You’ve got the yard — the perfect place to spend some time and unwind after a long day working. You’ve got the glass of… something, going down easy in the late afternoon sun. But something is missing. Music. And how better to listen to your favorite tunes than with some of the best outdoor speakers?
There are a few ways to listen to music outside. There are speakers you can attach to decks and other outdoor furniture, wired in place. These never lose connection to their playback, but you do need some form of amplifier and wiring for them to work. There are WiFi speakers, although they’ll need to be in range of your WiFi router to stream music. Then there are Bluetooth speakers, though they generally don’t sound as good as the other two options.
To help you find out which is best for you, we’ve worked out the best speaker for a range of different use cases. We’ve thoroughly tested every speaker on the list for sound quality and extra features, so you know what you’re gonna get. Let’s take a look at the best outdoor speakers you can buy today.
Best outdoor speakers for installations
ALERT
These speakers are passive, and that means you’re going to need something to power them. I’d recommend the Wiim Amp, which you can place inside and wire the speakers through your wall. Read more about the amplifier we recommend.
One of the best ways to bring sound to your deck is a pair of installation speakers. The Polk Atrium 4 live under the eaves of your house, fixed to the wall and facing down; they hook up to an amplifier in the house and play your tunes when you’re outside — and they’re really good at it to. There are more expensive options, obviously, but the Atrium 4 balance price and sound super well.
To give you some idea of just how good they are, they’ve been around for 21 years. According to Polk, they’ve been on sale since 2005, and they’ve not changed at all in that time. They fix sturdily to the wall and offer great water resistance to make sure they survive being outside.
They also need to be good at playing music over wind and other environmental sounds, and they did really well when we tested them. The only thing we would like to see is some extra bass, although you can always find some extra low-end with the larger (and more expensive) Polk Atrium 5. Still, there’s more low-end in the Atrium 4 than you’ll generally find in similar speakers from other manufacturers.
If you’re looking for some speakers to bring music to deck parties (or a pool, or any other yard-based activity), then you’ll do well to consider the Atrium 4. Just remember that these aren’t portable. They need wiring into a system and need to be powered by an amplifier. If you want Bluetooth, you’ll want a compatible device to connect to them.
- Read our full Polk Atrium 4 review
Best compact portable outdoor speaker
This tiny speaker is a bit of a hero in the Tom’s Guide offices. It’s about the same size as a can of fish, but produces sound enough to fill a campsite. How does it do it? I can only assume witchcraft or black magic, but Tribit assures me its just really clever audio engineering in a compact package. We’ll soon see about that, Tribit.
Although I’ll never really find out, beyond unscrewing everything. It’s not going to break open, that’s for sure, thanks to a very sturdy construction that has, thanks to our often clumsy handling, survived numerous drops and spills. It’s IP68 water resistant, so it’ll even survive a dip in a pool. The lightweight design means its going to be easy to toss in a backpack, or you could use the little clip to attach it to your bag straps and listen to your tunes on the trail. If you’re insufferable like that.
You can do it for a long time, too. There are 20 hours of battery life on board the little speaker, so you won’t be plugging it in all that often. Even better is the price. It doesn’t cost a whole bunch, so there’s no need to be as precious about it when you’re out and about. Not that you’ll want to lose it, but it won’t matter as much if you do.
Then there’s the sound. Look, it’s not HiFi, but the quality is pretty good for something so small. It also gets really, really loud, and stays distortion-free the whole time. It’s not going to wow anyone with “game-changing sound quality,” but it’s enough to power any party it might be brought along to. You might need to adjust the EQ for some genres, but that’s similar to most speakers at this price point. The PocketGo is a great outdoor speaker for a great price.
- Read the full Tribit PocketGo review
Best WiFi connected outdoor speaker
Sonos’ home WiFi system is the blueprint on which all systems are built at this point — and the Sonos Play is the brand's perfect addition to an outdoor lineup. If you haven’t got the space (or time and inclination to wire up) some installed outdoor speakers, the Play is the perfect alternative offering excellent, yard-filling sound with all the smarts you could ever ask for.
There is one caveat worth mentioning early on. If you’re planning on taking the speaker further down your yard, you’ll need to make sure your WiFi connection is strong enough from your house to reach. Otherwise, you’ll need to switch to the Bluetooth connection. That’s fine, but it does somewhat dampen the “seamless music streaming experience” that the Play touts from its brochure.
