Wireless speakers are everywhere these days. Big, small, portable, expensive, cheap, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi…the sheer amount of choice can seem overwhelming. But our top picks are sure to include at least one speaker that’s right for you. Before anything else, though, you need to decide how you want to go wireless.
Most new speakers on the market feature some kind of wireless support, whether they’re clip-on bike speakers or big soundbars. With some exceptions, any speaker you pick up at an electronics store will be able to stream audio either over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Your speaker might even be able to handle both wireless methods. Check if your Wi-Fi speaker has a Bluetooth mode for using it on the go.
With that in mind, we’ve selected the best wireless speakers you can buy now. Read on for our top picks, followed by everything you need to know about the different types of wireless speakers to determine which one is right for you.
More About Our Picks
Best Alexa Smart Speaker
Bottom Line:
The fourth-generation Amazon Echo speaker takes the sound quality and smart home hub capabilities of the Echo Plus and puts it in a new round package.
Pros
- As powerful as the Echo Plus
- Strong bass for the size
- Built-in smart home hub
Cons
- High frequencies don’t get quite as much finesse as they could
- Alexa can still be awkward to talk to
Why We Picked It
The fourth-gen Amazon Echo is currently the best speaker for Alexa users who want to listen to audio in the Amazon ecosystem. Beyond the basic weather reports and Amazon Prime Music playback you might expect, the Echo can access Apple Music, Spotify, or SiriusXM—as well as control various smart home devices (including those that use the Zigbee standard) because of the speaker’s built-in hub. And, for a speaker this size, the Echo delivers respectable bass thump.
Who It’s For
If hands-free Alexa control is your top priority in a speaker, this is the one for you—it offers solid audio, the ability to control Zigbee smart home devices, and seamless Amazon integrations. The Echo Amazon’s AZ1s Neural Edge processor, a chip designed for machine learning, allows some features to run directly on the speaker rather than on Amazon’s servers, which allows for more robust, responsive speech recognition.
Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin (2021)
Best All-in-One Speaker System
Bottom Line:
The 2021 model of the Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin speaker delivers wonderful, high-fidelity wireless audio from a strikingly designed enclosure, with built-in support for Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant.
Pros
- Powerful audio performance with rich bass and detailed highs
- Stylish, iconic design
- App includes adjustable bass and treble settings
- Built-in Amazon Alexa voice control
Cons
- Stereo separation could be more pronounced
- Expensive
- Digital signal processing isn’t for purists
Why We Picked It
Bowers & Wilkins has always made striking design a cornerstone of its consumer speaker lineup and the latest edition of the Zeppelin exemplifies this approach. But it’s not all looks—the Zeppelin offers 24-bit audio via Apple AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, and Spotify Connect. And behind the black cloth grille, a 240W amplifier powers five total drivers.
Who It’s For
The Zeppelin doesn’t really provide much stereo separation and there’s enough digital signal processing (DSP) in play that audiophiles and purists might want to look elsewhere. But if you want a stylish statement piece that can also output powerful, high-quality audio, the Zeppelin is worth a look. The inclusion of Amazon Alexa voice control officially makes this the smart speaker of choice for the stylish home.
Best Google Assistant Smart Speaker
Bottom Line:
The Nest Audio smart speaker offers Google Assistant functionality and clear, detailed sound in an attractive design for a reasonable price.
Pros
- Balanced sound with strong, detailed highs
- Supports Bluetooth and Google Cast
- Google Assistant is more useful than ever
Cons
- Bass isn’t particularly powerful
Why We Picked It
The Nest Audio works with Google Cast—you can therefore stream music from your device of choice via any compatible app or any Chrome tab. You can link two Nest Audio speakers to work as a stereo pair, as well as program one to work as a speakerphone. The speaker is relatively compact and stylish, so it’s easy to use them as a building block for your home sound system.
Who It’s For
If you’re looking for a speaker that features dedicated, hands-free Google Assistant functionality, the affordable Nest Audio gets our vote. Its voice recognition is solid, as Google Assistant excels at natural language recognition. The audio sounds crisp and clear, plus it can get fairly loud (even if it doesn’t pack a ton of deep bass).
