The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are a refreshed version of the popular Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless, which were released in 2019. This updated version opts to add quality-of-life improvements over drastic feature upgrades. Alongside the new addition of Bluetooth multi-device pairing and USB-C charging, they offer a long, multi-day battery life, a huge variety of EQ presets, and an effective hybrid ANC system: all features that help them punch above their weight (and price point).
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Our Verdict
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are decent for sports and fitness, even if they're not really designed for this use. They're reasonably comfortable, though their leatherette earpads won't do much to wick sweat away from your ears. While they're stable enough to stay on your head during light runs and stretches, you'll want to avoid breaking into a full sprint with them, lest they get jostled out of position. They also fold flat, making it easier to stow them in a packed gym bag.
Graphic EQ and presets in app.
Inconsistent bass delivery for glasses-wearers.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are very good travel headphones. Perhaps their strongest asset in this regard is the excellent noise isolation performance they provide, courtesy of their over-ear seal and solid ANC system. While they're not quite up to the standard set by premium noise-cancelling headphones, they do a fine job of tamping down external noise across the full spectrum and isolate you well in common scenarios, like aircraft cabins and busy streets. They're comfortable enough for long journeys as well and can be folded flat so you can more easily stow them in your hand luggage. Their very long 49-hour battery life is a huge boon too, letting you rack up days of use without needing a recharge. However, they lack a proper carrying case, as they're sold with just a thin carrying pouch.
Excellent noise isolation performance.
Very long, 49-hour battery life.
Inconsistent bass delivery for glasses-wearers.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are good for office work. The combination of their over-ear seal and ANC system does a solid job of attenuating sounds you might not want to hear in the workplace, like water cooler talk and clacking mechanical keyboards. Plus, they're comfortable enough to wear for hours at a time. While their built-in mic rolls off both the high-end and bass frequencies, your voice is still intelligible enough for phone calls and teleconferencing. Just be aware that they won't be able to fully separate your voice from busy backgrounds, like a train station.
Excellent noise isolation performance.
Very long, 49-hour battery life.
Graphic EQ and presets in app.
Bluetooth multi-device pairing.
Inconsistent bass delivery for glasses-wearers.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 aren't suitable for wireless gaming. While they can pair with certain devices via Bluetooth, latency is too high for most people to be able to game with them.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are satisfactory for wired gaming. They're comfortable enough for long sessions in the gaming chair, and their wired connection allows for a low-latency gaming experience. That said, you won't be able to use the integrated microphone while using them passively, so you'll need a separate microphone to communicate with others online. If you use them for single-player games, you'll benefit from their V-shaped sound, which can be modified further via the EQ and presets. Glasses-wearers should be aware that they might experience a drop-off in bass delivery, though, as thicker frames can easily disrupt their over-ear seal.
Graphic EQ and presets in app.
Mic doesn't work over a wired connection.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are decent for audio reproduction accuracy. Their frequency response generally follows their V-shaped sound profile, especially in the bass and mid-ranges, though there are some peaks and dips in the treble range that can push some sibilant sounds into harsh and abrasive territory. The L/R drivers are generally well-aligned in terms of frequency and amplitude, though a phase mismatch in the low-bass can cause sub-bass rumbles to sound loose and poorly defined. Group delay mostly falls under the audibility threshold though, and there's no audible distortion at both regular and elevated listening levels. While their PRTF accuracy isn't very similar to that of an angled reference speaker, they're capable of producing a more spacious sound than many other closed-back, over-ears.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have an excellent noise isolation performance. They use a combination of the passive seal created by their over-ear fit and an ANC system to attenuate external noise across the entire frequency range. While the ANC isn't as powerful as top-of-the-line, premium noise cancelling headphones, it still does a great job of attenuating unwanted noises when you're in environments like an aircraft cabin or a busy street, tamping down sounds like engine rumble and honking horns. They don't leak much audio either, so unless you're blasting your tunes in a very quiet environment, your audio won't be bothering other people.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have an okay microphone performance. If you use the integrated mic to take calls, you should be easily understandable to whoever's on the other end, but your voice will sound somewhat boxy, lacking both low-end and high-end. The noise handling performance is reasonable; the mic can separate your voice somewhat from busy backgrounds, like a packed cafe, but struggles with louder noise sources, like an active flightpath overhead.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have a disappointing frequency response consistency. While they deliver audio quite consistently between resets, glasses-wearers should be aware that they will likely experience inconsistent bass delivery, as the glasses frames can disrupt the over-ear seal. The extent of this effect will vary depending on the thickness of your frames. Other physical factors, like head size and hair length, won't impact audio delivery as much.
