The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro are open-ear wireless earbuds designed for runners and anyone for whom situational awareness is a priority. With a lightweight clip-on design that wraps around your outer ear, touch controls, and app support with customizable EQ, they aim to offer a budget-friendly alternative to pricier models like the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds.
Our Verdict
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro are great for sports and fitness thanks to their stable, clip-on design that stays secure during activities like running or cross-fit. The flexible silicone housing makes them comfortable for most users, while their lightweight build and IPX5 rating mean you can take them for a jog in the rain. Their open-fit design keeps you aware of your surroundings, which is great for staying safe, but limits their versatility. It also means they can't reproduce much bass, though their bright sound signature works well for podcasts and audiobooks.
Bluetooth multipoint pairing for up to two devices.
Comfortable fit
IPX5 rating means you can take them out in the rain.
Open-fit helps keep you aware of your surroundings.
Leak a lot of audio.
Short, three-hour battery life.
Companion app is prone to freezing and crashing.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro are a poor choice for travel due to their open-fit design, which offers no noise isolation from engine rumble or passenger chatter. That said, they're comfortable to wear for long periods and are compact enough to slip into your pocket when not in use. But you probably won't want to use these while seated next to fellow passengers, as they'll hear your audio loud and clear. And they only last around three hours, which isn't enough for longer plane or train journeys.
Comfortable fit
The open-fit design isn't very versatile or suited to use in shared spaces.
Leak a lot of audio.
Short, three-hour battery life.
Companion app is prone to freezing and crashing.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro are poor for office use. Their open-fit design lets in ambient noise, so you'll hear co-worker chit-chat along with your audio. That design also means they leak a lot of audio, which will distract anyone near you. That said, they're comfortable enough to wear for long periods and support multi-device pairing, so if you're working in a private space, they'll do the job. That is, as long as you're okay with their short battery life of three hours and their lack of bass output. These headphones are best suited for speech-based content like calls or podcasts.
Bluetooth multipoint pairing for up to two devices.
Comfortable fit
The open-fit design isn't very versatile or suited to use in shared spaces.
Leak a lot of audio.
Short, three-hour battery life.
Companion app is prone to freezing and crashing.
Despite offering a Gaming Mode, the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro can only connect to other devices via Bluetooth, and the latency is too high to make gaming viable for most people.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro are wireless headphones. You can't use them wired.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro have acceptable audio reproduction accuracy. Their bright tuning delivers clear mids and vocals, but the open-fit design severely limits bass, making your audio sound thin and tinny. They also have a big peak between the high-mids and low-treble that can make voices sound harsh and honky. In general, these earbuds are better suited for content like podcasts and audiobooks than they are for music listening.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro have terrible noise isolation, but that's the point. They sit outside your ear canal so you can hear the world around you. They also leak a lot of audio, so if you're in an enclosed space, people nearby you will hear your audio.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro have an okay microphone performance. Apart from a big resonance in the low-mids, which can make your voice sound boomy, you sound fairly natural, if a little dull. They do an alright job separating your voice from any noise around you, but their open-ear design means you'll also hear your surroundings clearly during calls, which might be useful or distracting depending on the setting.
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro have very good frequency response consistency. Thanks to their design, their fit isn't affected by the size of your head, the length of your hair, or whether you wear glasses. But it's worth taking the time to get a good fit with each wear, as their fit does impact the stereo balance between the left and right drivers.
Performance Usages
Changelog
- Updated Apr 20, 2026: This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.2, which removes the Cumulative Spectral Decay (CSD) test, retiring its waterfall plot visualization from our reviews. You can read more about this change in the changelog.
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Updated Apr 15, 2026:
This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.1, which removes the Group Delay test and rebalances scoring for the Harmonic Distortion test and Audio Reproduction Accuracy performance usage. For more details, consult our full changelog.
- Updated Apr 09, 2026: We've converted this review to Test Bench 2.1, which features minor updates to our sound tests.
