No matter how good your gaming laptop is, audio quality can make or break your gaming experience, which is why you need one of the best gaming headsets to complete your gaming setup.
While some of the best gaming laptops have surprisingly good speakers, nothing really immerses me in my favorite games, like a great headset. I’ve spent dozens of hours testing several top headsets to find a few that offer the best possible value for your money.
In fact, my personal daily drivers are on this list: the SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds. These ultra-portable gaming earbuds are the perfect alternative to a bulky headset, especially if you wear glasses or travel often like I do.
There are plenty of fantastic over-ear picks, too. For instance, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X is easily one of the best gaming headsets for budget users. It punches way above its weight class for a sub-$200 headset and features a comfortable, lightweight design.
Whether you’re after a budget bargain, a great design, or top battery life, these are the best gaming headsets you can buy, based on dozens of hours of testing.
The Quick List
1. SteelSeries Arcits Nova 7X
Best overall
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7X is a great all-around gaming headset that balances good build quality and comfort with an immersive audio experience at a reasonable price.
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2. SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X
Best budget
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X delivers all the core features you need in a lightweight chassis with great audio quality for the price, all at under $200, making it a steal for budget gamers.
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3. Razer BlackShark V2 Pro
Best battery life
The Razer BlackShark delivers some of the most impressive battery life in any gaming headset, lasting up to 70 hours on a single charge. Plus, it features solid mic quality and a comfy design.
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4. SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds
Best earbuds
The SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds are the perfect alternative to bulky gaming headsets, offering a supremely comfortable, lightweight fit and great portability with solid audio quality on mobile, PC, and consoles.
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Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield is a freelance tech journalist and lifelong gaming enthusiast covering everything from gaming laptops to handhelds to keyboards and accessories. After reviewing dozens of gaming devices for Laptop Mag, Stevie knows how to spot the gaming headsets that deliver the best audio experience for your money.
The best gaming headsets you can buy in 2025
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Best overall gaming headset
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Why is this our top overall gaming headset?
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7X combines all the core features you need in a great gaming headset with a flexible, durable design and solid battery life for a stellar all-around headset for PC, PS5, Xbox, Switch, and mobile.
Buy it if
✔️ You want great audio in a polished design: The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7X is reliable, streamlined, comfortable, and offers great audio quality with customizable game-specific audio profiles. It’s the perfect balance between price and performance, offering a more premium build quality than the Arctis Nova 5X without getting too pricey.
✔️ You enjoy customization: You can personalize the Arctis Nova 7X with SteelSeries booster packs that include earcup accents and headbands in various colors and patterns. It’s a unique feature that’s also good for extending the lifespan of your headset in case your suspension headband ever needs to be replaced.
Don’t buy it if
✖️ Price is your top concern: The Arctis Nova 7X is a great gaming headset, but the more affordable Arctis Nova 5X offers nearly all the same features and virtually identical audio quality at a much lower price. So if affordability is your top concern, the Arctis Nova 5X is probably a better deal.
See our full SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7X review.
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Best budget gaming headset
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Why is it our budget pick for handheld gaming PCs?
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X delivers stellar value for your money, pairing an affordable sub-$200 price tag with solid audio quality, impressive battery life, and a comfortable, lightweight design.
Buy it if
✔️ You want great value for your money: The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X is a fantastic budget-friendly gaming headset. It offers all the basics you need for a great audio experience, paired with a lightweight, comfortable design and shockingly good battery life. It’s a phenomenal deal for just $129.
✔️ You want a lightweight headset: If comfort’s your top priority, the Arctis Nova 5X is a great pick. Its plastic chassis is flexible and lightweight at just 0.58 pounds. With the soft, breathable fabric earcups, the Arctis Nova 5X stays cool and comfy for hours on end.
Don’t buy if
✖️ Mic quality is your top priority: The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X offers strong audio quality comparable with the more expensive Arctis Nova 7X, but its mic isn’t quite as impressive. It can get the job done for everyday voice calls, but if you want a crystal-clear mic, this might not be the best option.
✖️ You need noise cancelling: The Arctis Nova 5X has all the basic features you need in a good gaming headset, but it doesn’t feature ANC or any kind of advanced noise cancellation. For that, you might be better served with the Arctis Nova Pro or Arctis GameBuds.
See our full SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X review.
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Longest-lasting gaming headset
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Why is it our top battery life pick for gaming headsets?
The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro is tough to beat on battery life, maxing out at 70 hours per charge. If you want to avoid pausing your gaming sessions to recharge your headset, this one is the right pick for you.
Buy it if
✔️ Battery life is your top priority: The Razer BlackShark truly shines on battery life, lasting an impressive 70 hours per charge. If you often forget to charge your headset or simply want to avoid it, the BlackShark V2 Pro could be a great fit.
✔️ You want a good built-in mic: The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro has one of the best built-in mics of any of the gaming headsets we’ve tested. It might not be podcast quality, but it’s perfect for clear, crisp voice chat audio during all your gaming sessions.
Don’t buy it if
✖️ You want something low-profile: The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro is a pretty bulky gaming headset. At 0.70 pounds, it’s not particularly heavy, but the design itself is on the larger side. It might look noticeably bulky on smaller heads, but it’s comfy nonetheless.
✖️ You want something that can take a hit: The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro held up fine during our testing, but its construction uses plastic rather than metal in some key areas, namely around the hinges, suggesting that it might not hold up long-term as well as some alternatives, particularly if you often travel with your headset.
See our full Razer BlackShark V2 Pro review.
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Best gaming earbuds
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Why is it our top pair of gaming earbuds?
The SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds are the ultimate alternative to bulky over-ear gaming headsets, offering a comfortable in-ear fit, solid battery life, and fantastic portability with the same features as SteelSeries’s over-ear headsets, including game-specific audio presets.
Buy it if
✔️ You don’t like bulky over-ear headsets or wear glasses: The SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds are perfect for gamers who travel or commute often, wear glasses, or just don’t like bulky headsets. You can’t get more portable and lightweight than the GameBuds. They won’t get in the way of your glasses, either.
✔️ You want noise-cancelling: One of the best features of the SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds is its Active Noise Cancelling, which works so well that it even helped prevent motion sickness in our review. The ANC on these earbuds is top-notch and perfect for creating a more immersive gaming (or working) experience. There’s also a Transparency mode for when you need to hear your surroundings.
Don’t buy it if
✖️ You have sensitive skin or don’t like in-ear earbuds: The silicone eartips on the Arctis GameBuds aren’t for everyone. If you have sensitive skin or often find silicone irritating, these earbuds could make your ears itchy after a little while and an on-ear or over-ear headset might be a better fit.
✖️ You’re looking for a good built-in mic: The built-in mic on the Arctis GameBuds is one of its few downsides. Its mic isn’t bad, but it’s not as clear as the mics on SteelSeries’s over-ear headsets, so if that’s a top priority for you, an over-ear headset or external USB mic might be a better solution.
See our full SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds review.
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Recently reviewed
Not every gaming headset we test earns a spot on among the best gaming headsets. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean these headsets were disappointing or a bad buy, they just may not have impressed us enough to make the cut. They could still be a good fit for some people, though.
How to find the right gaming headset
Gaming headsets might all look a bit similar, but each has pros and cons you should consider to find the right fit.
The first thing to determine is whether you want over-ear headphones or in-ear earbuds. The vast majority of gaming headsets are over-ear, which can be more comfortable for longer gaming sessions, with the big exception of gamers who wear glasses.
Over-ear headphones will almost always be a bit less comfortable if you wear glasses since they wrap around your ears, pressing the arms of your glasses against your head. This can be pretty uncomfortable after a while with most over-ear headphones, which is why gaming earbuds are often a better choice if you wear glasses. In that case, I’d highly recommend the SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds.
Next, consider how important mic quality and battery life are. If you have an external USB mic, you probably don’t need to worry about the quality of the built-in mic on your gaming headset. However, if you don’t have an external mic, the built-in mic should be a top priority.
The same goes for battery life. If you mainly prefer to use a wired headset or don’t plan to travel with it, battery life probably won’t be a deal breaker. But if you want to use your headset in wireless mode only, you should try to get the best battery life possible. The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro and SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X are both good options in that department.
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FAQs
Can I use the same gaming headset on PC and consoles?
Yes, you can usually use the same gaming headset you use for PC on your consoles, but compatibility can vary. For instance, many gaming headsets are only compatible with Xbox or PlayStation. Effectively, all gaming headsets are compatible with PC and mobile devices, though, as long as they have Bluetooth or a wired connection.
The easiest way to use the same headset for both PC and consoles is to pair it via Bluetooth on your PC and use its 2.4GHz wireless dongle with your console. Then, when you want to swap between PC and console, you can swap connectivity modes; no re-pairing is necessary.
Are gaming earbuds better than gaming headsets?
Gaming earbuds can be better than gaming headsets for some people, especially if you wear glasses or travel often. Gaming earbuds are much more portable and lightweight, making them easier to slip into your pocket when traveling or commuting. They can even double as workout headphones.
In contrast, over-ear gaming headsets are typically too bulky to be good for traveling or working out and are often uncomfortable if you wear glasses. However, if you don’t wear glasses or your ears are sensitive to silicone earbud tips, an over-ear headset is probably a better fit.
How much should you spend on a gaming headset?
You can easily get a great gaming headset for less than $200. For instance, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X costs just $129 and offers a fantastic experience all around, with a lightweight design and customizable game-specific audio profiles.
Anything above $200 is generally considered premium. There are options in this price range if you want something a bit more high-end, like the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro. However, most gamers can get a stellar gaming experience with a variety of less expensive headsets.
How We Test the best gaming headsets
Every gaming headset featured in this guide was reviewed after at least a week of everyday use, along with side-by-side comparisons with other headsets and mics. This ensures we experience the headset the same way you would using it as a daily driver, allowing us to spot issues like long-term comfort or software bugs.
We record audio samples with the mic in each headset, as well, to compare mic quality between headsets and USB mics. Audio tests include a range of different music genres and games to get a feel for the entire breadth of the headset’s audio features and quality.
Finally, we also dive into any software features a headset has to test out tools like customizable audio profiles.
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Why Trust Laptop Mag
Laptop Mag reviews hundreds of different laptops and accessories every year, from paperweight ultralights to everyday workhorses to lumbering gaming notebooks that scorch the frame rates of even the hottest AAA games. We’re not just experts in the laptop field, as we go one step further by meticulously testing smartphones, tablets, headphones, PC accessories, software, and even handheld gaming PCs.
We are 100% independent and have decades of experience to help you buy with confidence. In fact, Laptop Mag has been testing and reviewing products for three decades, and we continue to deliver trustworthy reviews you can rely on.
Our experienced team of writers and editors scour the available information about the laptop and put it through its paces to determine which is best for you. But before they start, the testing team subjects each system to a rigorous regimen of synthetic and real-world tests to see how a system handles the type of work and games you’re most likely to throw at it.
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