Performance Usages
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 come in four color variants: 'Black,' 'Silver,' 'Blue,' and 'Pink.' We tested the 'Black' variant (here's a picture of its label), but we expect all color variants to perform similarly. If you encounter another variant of these headphones, please let us know in the comments.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are a refresh of one of Anker's most popular, budget-minded, over-ear models. While the original Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless model is out of stock and difficult to find, it offers a similar performance, with a shorter battery life, and no multi-device pairing. The refresh is positioned on the bottom rung of the Soundcore over-ear lineup. They lack some of the premium touches of the pricier Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless, like a hard-shell case. The Q20 offers a longer battery life and comparable sound profile, though their ANC system isn't quite as good as the Q45. While there are other noise-cancelling options at a budget price point, like the JBL Tune 760NC, their ANC performs quite poorly by comparison, and they lack crucial features, like a companion app.
If you're looking for more headphones, check out our recommendations for the best budget noise cancelling headphones, the best budget and cheap headphones, and the best closed-back headphones.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q30 Wireless and the Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are very similar headphones, both in terms of features and performance. Depending on fluctuations in price, either could be a viable choice if you're after budget noise cancelling over-ears. They both feature similar sound profiles, have comparable build quality, and offer comfortable fits. Even their noise isolation performance is neck-and-neck, though they have slightly different strengths in this regard: the Q30 do a sterling job of tamping down bass frequencies, like engine rumble, while the Q20 are better at tackling treble range noises, like the clack of keyboard keystrokes.
The Anker Soundcore Space Q45 Wireless offer marginal upgrades to the Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024. Given the former's higher price point, these upgrades likely won't be worth it for many people. The Space Q45 come with a more protective hard-shell case and LDAC compatibility, and they attenuate more external noise in office environments. Otherwise, there's not much to differentiate the two: both are well-built and quite comfortable with long battery lives (though the Q20's is longer). If you're okay with foregoing a sturdier case and LDAC support in favor of a longer battery life, the Q20 will do the job while also saving you some money.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 offer small but meaningful upgrades over the original Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless. While the sound profile is largely unchanged and both headphones are comfortable and well-built, the 2024 refresh boasts a much longer continuous battery life and companion app compatibility, meaning there's greater scope for adjusting parameters like the EQ and presets. The new version also features Bluetooth multi-device pairing, which is great if you own multiple devices and don't feel like constantly pairing and unpairing.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are better value noise cancelling over-ears than the JBL Tune 770NC. The Anker offer a better isolation performance at a much lower price point. While the JBL are better built and have a marginally longer battery life, the battery is only longer by a few hours, and they have a worse-performing mic too. Both headphones have bass-forward tunings, though the Anker features a prominent treble range. Both are also hampered by poor frequency response consistency, which can impact your listening experience, particularly if you wear glasses.
Test Results
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have a V-shaped sound profile, with more low-end and treble presence than our target curve, though it's not quite as exaggerated as the original Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless. We tested them using the 'Soundcore Signature' EQ preset over a Bluetooth connection, but there's a huge variety of EQ presets to choose from (here's a graph comparing the five main presets).
As with other Bluetooth, ANC-equipped headphones, the frequency response changes when switching to a wired connection and when ANC is disabled. These differences are particularly drastic with these headphones, as disabling ANC causes a sharp drop in bass and a boost in the highest treble frequencies, while using a wired connection boosts the mid-bass and applies broader emphasis to the treble range.