Harman Kardon SoundSticks 4
Best Classic PC Speakers With Bluetooth
Bottom Line:
The Harman Kardon SoundSticks 4 are a 20th anniversary, Bluetooth-compatible update to the classic 2.1-channel speakers, and they remain just as compelling as ever.
Pros
- Balanced, powerful 2.1-channel audio performance
- Iconic transparent design
- Long cables for ideal stereo separation
Cons
- All physical controls are located on the subwoofer
- No adjustable EQ or sub settings
Why We Picked It
The Harman Kardon SoundSticks 4 debuted in 2020 for the strange-looking-but-iconic speaker system’s 20th anniversary. The update added Bluetooth audio to the classic 2.1-channel speakers, and they otherwise remain just as compelling as ever. The system employs two 20W satellite speakers (each with four 1.4-inch full-range drivers) and a downward-firing 100W subwoofer that looks like a spaceship.
Who It’s For
If you want excellent audio—wired and wireless—for your PC or laptop, this is a strong option. If you don’t want to sacrifice too much real estate on your actual desktop, the SoundSticks 4 keep the left and right speakers’ footprints small; they also sit at an angle to deliver sound to your ears instead of your torso. Finding a space for the jellyfish-like subwoofer is a different story—it can definitely create some vibrations that could rearrange your desktop and homeware, but depending on your setup, you could also place it on the floor nearby. The sound here is impressive for a PC system, especially one that has such a striking visual design.
Best for Portable Outdoor Audio
Bottom Line:
JBL’s portable Charge 5 speaker delivers surprisingly powerful Bluetooth audio from a compact, waterproof frame, making it the ideal travel companion for going just about anywhere.
Pros
- Powerful, bass-forward, bright sound signature
- Gets loud for its relatively compact size
- Fully waterproof design
- USB-A port for charging mobile devices
Cons
- App lacks EQ
- No speakerphone
Why We Picked It
JBL knows how to make portable audio sound powerful—the Charge 5 packs a 20mm 10W tweeter and a racetrack-style 30W woofer. Instead of opting for stereo audio, JBL designed the Charge 5 to provide a fuller-sounding bass experience—it’s an easy decision to get behind because a speaker this small can’t provide real stereo separation (though you can pair two for real stereo audio). Beyond its big sound, the Charge 5 has a fully waterproof exterior, so it should survive pool parties and rainy days without issue.
Who It’s For
The dustproof, waterproof Charge 5 is for on-the-go types who enjoy a bit of bass depth—something smaller speakers and laptops can’t really provide. Beyond packing some decent low-end for a portable speaker, the Charge 5 also gets quite loud. To top things off, the speaker is easy to operate and should get about 20 hours per charge, which makes it ideal for beach and camping trips.
Best for Parties
Bottom Line:
JBL’s Xtreme 3 speaker delivers robust bass depth in a rugged, waterproof build ideal for outdoor gatherings.
Pros
- Powerful, bass-forward audio with four drivers and dual passive radiators
- Outdoor-friendly waterproof build
- Can be linked with multiple JBL speakers
Cons
- Expensive
- No speakerphone function
Why We Picked It
The JBL Xtreme 3, as its name suggests, kicks things up a notch in the power department. Where the JBL Charge 5 is a great choice for backpacking, this larger speaker is ideal for backyard parties. Beneath the waterproof, dustproof wraparound grille, two 25W, 2.8-inch woofers and two 25W, 0.8-inch tweeters combine with the passive radiators on either end of the speaker to deliver impressive rumble. The included shoulder strap makes it easy to take with you, despite its bulky build.
Who It’s For
Bass lovers who also love the great outdoors—whether you’re lounging by the pool or camping in the mountains—should appreciate the Xtreme 3’s power and thunder. It doesn’t distort at top volumes, though the DSP does thin out the bass a bit. At slightly lower volumes, you still get solid clarity and more robust bass than just about any other portable speaker this size or price.
Best for Apple HomeKit and Siri
Bottom Line:
The Apple HomePod mini speaker offers Siri voice assistance and smart home control in an attractive little orb design for just $99, but the Amazon Echo delivers substantially more audio power for the same price.
