Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra: How do Sony's latest headphones compare to Bose's noise-canceling kings?

After three long years, we've finally got them — Sony's brand new WH-1000XM6. They replace the venerable Sony WH-1000XM5, with a swathe of updates and incremental improvements that bring some extra features and a more comfortable fit to the table. They might be contenders for the best wireless headphones that you can buy right now, with plenty of reasons to add them to your Amazon basket if you're looking to upgrade your portable audio.

But there's still some stiff competition, like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. The QC Ultra Headphones have been our pick for the best noise-canceling headphones since their release, but there are plenty of other reasons that you might want to pick them up over the XM6.

But which pair of headphones is going to come out on top when we put them head to head? Let's find out.

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Specs compared

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Price and availability

Let's not beat around the bush — Sony has risen the price of the XM series this time around. The Sony WH-1000XM6 cost $449, a full $50 more than the XM5 that came before them. Interestingly, that also brings them up in price when you compare them to their closest competitors.

They're now only $100 cheaper than the AirPods Max, and the same price in the U.K. as the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3, a new favorite for the top spot on our best wireless headphones list.

You can also still buy the XM5, so if you really want the Sony brand and don't want to spend the $449 for the XM6, you should pick up a pair of those instead.

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones cost $429, which previously made them one of the more expensive pairs of over-ear headphones in the sector. They've also been out long enough that we've now seen them start to drop in price during deals events like Black Friday and Prime Day, giving you ample opportunity to get yourself a pair at a good price.

Both pairs of headphones are easy to get a hold of, thanks to availability at Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart.

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra are going to take the win here — they're cheaper than the XM6 buy $20, and we've seen them drop even lower.

• Winner: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Design

If you where expecting some form of big design step up with the WH-1000XM6, you might be dissapointed. Rather than a complete refresh of the look, you get a more iterative update with more features for increased useability and comfort than outward style.

They've got a new hinge which lets them fold up into their newly designed carrying case. The hinges are a welcome return to compact form, although Tom's Guide's Managing Editor of TV and AV, Nick Pino, was concerned for the greater longevity of the design now that there's a new failure point on the headband.

The headband itself is nice and wide for a comfortable fit, and Nick found them more comfortable to wear over a longer period of time compared to the XM5.

Overall, the XM6 are a fairly nondescript pair of headphones, with few accents to help them standout. Build is good if a little plasticky, and there are some concerns about the new folding headband mechanism.

All that said, the QC Ultra are a more attractive pair of headphones (in my eyes, at least). There's more visual interest from the different materials used in the headband, armature and earcups, and a greater range of color options.

The metal hinge feels sturdier than the folding mechanism on the M6, yet still lets you fold them up into the included carrying case. That carrying case might not be quite as futuristically magnetic as the Sony case, but it is just as protective and slightly smaller.

There are a couple of small issues worth noting: They rattle slightly more when shaken than the Sony headphones, and I've got a weird mark on my left ear cushion thanks to some strange pinching in the case.

Overall though, build is similar. This one goes to the QuietComfort Ultra and their more attractive design overall.

• Winner: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Controls

Sony has got touch controls down to a fine art, with some of the finest on-ear, non-physical controls around. I still don't like them, but they are flexible, sensitive, and customizable.

Swipe up and down for volume, left and right to skip tracks, and tap to control the playback of your music. The best touch control of all though is the instant transparency mode, activated when you hold your hand over the right earcup. That drops the volume and activates transparency to make it easier to quickly have a chat with someone.

The power and ANC buttons are different shapes and sizes to make them easier to tell apart. The round power button and smaller ANC button make sure you don't turn the ANC off when you want to turn the headphones off, and vice versa. Good controls, if you like touch controls.

The QuietComfort controls are not good. There's a single button to control playback, which relies on multiple presses for skipping and pausing. It also controls the ANC with a long hold. It's the same size and shape as the power button too, making sure that you accidentally disconnect your headphones when you want to pause your music.

The touch control element is a sensitive slider that you can swipe. It's a bit inaccurate, leading to wild movements in volume on occasion. The winners in this round are the Sony WH-1000XM6.

• Winner: Sony WH-1000XM6

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Sound quality

With the XM6, Sony has changed its sound profile: Instead of a wider soundstage Sony has opted for vocal clarity. They're still bassier than the Tom's Guide audio team would prefer, but they're a decent audio experience in the long run.

Vocal clarity is so good that Nick even commented that "the clarity in the vocals was unmatched." That's a big bonus for the XM6, although you do have to sacrifice soundstage and imaging to get it.

Codec support is excellent too, including LDAC, SBC, AAC, and LC3. there's also Sony's proprietary DSEE extreme, which can raise the bitrate of some tracks when activated.

