds for a couple of weeks, and they've left me far more conflicted than I'd expected, thanks to some impressive high-points and some frustrating caveats.

The WF-1000XM6 are going to be some of the most popular non-AirPod in-ears come what may, I suspect, but I've got detailed thoughts on their strengths and weaknesses, all for you.

Price and Availability

The WF-1000XM6 are on sale as of today, and come in at almost exactly the same price as the last generation – £250, €300 or $299.

That's good in some ways, since other brands have resorted to price rises, and means these earbuds should slot into exactly the same part of the market.

However, that leaves these earbuds fighting against much the same alternatives as before. One big option is Apple's AirPods Pro 3, which cost £219 or $249, undercutting Sony. Another is the Technics EAH-AZ100, which also launched at £259 or $299, but can often now be found cheaper.

Design

Our earbud reviews tend to follow the same structure, which in this case means I have to open up my discussion of the WF-1000XM6 with what I consider its biggest weakness – the design changes Sony has made this time around.

Looking at previous generations, it's been easy to trace the refinement of the shape these earbuds have taken on.

Now, though, Sony's taken a bigger leap, smoothing them out into a far less unique oval shape, one that looks good but doesn't have a great deal of personality.

It reminds me a little of the change from the WH-1000XM4 to XM5 generation of over-ears, where Sony ripped things up and created something very pretty – but a tad sterile.

The earbuds seem smaller in some ways, but they're still pretty bulbous on the in-ear portion, and they fit in the ear in a roughly vertical orientation that feels nice and comfortable.

The downside of this fit, though, is one that could be pretty unique to me (but such is the nature of an earbud). I have big inner ears – this is almost always a blessing for testing, since it makes it incredibly rare to find an earbud that's uncomfortable. That said, I always use the biggest available ear tips that come with said earbuds, and in Sony's case, I think the largest are still too small.

The long and short of it is that I don't get a great seal with these earbuds, despite a comfortable fit, and no amount of wiggling, rearranging or pressing in does the job to fix that. I'll talk about the downsides to this when I get to sound, but it's a rare enough issue that it's worth highlighting.

Another curious change comes where the case is concerned – it's very different to the last generation, which had been rounded off and slimmed down impressively. Sony has instead gone with a blockier design that's substantially taller once again, and I can't quite understand why – as it's not to the benefit of battery.

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Sure, when the case is on a surface for photography it probably looks more iconic and clean in its lines – but it's bigger, and has far sharper edges now. That means, quite directly, that it's more annoying to get into or out of a trouser pocket, which is a fairly obvious quality-of-life shortcoming to introduce.

Finally, you can grab the XM6 earbuds in either a silver-grey colour or black, and there's another baffling item to discuss on that note. My pair, in grey, are finished in a sort of matte texture that you'd associate with recycled plastic; by contrast, black pairs that I handled had a smoother, more polished-up texture – one that I found looked and felt more premium.

That's a really confusing little disparity that doesn't normally come with a simple change of colour, and it means that I'd definitely pick up the black version of these earbuds, given the choice.

Features

The design changes Sony has made for the XM6 earbuds are obvious, then, but it takes a little more squinting at its spec sheets to establish what's actually new when it comes to features.

Some of the headline stuff is unchanged. For example: the earbuds still have IPX4 water resistance, without any bump on that front for fuller protections. Battery life is also exactly the same, at around 8 hours on a charge, with two further charges in that bigger case.

What Sony is relying on, then, is stated improvements to the earbuds' two main features: sound quality and noise-cancelling (ANC).

If you take a peek at an earbud more closely, you'll notice an extra microphone hole, revealing that there are now two more microphones in total for the upgraded noise-cancelling system.

Sony says it's the best ANC in any earbuds. A big claim that it has been unwilling to substantiate with any decibel details or further information. And, in my case, with that less-than-ideal seal, it's not my experience.

Sound quality, meanwhile, is also boosted with redesigned drivers that take up roughly the same amount of space, but should be a touch more accurate than before.