Pros
- Solid audio performance with rich bass and bright highs
- Multiple speakers can be grouped and used as stereo pairs
- Easy Siri voice control
- Good Apple Home app integration for smart home controls
Cons
- Not the absolute best audio quality for the price
- No aux input
Why We Picked It
It’s no surprise that Apple makes the best HomeKit- and Siri-compatible speaker—the HomePod mini delivers quality audio for its size and price. It’s easy to create a stereo pair with two and we can attest that this greatly enhances the audio experience. But even solo, this is the smart speaker to beat for anyone who prefers Siri over Alexa.
Who It’s For
If you live in a HomeKit house, you’ve probably already considered this speaker for the extra dimension it can add to your home automation setup. If you have color-changing LED lights set up through HomeKit, for instance, you can tell Siri—via the HomePod mini—to dim them or turn them green (or whatever color suits your mood). We like plenty of smart speakers, but for Apple-centric homes, this is the most versatile—and affordable—speaker we recommend.
Best Design
Bottom Line:
The pricey Astell&Kern Acro BE100 speaker offers high-fidelity Bluetooth streaming from a striking, modern design.
Pros
- Powerful audio with robust bass depth and crisp highs
- Sophisticated design
- Built-in treble and bass EQ
- Excellent Bluetooth codec support
Cons
- Expensive
- No app or extra features
Why We Picked It
OK, technically we have two living room design pieces on this list—but the Zeppelin is somewhat oddly shaped and its look might not appeal to everyone. If you’re more into angular, geometric designs with traditional footprints—and a dash of retro (in the form of a huge control knob up top)—the Astell&Kern Acro BE100 is another favorite. It wouldn’t be on this list if it didn’t also sound great—like the Zeppelin, it’s for those who want excellent audio performance in addition to a stylish design. The Acro BE100 is notably the more audiophile-geared of the two and also costs much less.
Who It’s For
Audiophiles with style. The Acro BE100 packs a 4-inch, 25W woofer and dual 1.5-inch, 15W tweeters; meanwhile, a 32-bit DAC delivers a frequency range of 50Hz to 20kHz. Bluetooth codec support is strong, with AAC, AptX HD, LDAC, and SBC, and the LED display behind the grille shows what codec is active. Onboard bass and treble controls allow for fine-tuning. There’s no companion app, which is a surprising omission in this price range, but that’s not a deal breaker because of the excellent audio performance.
Best Wi-Fi Bookshelf Speakers
Bottom Line:
Audioengine’s A1-MR speakers deliver top-notch audio free of digital signal processing, with Wi-Fi support for lossless audio and multiroom playback.
Pros
- Rich, natural, and detailed audio with no digital signal processing
- Multiroom playback via app
- Wired aux input and subwoofer output
Cons
- App doesn’t have an EQ
- Not for those seeking powerful bass
- Drivers aren’t angled upward for ideal playback
Why We Picked It
We have two stereo options on this list—true bookshelf speaker sets that allow you to create a sweet spot for listening in your living room. This system from Audioengine uses Wi-Fi instead of Bluetooth, but still has all the wired connections you need for stereo gear. Each A1-MR speaker employs a 2.75-inch, aramid fiber-woven glass composite woofer (with rubber surrounds) and a 0.75-inch silk dome tweeter (with a neodymium magnet) driven by a class-D amplifier that delivers 30 watts of peak power per channel and 15 watts RMS. Like all Audioengine speakers, they also look good.
Who It’s For
The Wi-Fi-based A1-MR speakers pair with an app, which makes them ideal for people who want to build a multi-room system (or simply control audio from their phones). The system also works with several music streaming services, such as Amazon Music, Spotify, and Tidal. As for wired audio sources, the 3.5mm input allows for computer connections, while another cable terminates in an RCA jack for stereo gear. And, if you decide you need more deep bass, there’s also a subwoofer/LFE output.
Best Affordable Bose Speaker
Bottom Line:
The outdoor-friendly Bose SoundLink Flex speaker produces powerful wireless audio and can easily withstand the elements.
