The Jabra Elite 3 True Wireless are affordable wireless in-ears with a simple design. Compared to other earbuds in the same line-up, like the Jabra Elite 4 True Wireless and Jabra Elite 5 True Wireless, they don't support multi-device pairing or have active noise cancelling (ANC). Sporty variants like the Jabra Elite 4 Active True Wireless also offer a higher IP57 rating for dust and water resistance. Still, if you're on a tight budget, they offer a comfortable fit, a solid battery performance, and an app with sound customization features.
Our Verdict
The Jabra Elite 3 are decent for neutral sound. Out of the box, they have a slightly bass-rich sound profile that adds a touch of extra body and boom to your mixes. It won't overwhelm vocals and lead instruments, making their sound suitable for various audio content. Their companion app also offers a few graphic EQs and presets if you prefer a different sound. However, their passive soundstage is closed-off, and sound feels like it's coming from inside your head rather than from speakers placed around you.
- Well-built and comfortable design.
- Bad passive soundstage.
The Jabra Elite 3 are very good for commute and travel. They have a comfortable fit for most people, a sturdy design, and last around seven hours of continuous use. However, they don't have an ANC feature and won't block out rumbling bus and plane engines. They can help passively reduce noise like background conversations.
- Well-built and comfortable design.
- Good battery performance.
- Struggle to block out bass-range noise.
The Jabra Elite 3 are great for sports and fitness. Thanks to their wireless in-ear design, you can easily take them to the gym or park for workouts. They also have a lightweight, stable design and feel sturdy. They're rated IP55 for dust and water resistance and have robust physical controls, which are handy when you're on the move.
- Well-built and comfortable design.
- Stable and breathable fit.
- Certified IP55 for dust and water resistance.
- Bad passive soundstage.
The Jabra Elite 3 are decent for office use. They have a comfortable, well-built design and don't leak very much audio, so if you like to crank up the volume, you can listen to your favorite tracks without disturbing people around you. They have over seven hours of continuous battery life, and their carrying case holds roughly three additional charges. Their passive design can also help block out office chatter.
- Well-built and comfortable design.
- Good battery performance.
- Decent recording quality.
- Bad passive soundstage.
- No multi-device pairing.
The Jabra Elite 3 are Bluetooth earbuds unsuitable for wireless gaming. They aren't compatible with PlayStation or Xbox consoles. They work with Bluetooth-enabled PCs, but their latency is likely too high for gaming.
The Jabra Elite 3 are wireless-only headphones, and you can't use them wired.
The Jabra Elite 3 are fair for phone calls. These in-ears have an integrated mic with decent recording quality, so you sound clear and intelligible, although your voice lacks a bit of body. However, the mic also struggles to separate your voice from ambient noise around you, and speech could be drowned out by sounds in your surroundings, like a busy street. That said, the earbuds can block out a decent amount of ambient noise around you, allowing you to hear your call better.
- Well-built and comfortable design.
- Disappointing noise handling.
Changelog
- Updated Jun 23, 2023: Made minor edits to the text and checked that it's up to date.
- Updated May 11, 2023: We've added a comparison between these headphones and the Jabra Elite 4 True Wireless in Noise Isolation.
- Updated Dec 01, 2022: We've added a comparison to the Jabra Elite 5 True Wireless in the Style box.
- Updated Mar 15, 2022: Retested 'Equalizer' with firmware version 1.3.0. The result changed from 'Presets' to 'Graphic + Presets'.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Jabra Elite 3 come in four color variants: 'Lilac', 'Dark Grey', 'Gold Beige', and 'Navy'. We tested the 'Dark Grey' variant, but expect our results to be also valid for the other colors. You can see the label for the unit we tested here. If you encounter another variant, please let us know in the forums, and we'll update our review.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Jabra Elite 3 are less expensive earbuds from Jabra. Unlike some pricier options, including later releases in the same line-up like the Jabra Elite 4 True Wireless and Jabra Elite 5 True Wireless, they don't have an ANC system or support multi-device pairing. However, they have a comfortable, stable fit, a well-balanced and customizable sound profile, and a decent battery life, offering good and versatile performance for simple earbuds.
Check out our recommendations for the best earbuds and in-ear headphones, the best wireless Bluetooth earbuds, and the best wireless Bluetooth earbuds under $100.
The Jabra Elite 75t Truly Wireless and the Jabra Elite 3 True Wireless are similarly performing headphones. While both headphones are equally comfortable, the Elite 75t are better built and active noise cancelling so they can block out more ambient noise around you. They also support multi-device pairing. The Elite 3 have a more neutral default sound profile, which some users may prefer, and they have a better battery performance.
The Jabra Elite 4 True Wireless are the next in line of the Jabra Elite 3 True Wireless. While both buds are well-built and have neutral sound profiles, the Elite 4 support multi-device pairing and have an ANC system. Even though it doesn't offer a significant improvement over the buds' passive noise isolation capabilities. However, we noticed distortion issues with our Elite 4 model, which affects the overall clarity of their sound.
The Jabra Elite 85t Truly Wireless are slightly better in-ears than the Jabra Elite 3 True Wireless. While both headphones are comfortable, the Elite 85t are better built and support multi-device pairing. However, the Elite 3 have a better battery performance.
The Jabra Elite Active 65t Truly Wireless and Jabra Elite 3 True Wireless have different strengths. The Elite Active 65t are better built and have a significantly better noise isolation performance. They also support multi-device pairing with up to two devices at a time. However, the Elite 3 are more comfortable and have a superior battery performance.
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Test Results
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