These earbuds' release also coincide with an upgrade to the Sony Sound Connect app, too, so controlling various extras is easier now. This includes setting up a simultaneous connection between two devices, customising the touch controls on each earbud, and a few more gimmicky extras.

Like the over-ear XM6 before them, these include sound modes that make your music seem as though it's coming from speakers in your room rather than being piped right into your ears. This works oddly, and perhaps there are people out there who'll really enjoy it, but I can't count myself among that number.

The app also includes a feature that lets you test whether you're wearing the earbuds correctly, to make sure you use the right tip and orientation. Part of this wasn't functional on the early build I tested, but the other section simply confirmed for me over and over that the only way to get the optimal seal was for me to push the buds into my ears with my fingers while the test ran – affirming that the fit simply isn't quite right for me.

Sound quality and performance

So, all of this means that a lot of the XM6 earbuds' potential for success – in my eyes and ears, at least – relies on their sonic performance rather than their design. The good news for Sony is that they're indeed pretty excellent on that front.

Sound quality has ceilings where wireless earbuds are concerned, depending on codecs and audio sources, but the best earbuds make you barely remember that you're compromising compared to an over-ear experience and, at their best, the WF-1000XM6 can be right up there in that bracket.

These 'buds are extremely detailed in their sound representation, meaning you'll be able to pick out audio tracks from one another, and really appreciate the layers that certain artists use for effect.

With Dolby Atmos support now included, Atmos tracks can sound pretty wonderful with that three-dimensional audio travel – albeit some people find such mixes distracting compared to original masters.

As measured against other earbuds I've tested, the soundstage that Sony summons is also impressively wide – songs really don't feel cramped regardless of genre, and I've surfed through plenty in my testing.

Olivia Dean's hugely successful The Art of Loving has all the warmth and expressiveness that I was looking for, while the opening track of Volker Bertelmann's All Quiet on the Western Front soundtrack gets the contrast between booming bass and quiet notes that is demanded.

This is all enhanced in the right circumstances by noise-cancelling that seems to do a very good job, albeit in a way that's pretty challenging to measure scientifically.

My most reliable ANC earbuds remain the AirPods Pro 3, but outside the world of Apple, I'd give the prize to the Technics AZ100s – and in all honesty, Sony's XM6 don't change that hierarchy for me.

That's entirely down to the issues with the seal that I've detailed, though, and despite this, I've been able to do enough testing to confirm that the ANC can indeed be excellent.

Whether pressing them further in on planes, trains and buses, or simply seeing how they do despite the awkward fit, I've never been in a situation where the noise-cancelling has felt obviously sub-par.

Swapping between the Sony and my AirPods Pro, though, I've generally found the latter to do a slightly better job in most scenarios. There's no shame in that, though. It still leaves the XM6 earbuds in very good company.

Sony WF-1000XM6 review: Verdict

I'm impressed and surprised by the WF-1000XM6, arguably in equal measure. These earbuds look sleeker than ever, but have a case that I'll happily label worse than before.

Their sound quality is better than ever, but their fit and comfort seem less universal – certainly for me. Noise-cancelling (ANC) is improved, but battery life remains the exact same as the previous generation.

That all adds up to a great pair of earbuds that I can't quite recommend as fulsomely as I have others – because my personal experience of their fit just about compromises some of their biggest strengths.

If you like the new design and want Sony's excellent sound on the go, though, the WF-1000XM6 might well be perfect for your ears.

Also consider

I'll recommend two sets of earbuds that I've already mentioned in this review a couple of times, because I think they're super-fair comparisons given the similar pricing, and make different cases.

If you want a device-agnostic set of earbuds that sound beautiful and have a fit I've found more natural over time, the Technics EAH-AZ100 are an obvious pick, and won the T3 Award for 2025 for good reason.

If you're all-in on Apple's device ecosystem, meanwhile, the quick device switching and great sound of the AirPods Pro 3 make them a brilliant addition to your pocket or bag. I find them super comfortable, although I know that's not true of everyone – underlining just how personal fit and comfort really are for earbuds.