Pros
- Powerful audio performance with rich bass depth and clear highs
- Fully waterproof and dust-tight design
- Solid speakerphone clarity
Cons
- Mono audio
- Sound signature not for those seeking accuracy
Why We Picked It
Bose isn’t known for affordable products, but not all of its speakers are pricey. The SoundLink Flex, for instance, is a great portable speaker—fully waterproof, dust-tight, and stylish. Is it the best portable speaker in terms of audio performance for this price? No, but it’s the best Bose speaker for this price, and we won’t judge your brand loyalty—it wouldn’t be on this list if it didn’t sound good. Internally, a full-range, 60mm transducer works alongside dual passive radiators to deliver crisp, rich sound.
Who It’s For
We’ve already established that this is a speaker for Bose fans, but its flat, easily portable design also makes it much easier to pack than many competing options, which are often larger and cylindrical. The SoundLink Flex isn’t a powerhouse, but it’s easy to use, weatherproof, and thus ideal for vacations and camping. Its attractive design belies its ability to withstand rain and spilled drinks.
Best Bluetooth Bookshelf Speakers
Bottom Line:
The Fluance Ai61 bookshelf speakers deliver rich, clear audio with true stereo separation in both wired and wireless configurations.
Pros
- Rich, detailed audio performance with true stereo separation
- Handsome design
- Wired and wireless audio options
- Discrete bass and treble controls
Cons
- Lacks serious sub-bass (but offers subwoofer output)
- No companion app
- Can clip the beginning of tracks over Bluetooth
Why We Picked It
So many wireless speakers are all-in-one options now—it’s a concept that really took off in the era of the iPod dock, and then never really went away. It’s a shame because we’ve lost stereo separation in this multi-decade trend. The Fluance Ai61 is somewhat of a throwback system—dual bookshelf style speakers that deliver a clean, crisp signal. These don’t produce an overwhelming amount of bass (though there is an optional subwoofer output), but you can tune the sound to a degree with bass and treble controls on the included remote. You also get plenty of wired connections (RCA, optical) for various home audio sound sources.
Who It’s For
Anyone who wants traditional stereo speakers that are equally adept at playing audio from a turntable and streaming Bluetooth audio should look into the Fluance Ai61. The speaker cabinets house 1-inch silk soft dome neodymium tweeters and 6.5-inch woven glass fiber composite drivers with Butyl rubber surrounds. A class-D 120W amplifier drives the system and each channel receives 60 watts RMS. The speakers deliver a frequency range of 35Hz to 20KHz. The pair does employ DSP, which probably won’t appeal to purists, but we found the audio performance to be relatively transparent and nearly all wireless speakers employ some form of DSP anyway.
Ikea Symfonisk Picture Frame with Wi-Fi Speaker
Best Speaker That Doesn’t Look Like One
Bottom Line:
The Ikea Symfonisk Picture Frame is an attractive piece of home decor that doubles as a Wi-Fi Sonos speaker with support for multi-room audio and AirPlay 2 streaming.
Pros
- Powerful audio performance with rich bass depth and bright highs
- Works with other Sonos speakers and AirPlay2
- Can be combined with another Symfonisk speaker as a stereo pair
- Stylish, mountable design
Cons
- Not actually a picture frame
- Mono audio only
Why We Picked It
We get it. Not everyone wants a big speaker system brightening up their living room with its tweeters and woofers on full display. In fact, some of you don’t even want to see a speaker in your living room. Fine. We’re still going to find a way to get quality audio into your home. The Sonos-friendly Ikea Symfonisk Picture Frame With Wi-Fi Speaker resembles a simple piece of artwork hanging on the wall or sitting on a side table at first glance—but its speaker chops are impressive and you can pair two together to make a formidable stereo force.
Who It’s For
Although the Symfonisk Picture Frame With Wi-Fi Speaker is an obvious fit for anyone who thinks audio is best heard, not seen, it’s also a good option for people who don’t have much space (particularly if you mount it on a wall). Another perk: Its Sonos compatibility means it supports multi-room audio and AirPlay 2 streaming.
Read Our Ikea Symfonisk Picture Frame with Wi-Fi Speaker Review
Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Speaker: Which Is Better?
