See also: Best ANC Headphones Under $200 (2026)
The Sony WH-CH720N is the sweet spot of the sub-$150 ANC market in 2026 — light enough to forget you’re wearing them, with a battery that lasts a full work week of commutes. At $129 they undercut the Bose QuietComfort 45 by $70 and the Sony WH-1000XM5 by $250, while keeping the parts of Sony’s flagship tuning most listeners actually notice.
We wore them across three weeks of daily use — open-plan offices, flights, gym sessions, Zoom calls — against the Bose QC45 and Anker Soundcore Space Q45. The CH720N isn’t the best at any one thing, but it’s the only sub-$150 ANC pair we’d recommend to someone who wears headphones four-plus hours a day.
Bottom line: if you want the absolute best ANC, buy the Bose. If you want the longest battery, buy the Anker. For everything else — and for most people — the CH720N is the answer.
Design and build
At 192g the CH720N is the lightest over-ear ANC headphone we weighed in 2026 — about 50g lighter than the Bose QC45 and noticeably lighter than the Sony WH-1000XM5. The clamp is moderate, the foam earcups breathe better than protein-leather flagships, and glasses-wearers report none of the temple pressure we get from the QC45 after long sessions.
The build is unapologetically plastic. No metal in the headband, hinges click with a hollow sound, and the matte finish picks up backpack scuffs within a couple of weeks. They feel like a $129 product, not a halo product. They fold flat but don’t collapse into a small bundle, and the box ships with a soft pouch rather than a hardshell case — frustrating if you travel often.
Controls are physical buttons on the right cup — power, ANC mode, and a customizable multi-function key. No touch surface, which we count as a win: touch panels misfire when you adjust glasses or pull a hat down. Charging is USB-C, with a 3.5mm jack for wired playback when the battery dies.
Sound quality
Tonal balance is Sony’s house signature — gentle low-end emphasis, slightly recessed upper mids, smooth treble that never crosses into sharp. It’s a tuning made for podcasts and modern pop, and that’s exactly the use case at this price. Hip-hop, EDM and pop sound full and engaging; orchestral and acoustic recordings sound rolled-off compared to a flat-tuned wired monitor.
Codec support is SBC, AAC and LDAC — no aptX. That’s irrelevant on iPhone (AAC) and useful on Sony, Pixel or Samsung phones that support LDAC at 990kbps. Soundstage is intimate rather than wide: voices sit close, instruments don’t separate far. Normal for a closed-back ANC headphone at this price, and not a flaw most users will notice.
EQ via the Sony Headphones Connect app gives you a 5-band parametric plus presets. We landed on a +1.5dB shelf at 4kHz to recover detail in vocal-heavy tracks.
Noise cancellation
ANC effectiveness is solid mid-tier. Sony’s algorithm handles the low-frequency drone you care about on planes, trains and AC hum — roughly 22dB of attenuation at 200Hz against a reference, versus 28dB on the Bose QC45. That 6dB gap is audible: the Bose feels like it shuts the world off, the Sony feels like it turns the world down.
Mid-frequency office chatter (1–3kHz) is where the CH720N gives ground to the Bose. You can still make out conversation a few desks away if it’s loud. For typical commute noise — bus engines, train rumble, plane cabin pressure — it’s plenty.
Ambient/transparency mode is functional but processed. Voices come through clearly enough for a quick coffee order, but the mode doesn’t feel natural the way Apple AirPods Max passthrough does. It’s a tool, not a feature you’ll leave on.
Battery and charging
Sony rates the CH720N at 35 hours with ANC on and 50 hours with ANC off at moderate volume. In our testing with ANC on, AAC playback and 60% volume we measured 33h 40m before the low-battery warning — slightly under spec but within margin, and best-in-class at this price.
Fast charge is the standout: 3 minutes on USB-C delivers about 1 hour of playback, and a full charge from empty takes around 3.5 hours from a 5W brick. Wireless charging is not supported. The 3.5mm passive mode works without battery — useful for long flights with seatback entertainment.
Calls and microphone
Mic clarity is above average for the price in quiet rooms. Sony’s beamforming isolates your voice without the compressed walkie-talkie sound the cheaper Bose Soundsport line is known for. In a windy outdoor environment the CH720N noticeably loses to the QC45, which has a better windscreen and more aggressive inbound noise suppression.
Multipoint Bluetooth works between two devices (laptop + phone) and switching is fast — under two seconds in our tests, more reliable than the QC45’s base firmware. Codec falls back to SBC when both connections are active, which slightly degrades music quality but is fine for voice.
Verdict
The best daily-wear ANC headphones under $150. Sony nailed weight and battery life — the two specs you actually feel. Build quality is the only place they cut corners.