The frequency response consistency is disappointing. Audio delivery is relatively consistent between different reseats, and if you don't wear glasses, our frequency response measurements are indicative of what you can expect to hear. However, glasses-wearers can expect some major deviations in bass delivery. We also noticed that bass delivery is dependent on the thickness of your glasses' arms. In general, those who wear glasses with thinner arms won't experience as much of a drop-off in the bass range, while chunkier frames will cause more dramatic roll-off in the bass range.
The bass range compliance to our target is great. The bass response is generally over-emphasized compared to our target curve, especially in the low-bass, which means 808s and sub-bass effects have a prominent place in the mix. The exception to this is the high-bass range, which is somewhat recessed by comparison and takes some of the warmth out of fingerstyle bass guitar lines.
The mid-range compliance with our target is impressive. The lower part of this range is slightly underemphasized, which somewhat thins out the high-register basslines in songs like The Cure's Pictures of You. There's a small bump in the middle of the range, too, that pushes Robert Smith's voice to the forefront of the mix.
The treble-range compliance is very good. The response leans towards being over-emphasized, especially in the low and mid-treble, where a series of peaks can lend some sharpness to sibilant sounds, like open high-hat splashes.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have an okay peaks and dips performance. The frequency response doesn't deviate much from their V-shaped sound profile until the mid-mid region, where a peak is followed by a sharp dip, giving extra clarity to male vocals, while masking higher-pitched female voices somewhat. Greater deviations are present in the treble range, where a series of peaks and valleys in the low- and mid-treble can cause sibilants to sound harsh or dull depending on their exact pitch.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have a good stereo mismatch performance. The L/R drivers are well-matched in terms of frequency and amplitude, with only slight mismatches in the mid and treble range that are imperceptible during everyday listening. There are some mismatches in the phase, though, most notably in the low-bass range, which crosses the audibility threshold and can cause sub-bass rumbles to sound flabby and lacking focus. Other mismatches in the mid and treble ranges are much less audible in real-life content.
The group delay performance is good. It generally falls under the audibility threshold throughout the entire range. The exception is a bump in the low-bass range brought about by a phase shift, which causes sub-bass rumbles and kicks to sound loose and lacking in definition.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 headphones have a disappointing PRTF performance. While their level of interaction with your outer ear (pinna) is much less than what you'd get from an angled reference speaker, they can create a greater sense of space than most closed-back headphones.
Their harmonic distortion performance is great. There's no audible coloration of your audio at both regular and elevated listening levels, so your audio will remain clean and pure, even if you blast your tunes.
You won't need to use a headphone amp to drive these headphones when used in passive (wired) mode.
These are the settings used to test the Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024. Our results are only valid when used with these settings.
Anker have kept the design largely the same as the previous generation Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless. Aesthetically, they have a no-frills look, with their plastic frame finished in a semi-gloss black. The Soundcore logo is embossed on each ear cup with an Anker logo on the headband. Overall, they're a discreet, if simple, pair of over-ears.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are comfortable headphones. Their lightweight frame, soft leatherette headband, and plush ear cups are unchanged from the previous generation. There's a decent (though not quite 180-degree) swivel to the ear cups, but they might be on the smaller, shallower side for some. Those with larger ears, in particular, might find the fit uncomfortable as their ears can be compressed by the ear cups. Similarly, those with smaller heads can have a hard time getting these headphones to fit, as even at the lowest range of adjustment, they fit quite large.
The controls remain largely unchanged from the previous generation. The control scheme is simple and intuitively laid out, and the physical buttons have the perfect amount of give, marked with grooves and notches for easy identification. Voice prompts activate when you pair a device, turn the headphones on, or engage the ANC. Plus, there's a warning when you hit max volume.
These headphones are decently portable, especially when compared to older, bulkier designs, like the Anker Soundcore Space One Wireless. They fold flat for easy storage, so they take up less space in a bag or backpack.
