It can be easy to feel like it costs a fortune to get noise-cancelling headphones – many of the top contenders cost well over £200. That can seem like a lot if you just want to keep out annoying background sounds while allowing you to focus on your work or listen to your music without being disturbed. However, there are options at much more affordable prices.
I should be clear that if you’ve tried more expensive headphones, you will notice the difference when you wear less premium models.
But, if you’re buying a pair of noise-cancelling headphones for a student or teenager, or you’re personally not too concerned about sound quality or extra features, I’ve got to say that the Soundcore Life Q20i stands out as a good pair, and is surprisingly cheap at under £50.
Pros
- Affordable price
- Decent noise-cancelling
- Simple controls
- Good comfort
- 40-hour battery life
- Folding design
Cons
- No carry pouch
- Feels cheap and plasticky
- Quite small ear cups
- Better options don’t cost too much more
- The sound quality is nothing special
Key specifications
| Noise cancellation | Yes |
|---|---|
| Battery life | 40 hours |
| Charging | USB-C |
| Weight | 245g |
These budget-friendly cans offer impressive features and simple controls, making them a great choice for anyone looking to improve their daily commute or office environment without spending hundreds.
They’re reasonably lightweight, connect to a companion app on your smartphone, offer a noise-cancellation mode and are well-padded and comfortable to wear.
When it comes to the look and feel of the headphones, they’re practical and unglamorous so don’t expect to be turning any heads. They’re under 250g, though, so they’re not going to weigh you down at all, and the soft faux leather ear cushions are pleasant to wear.
The space in the ear cups is a bit restricted, so they work better for those with smaller ears. They’re otherwise quite a plasticky construction, and while they feel cheap I’ve worn them for long workdays without any discomfort.
The initial setup is super simple over Bluetooth, and connecting them to the companion Soundcore app is easy too. Within that app, you can set up dual multipoint connections, update the firmware, change the sound equaliser preset and switch noise-cancelling modes.
Changing the modes is also simple by pressing the “NC” button on the headphones themselves, and overall it’s as easy to learn to control buttons here as it is to navigate a new remote control for your TV.
While nothing special, the audio quality does exceed my expectations for a budget product. They sound satisfactory and offer a reasonable amount of detail and thump. I recommend switching to the “Soundcore Signature” setting in the app for the most balanced listening experience.
They’re good at active noise cancellation (ANC) too. This was effective during my morning commute, effectively silencing train rumbles and eliminating background chatter once at the office.
Depending on how you use headphones, it’ll take a long time to get through the 40-hour battery life. I don’t find myself listening for more than about five hours at maximum in a day, so this kind of battery performance would last me for several weeks of listening without needing a recharge.
The quick charge function restores four hours of playtime after a five-minute charge via the USB-C cable.
Of course, it’s worth remembering that more premium models offer all this and much more, including far more features in the app, better materials and build quality, far better sound and more capable noise-cancelling. However, considering the price, I’m impressed at how close these come to better pairs. They offer a surprising amount of value.
If you can afford to upgrade, I recommend looking at the 1More SonoFlow SE for around £55, and the Final UX3000 is another excellent noise-cancelling over-ear pair if your budget can extend to over £100. However, if you definitely need to limit it to £50, the Soundcore Life Q20i is a good choice for reliable performance.
Simon Cocks is Good Housekeeping UK’s Technology Editor, overseeing tech shopping content and strategy for the title. He previously also worked across other titles including Esquire UK, Digital Spy, Men’s Health UK and Women’s Health UK.
Simon specialises in testing the latest smart gadgets, home entertainment gear, headphones, speakers, portable chargers, radios, e-book readers and smartphones. He's reviewed top tech products from brands including Google, Apple, Amazon, JBL and Bose.
A magazine journalism graduate from Kingston University in 2014, Simon also worked on the Discovery and Silkroad inflight magazines. He then gained experience writing about entertainment at SFX and Total Film. He also contributed reviews and interviews to TwitchFilm (later ScreenAnarchy), CultBox and Frame Rated.
He joined Good Housekeeping UK as the Editorial Assistant for Special Projects and was part of Good Housekeeping’s Consumer Affairs Team between 2014 and 2019. In this role, he conducted price comparison research, wrote detailed household and money-saving advice guides and edited thousands of in-depth reviews for the Good Housekeeping Institute.
He has focused on technology and gadgets since 2020, where he started by testing out power banks and instant cameras. He writes reviews, roundups, news articles and deals updates, and also covers top tech deals during sales like Amazon Prime Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
When not testing out the latest gizmos, you’ll find Simon either catching up with the newest releases at his local cinema or out shooting with his beloved compact camera.
You can follow Simon on Instagram, on Bluesky, on LinkedIn and on Threads.