- Updated Jun 10, 2025: Review published.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The SoundPeats PearlClip Pro comes in four colour variants: 'Beige,' 'Purple,' 'White,' and Black'. We tested the 'Black' colorway, and you can view their label here.
If you encounter another variant of this headset, please let us know in the comments, and we'll update our review.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
In terms of design, the closest rivals to the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro that we've tested are the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds and the Anker Soundcore C30i. In general, their quality more or less tracks their price point. The Bose are the premium option here with the flattest frequency response (although all three ultimately have bright, thin sound profiles). Next come the Anker, which do a remarkably good job given their much more affordable price point. Finally, the SoundPeats are the cheapest of the bunch. Their sound profile is a bit uncontrolled in the high-mids and low-treble, so voices can sound unnaturally harsh, and their battery life is also the shortest. But their mic is about on par with the Bose's and better than the Anker's, so if you're looking to keep costs down, they're not a bad choice at all.
If you're interested in other approaches to open-fit earbuds, you might also want to consider bone conduction headsets like the Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 Bone Conduction. These also offer environmental awareness via their open-fit, though some may find the physical sensation produced by bone conduction uncomfortable. Finally, unsealed, stemmed buds like the Apple AirPods 4 are worth considering, especially for iOS users, as they deliver a more balanced bass response than the other buds listed here. But, of course, they're not true open-fit earbuds, so you do lose some environmental awareness.
If you're looking for earbuds for exercise, check out the best wireless earbuds for running and working out. Alternatively, if you're interested in earbuds with other features such as active noise cancelling (ANC)/transparency modes, check out the best wireless Bluetooth earbuds. Finally, if you're curious about other budget-friendly earbuds, head over to our article on the best cheap earbuds.
The Anker Soundcore C30i are slightly better open-fit earbuds than the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro. While both pairs lack bass by design, the Anker have flatter mid and treble-ranges, while the SoundPeats can sound a little harsh. The Anker also last longer off a single charge and have a more stable companion app. That said, the SoundPeats have a slightly higher IPX5 rating when compared to the Anker's IPX4, so if you like jogging in the rain a lot, the SoundPeats could be the better pick. They also have a slightly better microphone system.
The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds are better open-fit buds than the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro. But that makes sense as the Bose are many times more expensive. As is natural with open-fit buds, both pairs lack bass and are better suited to speech-based content, but the Bose have a flatter, more balanced sound, while the SoundPeats can render voices a little harsh or honky. The Bose also have a longer continuous battery life. Still, their microphones perform very similarly. Ultimately, the choice between these two will likely come down to budget, and it's notable that the SoundPeats put up a good fight against their much more expensive rival.
While most people searching for open-fit earbuds will consider models like the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds or the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro, it's also worth considering traditional, unsealed earbuds like the Samsung Galaxy Buds3. While these don't leave your ear as open as the Bose or SoundPeats, they still let you hear a little of your environment. Since they nuzzle gently by your ear canal, you also get much better bass performance. Whether the tradeoffs are worth it is really up to you. If you want something with more versatility, the Samsung are the way to go. But if hearing your surroundings while out jogging is your sole use case, the SoundPeats are the obvious choice.
The Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 Bone Conduction and the SoundPeats PearlClip Pro take different routes to accomplish similar goals. They're both designed to sit outside your ear canal, leaving it unsealed so that you can better hear your environment. The SoundPeats use fairly standard dynamic drivers that are aimed at your inner ear, while the Shokz add in bone conduction drivers to try and better reproduce the whole frequency range. Unfortunately, our testing rig can't quite capture the effects of bone conduction. But you'll probably make your choice between these two based on budget. The more expensive Shokz have a flatter mid-range that doesn't add harsh resonances to vocals, while the cheaper SoundPeats do the job well enough given their affordable price point, but do make voices sound a bit harsh and nasally.
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