The QuietComfort Ultra Headphones don't sound bad — although they don't sound as good as the Sony option. They're very bassy, with what I've come to call a 'wall of bass' that has a habit of taking attention away from the rest of your music. Some will really like it — if you listen to R&B and pop, for example — but it does struggle with other genres that need better representation across the frequency range.

There's plenty of detail up top and the mids are decent enough though, so you'll still likely enjoy the sound of the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones.

Sony takes the win in this category though, on account of the more subdued and welcoming sound signature.

• Winner: Sony WH-1000XM6

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Features

The Sony WH-1000XM6 continues the line's legacy of a dizzying array of features, from the aforementioned codec support and range of different touch controls. The XM6 hide some excellent features inside the solid Sony Sound app.

There are noise-canceling modes aplenty so that you can really dial in the ANC to your liking depending on where you are. There's still the option to let the ANC change depending on your GPS location as well, which is pretty cool.

There's loads of sound modes as well, including a very well-equipped EQ customizer. There are pre-customized modes depending on genre, but there's a 10-band adjuster should you want to change it according to your taste.

Bluetooth version is up-to-date at 5.3, giving you support for Bluetooth extras like Auracast. There are some spatial audio options too, although you'll only find support for Sony 360 Reality Audio tracks on Amazon Music Unlimited at the moment.

The Bose use the Bose app, as you might imagine, and it's super easy to use thanks to well set out buttons and images. Inside the app you'll find the headphones many features, all accessible with a tap.

There's the noise-canceling modes, which are more simplistic than the Sony option. You'll find different ANC levels, although there aren't as many as there are on the XM6. It'll still let you dial in your ANC, though, which is helpful.

Then there's the EQ, which is again not as fully featured as the Sony. There are only 3 bands here as opposed to the XM6's 10, so you can't quite dial in the sound as much as you might like if you're a frequent genre-switcher.

There's also the spatial audio component, although this will come down to personal preference. It uses Bose's proprietary spatial audio mixing called "Immersive Audio," which takes all music you listen to and spreads it out. Your mileage may vary here — I don't like how it thins out the mid-range, but others like the artificially increased soundstage.

Overall, the Sony WH-1000XM6 pack in more features than the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, and take home the features section.

• Winner: Sony WH-1000XM6

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: ANC

With an increase in microphones from 8 to 12 from the old model, the XM6 feature improved noise canceling. They'll dynamically read the environment around you so that the ANC is always working at its best — at least that's what Sony claims.

The result is good noise canceling, although we found that it wasn't quite as big an improvement as we where perhaps hoping. There's a definite reduction in the higher-range this time round, making louder environments easier to handle while listening to a podcast or an audio book.

ANC does still struggle with louder sounds like crying children, and Nick found that flights won't be completely blocked out. The ANC is still very good however, and the transparency modes match the performance with natural sound audio pumped back through to you.

However, Bose wins out here every time though. Despite the improved noise canceling of the WH-1000XM6, they still can't compete with the noise canceling of the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. It really is like magic when you turn the ANC of the Bose on, and every single sound just... goes away.

It's closer than it was before, but the ANC performance of the Bose QuietComfort Ultra takes them the win this time around.

• Winner: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Battery life

Sony hasn't made any great strides in battery life in the XM6: They'll last you 30 hours with ANC switched on, and 40 hours if you switch it off. That's about what you'd expect from the price point, although its disappointing we didn't get a little more staying power. Still, I'd wager that 30 hours is still going to be plenty for most people.

If you're in a rush, 3 minutes of charging gets you 3 hours of use as well, which is helpful should you need to juice up super quickly.

Bose's battery isn't... good. You get 24 hours of staying power out of the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones — a whole 6 hours less than the Sony headphones. You can't increase this number either, because you can't turn the ANC off, only switch between on and transparency mode.

Quick charge isn't as impressive either, giving you 2.5 hours after a 15 minute charge.

The Sony headphones take the crown here in all aspects of battery life.

• Winner: Sony WH-1000XM6

Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones: Verdict

At the end of the competition, the Sony WH-1000XM6 take the cake as the better pair of headphones. They might not look as good or have noise canceling as good as the Bose QC Ultra, but the improvements in sound quality and feature set make sure they retain their place above the QuietComfort Ultra on most headphones list.

However — if you like ANC above all else, or don't want to spend the extra when deals events come around, then the Bose headphones might just be the better option for you.

Personally, though, I'd recommend you pick up the XM5 if you're looking to save some money over the XM6. You get similar performance and looks for a lower price and Sony is going to leave them on sale.

Ratings scorecard

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