Bluetooth is the most common wireless music streaming standard, but it isn’t the only one. Bluetooth is a point-to-point wireless system: You pair a transmitter (your phone or computer) with a receiver (your speaker) to play music. It’s direct and (mostly) easy to set up, and lets you stream fairly high-quality music thanks to recent technological advancements.
Bluetooth generally can’t facilitate multi-room setups by itself, though you can configure some speakers in stereo pairs with the help of an app. Others can create a wireless mesh among multiple speakers for multi-room audio. The result isn’t quite as high-fidelity or as powerful as Wi-Fi multi-room audio, however.
Wi-Fi audio includes standards like Apple AirPlay and Google Chromecast, along with various manufacturers’ Wi-Fi streaming platforms. Wi-Fi can handle more bandwidth than Bluetooth, so it supports higher-fidelity audio. It can also integrate into your home network, so you can easily play audio from any device connected to your Wi-Fi without pairing anything.
The trade-off is that Wi-Fi music systems require a Wi-Fi network; you can’t use them as a portable speaker with your smartphone like you can with Bluetooth speakers (though many offer Bluetooth pairing as a backup). The different Wi-Fi standards also mean various services might not be available to stream over a given speaker, though this is less of a problem than it has been in the past thanks to Chromecast and Sonos’ lengthy lists of supported third-party services.
Which Is the Best Multi-Room Audio System?
If you want sound throughout your home, you’re going to need more than one speaker. Instead of juggling Bluetooth pairing with each one or physically carrying a speaker from room to room, a multi-room sound system is the way to go. Fortunately, multi-room audio is more common and easier to use than ever. Multi-room audio is exactly what it sounds like: playing audio in multiple rooms. It means a system can manage multiple speakers at once, playing from one or more sound sources to one or more speakers at a given time.
Sonos and Ikea Symfonisk (made in collaboration with Sonos) speakers tap into the Sonos app to let you access any or all speakers connected to your home network and play music from dozens of different streaming sources as well as local storage.
Apple’s AirPlay platform is the iOS- and macOS-friendly multi-room sound solution. There aren’t any first-party AirPlay speakers besides the Apple HomePod and HomePod Mini, but many other Wi-Fi speakers, including Sonos products, support AirPlay. They let you easily stream from your iPhone or iPad at better quality than Bluetooth, but if you’re an Android user, you won’t find much utility in them.
Chromecast is Google’s answer to AirPlay and works similarly. Google Home/Nest devices support Chromecast, as do many Wi-Fi speakers and soundbars. You can incorporate any Chromecast speaker into your Google Home setup and create room-based groupings in the same app as your Google Assistant speakers and smart home devices (if you use Google Home for that).
Amazon Echo speakers and the Alexa voice assistant didn’t originally support multi-room audio, but now you can group and arrange most recent Alexa speakers like any other multi-room system. Like Chromecast, setting up multi-room Echo audio is performed through the same app as your voice assistant and smart home devices, only it’s all Alexa instead of Google.
Finally, a few Bluetooth speakers support linking, chaining, and mesh networks that connect multiple speakers. These usually aren’t as complex or robust as Wi-Fi multi-room systems, but they’re a simple option that can provide an alternative to using your home network to stream music.
What Are the Different Types of Speakers?
Besides the type of wireless connection, you need to think about what style of speaker you want. Smaller, battery-powered speakers (usually Bluetooth) are useful because you can take them anywhere, but they don’t get particularly loud. Larger speakers generally offer fuller sound and richer bass, but they can be more expensive and are often not portable.
Besides single speakers, you can also find stereo pairs designed for desktop computers and home theater speaker systems like soundbars. These speakers are obviously not portable at all, but if you want a centerpiece sound system for your living room or office they’re likely your best choice.
Which Portable Speaker Sounds the Best?
For a speaker to be portable, it needs to both be small and light enough to easily carry around, as well as run on a built-in battery. Of course, “small” and “light” are relative; tiny speakers with carabiners let you clip them to your backpack and take them on hikes, while much bigger and heavier speakers might be intended only to be taken from room to room in your home. Most Bluetooth speakers are portable, but that’s not a rule by any means. Of course, larger speakers tend to sound better than smaller speakers, but they also aren’t as easy to carry around.