Otherwise, it has everything you could ask for. The speaker is weather—and shower—proof (ask me how I know), so you won’t need to worry about water getting in and ruining the fun. The WiFi streaming is excellent when connected, and the design is slick and premium. This is a lovely speaker — and then there’s the sound.
The Play is one of the best-sounding speakers, and not just because it’s one of the more expensive options (although I’m sure that helps). There's epic detail here, and some lovely low-end to keep things feeling fruity. It's a great audio experience, and well worth adding to your outdoor gatherings.
- Read the full Sonos Play review
Best for installed bass
ALERT
This is another set of passive speakers that are going to need some form of amplification inside the house. Again, we’ve got a recommendation for the amp you should buy, although you'll need to work out how to fit them to a wall. Or you could always call the local handyman to do the job for you.
From the off, these are big speakers. The AW-650 weigh around 9lbs per speaker, so you’ll want to make sure you securely attach them to wall wherever you might put them. That does restrict your options a little, but if you’ve got the strength in whatever surface you want to attach them to, then they’re worth it. Although will need the space too. Their weight might give you some idea of their size, but you’ll be immediately surprised when you see them in person; they’re huge.
That size does help them sound really, really good though. They’re by far the bassiest installation speakers we’ve tested, pumping out the low stuff for some really dynamic audio while you’re outside. We also really like the vocal clarity, which carries very well despite their outdoor placement. Whatever the weather they’re going to sound great.
They’re also going to survive the outdoors thanks to proper ruggedization that Klipsch has done. They’re weatherproof and made out of a “UV-resistant ABS plastic polymer” to make sure they stand up to the outdoors. Nice.
You’ll need to get the pocket book ready, though, as they’re a pretty expensive pair of speakers. At $650 (and frequently higher), they’re a proper investment — but if you want the best sound for your backyard pirates, you won’t find much better.
- Read the full Klipsch AW-650 outdoor speaker review
Best for portable bass
If you want to make sure your music cuts through the sound of the outside world, then you’re going to want something as bassy as possible — and things don’t get much bassier than the Sony ULT Tower 5. This behemoth of a speaker boasts some of the best (and loudest) bass of any speaker that we’ve tested, making it perfect for those looking for a monster of a speaker to listen to music outside.
It’s a monster in size and weight too. It’s a 28lb beast, and it measures around 21 inches tall. That’s a big speaker no matter how you spin it, and you’ll be using both of the handles to move it around the yard. You want the best outdoor sound possible; you have to pay for it somewhere, and that’s not just in your wallet.
You will pay for it in your wallet. The ULT Tower 5 is an expensive speaker, but then you look at the laundry list of features and everything starts to make sense. There’s a litany of ports and connections on the back so that you can connect loads of different devices, from a USB thing to a microphone if you want to start a garden karaoke session. You can even charge other devices from the battery inside the speaker.
Then there’s the sound. It’s a proper room shaker with the amount of bass it pumps out — we’ve rattled windows quite readily with the speaker. But it still manages to bring great vocals and other more delicate parts of music to the forefront. It’s bassy, but its not unrefined. Perfect for listening outdoors when every next noise wants to ruin your time.
It’s weather-proof too, with IPX4 water resistance to keep the water out. Don’t drop it in a pool, and you’ll be just fine. Just remember to hit the gym before lifting it up — it’s a monster.
- Read the full Sony ULT Tower 5 review
Best for by the pool listening
When you’re sitting by the pool and listening to tunes, there are a couple of things you might think about when you look at your speaker. No.1 — is this speaker going to survive the plunge should I accidentally drop-kick it into the pool? And No. 2 — I hope I don’t accidentally drop-kick my speaker into the pool. Well, with the JBL Flip 6, we can answer the first question with a resounding “Yes, it will” and put your mind at ease about the second one. Even if you do drop-kick your speaker into the pool, it doesn’t matter, because it’s not going to break. You’re welcome.
On top of the IP67 water resistance rating (that’s how it’ll survive a dip in the pool), there are other reasons to by the Flip 6. It’s nice and compact, for one, so you you can take it with you to loads of different pools (although you might not want to take it to a public pool). The battery life of 12 hours makes sure it’ll last plenty of time, too.