These headphones are sold with a barebones pouch made of synthetic material with a softer interior. While it won't protect the headphones against drops or bumps, the water-resistant material will help in the case of spills.
The build quality is decent and par for the course for budget headphones. The overall construction is solid, if very plastic-heavy, with a faux leather material used for the headband and ear cups. Our unit's headband extension was slightly loose on the right side, though, and we found that the cable was thin and flimsy. The supplied USB cable is also frustratingly short, making it challenging to keep the headphones plugged in.
These over-ears have decent stability. They're able to clamp securely over regular and larger-sized heads, so they're unlikely to be displaced if you need to make a dash for a departing metro car. That said, more intense or longer-duration exercise will cause them to fall off your head and require repositioning.
- Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 headphones
- 1/8" TRS to 1/8" TRS audio cable (1.2 m/4.05 ft)
- USB-A to USB-C charging cable
- Carrying pouch
- Quick Start guide
The full range noise isolation performance is excellent. These over-ears use a combination of passive isolation and an ANC system to tamp down on noise across the entire spectrum. The ANC system does the heavy lifting in the bass range, attenuating sounds like engine rumble, while the over-ear seal does a great job of blocking out higher-pitched noises, like whirring computer fans.
These headphones do a great job of attenuating the noises heard in common scenarios. They're best suited to isolating you against the din of a crowded street, effectively tamping down on the sound of cars zooming by, but they can also attenuate airplane engine rumble well. While they're less effective at removing the background noise in office environments, they'll still help isolate you from the sound of chatty colleagues and scraping chairs.
Wind noise can be harder for ANC-equipped headphones to counter as the wind interacts directly with the ANC mics, causing them to make a loud, annoying sound in an attempt to cancel the wind noise out. These headphones lack a wind noise feature that can help reduce this noise, so you'll likely find that this noise will be present when you pass through windy areas with the ANC enabled.
The leakage performance is very good. They leak a bit of mid- and treble-range noise at higher volumes, but you're unlikely to bother those around you unless you're in a very quiet environment.
The integrated mic's recording quality is decent. Compared to the previous generation Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Wireless, it rolls off quite a bit of low-end and some of the high-end, so your voice sounds a little boxy. Still, you'll be easily understandable to whoever's on the other end.
The noise handling performance is okay. While it doesn't fully separate your voice from moderately busy environments, like a bustling cafe, your voice is still clearly audible. That said, your voice will be drowned out by louder noises, like a passing subway car, if you need to take calls in more turbulent environments.
The battery life performance is outstanding. We were able to achieve 49 hours in testing with the ANC enabled, surpassing the manufacturer's claim of 40 hours. You can even use the headphones in their passive, wired mode while charging. There's a power-saving auto-off timer too, as well as a fast charging feature that's advertised to gain you four hours of battery life in just five minutes.
The Anker Soundcore app offers a satisfactory level of control over diverse parameters. As we demonstrate in our app video, it lets you adjust the EQ settings, ambient sound mode, and power-saving settings, among other parameters. It's also your first port of call when installing firmware updates.
These headphones come with a 1.2 m/4.05 ft, 3.5 mm to 3.5 mm cable that allows them to be operated in wired mode, as well as a 25 cm/9.8 in USB-A to USB-C charging cable. The headphones automatically turn off when either cable is connected.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 have excellent Bluetooth connectivity. They support Bluetooth multi-device pairing with up to two devices and are compatible with the SBC and AAC codecs. Latency is on the higher side with SBC, though, which can negatively affect your experience if you're using them to game or watch movies.
You can connect to your PC via Bluetooth or using the included AUX cable. When connected via analog, the mic is disabled, though, so you won't be able to send audio.
The Anker Soundcore Life Q20 2024 are compatible with PlayStation family consoles via a wired connection. Just be aware that you'll need a separate microphone to communicate with your teammates online.
These headphones are compatible with Xbox family consoles using a wired connection. However, it's worth picking up a standalone mic if you plan on doing a lot of online gaming, as you can only receive audio with these headphones.