Since Wi-Fi speakers rely on a separate network to enable multi-speaker and multi-room audio playback, they’re rarely portable. After all, portability doesn’t matter if you need to be connected to your home’s hotspot. There are exceptions, though, and Wi-Fi speakers can still be portable if they have batteries, and ideally can create an ad-hoc Wi-Fi network with your phone.
Which Speaker Is Best for Outdoors?
Not all portable speakers are built to be carried around outdoors, or used by the pool. Rugged speakers can handle splashes, dunks, drops, and gunk and keep running. If you try that with the non-rugged speakers on this list, however, you’ll find yourself with a brick instead of an audio device. Look for speakers with IP ratings and guarantees of water and shock resistance if you want to carry them around to the beach, the lake, the slopes, or the trail. Our guide to IP ratings explains what those numbers mean, so you can determine whether your speaker can handle getting dunked in the pool, or if it can simply survive a light drizzle.
For more, see our list of the best outdoor speakers.
What Is the Best Bluetooth Speaker for Sound Quality?
Unless portability is at the top of your priority list, sound quality is paramount. Plenty of speakers don’t offer much in the way of features, but produce top-notch audio. Big bass isn’t for everyone, but unless your speaker is downright tiny, it should be able to reproduce low frequencies accurately without distorting at high volumes. Clarity is more important than sheer power, and a balanced, clean sound should be your goal when shopping for a speaker. If you want a sound system that can drive a whole party instead of just fill a small room, keep the size of the speaker in mind; generally, the bigger a speaker is, the louder it can get while still sounding good.
Recommended by Our Editors
As mentioned earlier, in the early days of wireless audio Bluetooth was far inferior to Wi-Fi standards because of limited bandwidth and audio compression. Those problems have been largely solved, and Bluetooth 4.0 (not to mention 5.0) and its relevant audio codecs can transmit excellent quality audio. Wi-Fi still holds an edge purely due to the available bandwidth, and if you want to listen to lossless music on services like Tidal you should probably go with Wi-Fi over Bluetooth.
If you want to get the most out of your Bluetooth speaker, keep an eye on what Bluetooth codecs it supports. Our guide to Bluetooth codecs goes into more detail but, basically, SBC is the most common and lowest-quality codec for music. If you value audio quality, look for one that supports higher-quality codecs such as AptX or AAC. We detail this information in each of our reviews.
Do You Need a Smart Speaker?
Voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, and Google Assistant let you simply tell your speaker what to play instead of looking through your smartphone. These voice assistants are useful for more than just playing music. You can ask them for weather forecasts, sports scores, unit conversions, and even language translation. They also generally support third-party skills that let you do anything from order pizza to play trivia games. If you have other smart home devices, you might even be able to integrate them as well, allowing you to control the lights and thermostat with your voice.
Voice assistant speakers have one universal requirement: Wi-Fi. They need a consistent internet connection, and without one voice recognition and all of the processing needed to find your music, answer your questions, and control your smart home devices simply won’t work. These speakers can still be portable, and even offer Bluetooth connectivity when you’re away from your network, but those features aren’t certain. The most prominent first-party voice assistant speakers like the Amazon Echo and the Google Nest don’t have batteries and are primarily meant for in-home use.
For more, see our picks for the best smart speakers.
Which Is the Best Bluetooth Speaker for the Price?
Tons of speakers are available for nearly every budget level. Don’t assume, however, that the most money always buys the best overall product. Generally speaking, higher-end models do sound better, but sometimes they lack the features you might expect for the price. The trick is to get the best sound, along with the features you want, at a price you can afford. And, of course, if you want to know about all of those things, you can read our reviews of each speaker.
The easiest way to get the best price is to shop around online. You can often find prices well below list price if you do a little bargain hunting on the web. Don’t be afraid to look for similar speakers to the ones on this list, either; a number of the options here have solid predecessors that you can now find for much less now. We’ve also rounded up our favorite Bluetooth speakers under $100.
For more, see the latest speaker reviews in our speakers product guide. And if you want to cut the cord without waking the neighbors, check out our favorite wireless headphones.
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