The sound is nothing to write home about, but it's perfectly serviceable. There’s some decent bass there, and you can hear the rest of the ensemble with little problem. Just don’t expect game-changing audio and you’re off to the races.
My favorite part, though, is the fun strap. It might not be all that useful in the pool, but it means you can strap it to a bag or even your jeans. That’s fun.
- Read the full JBL Flip 6 review
The amplifer we recommend
This $250 hero is the perfect way to power your outdoor passive speakers. It's got plenty of power inside to run your speakers, and there are loads of ways to play your tunes through the built-in streaming capabilities. That means Spotify Lossless outside, baby, without needing to plug in a separate device. Very nice.
The sonic base it lays down is good too, making sure that your speakers can do a solid job with your music. There are plenty of connections on the back as well, should you want to add a CD player or plug in a hard drive for a more secure way of accessing a library of existing tracks.
It’s not very big either, although if you want to mount it on the wall you’ll need some form of bracket. It’s not waterproof or weatherproof either, so you can’t put it outside where it might get damaged. That’ll mean you’ll need to drill holes in the wall for your speaker cable.
Also tested
As Tom's Guide's audio experts, we test a lot of speakers but not every model makes it into a buying guide. That's not to say that they're not great performers, just that they're beaten by rival models with a stronger set of features or performance. The picks in this guide are the very best we've tested and have all been given full reviews. But with more models to choose from than ever, we want to make sure that you consider these also tested options. These alternatives have all been through our rigorous testing processes but didn't quite make the grade to rank among the best of the best.
How we test
For the best outdoor speakers, we look at a number of factors. We start with audio quality: how bass, mid-range, treble and vocals sound. Are they balanced? What kind of woofer, midrange driver and tweeter do the speakers have? We also look at size and range to determine how the outdoor speaker will sound in different settings, from a large backyard to a smaller patio or deck. Will the speaker be able to fill various areas or are they better in certain set-ups?
Naturally the best way to answer these questions is to play a variety of music genres, outside in the conditions you'd normally expect to find these speakers.
Next, since these are outdoor speakers, we have to take weatherproofing into consideration. Are they temperature and water resistant? Does the speaker’s housing ward off against bugs and dust? Other factors include how easy it is to mount/install the speakers along with using any smart technology features.
And we want to test a variety of outdoor speakers at different price points, so that we can recommend one for every type of budget. If you want something even more affordable, check out the best cheap Bluetooth speakers — though only some of these will offer waterproofing.
How to choose the best outdoor speakers
Along with price, there are several other factors to consider when choosing the best outdoor speakers.
1. Design: As you shop for outdoor speakers, the first thing you’ll want to look for is weather-proofing. Outdoor speakers should be at least partially water-resistant, and if you want to leave them outside all the time, they should be fully waterproof with an IPX7 rating. The next thing you’ll want to consider is how the speakers will be connected. Many outdoor speakers are wired, so you’ll need a power source. If that’s not doable in your backyard or patio, then you will want to concentrate on portable Bluetooth speakers.
2. Sound quality: Next, think about how big your space is and what kind of volume level you’ll require. If you have a small patio or mainly want music for dinner parties, a smaller set of outdoor speakers may be perfectly adequate. But if you have a large suburban backyard or want to host crowded dance parties, you may want to shop for larger speakers with more audio capacity.
Different models offer different sound, and some models offer personalized sound via companion app, which allows the user to create their own profiles and tweak EQ levels to their hearing.
3. Battery life: Most outdoors speakers are also portable and typically manage around 15 to 20 hours.
4. Accessories: Make sure there's a power/charging cable at the very least, and a user guide.
5. Pricing considerations: Last but not least, there’s cost. Outdoor speakers can get pricey, as they need to be tough and rugged enough to withstand the elements. You can still find great sets at any budget level. Note that Bluetooth speakers are generally going to be more expensive.
Although there are always exceptions, big-name brands will typically command a bit extra, but generally speaking, the less you spend on an outdoor speaker the greater the chance that sound and features will be compromised. Going for the budget option isn't always the best choice, as any money you save on your purchase won't do you much good if you're constantly needing to recharge your audio gear, or the sound quality is poor.
