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There are only a few hours in the day when you won't see headphones on my head or earbuds in my ears. There's nothing like finding a great pair of headphones or earbuds; the best pair for you may take some time, significant trial-and-error, and honesty about your preferences, but once you do, you'll be inseparable.

As ZDNET's audio editor, I take pride in our content, which not only provides you with buying advice on the most popular names in the consumer audio industry but also showcases lesser-known brands, budget options, and surprisingly impressive picks. We compiled data on the top-selling headphones, presented in order of units sold, via links from ZDNET's website (a disclaimer: Your privacy is protected; we only have access to aggregate data from our user base, and there is no way for us to identify individual people's purchases).

Here are the ZDNET readers' most-purchased headphones so far in 2026, from January through April.