Bose QuietComfort Headphones vs Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless: Which Headphones Are Better?

Tested using Methodology v2.0

Updated Oct 30, 2025 02:35 PM

See Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Review

Bose QuietComfort Headphones Wireless Picture

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingYes

EnclosureClosed-Back

Bass Amount Very Emphasized (6 dB)

WirelessYes

TransducerDynamic

Treble Amount Slightly Emphasized (1 dB)

MicYes

Sound Signature Warm

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingYes

EnclosureClosed-Back

Bass Amount Very Emphasized (5 dB)

WirelessYes

TransducerDynamic

Treble Amount Balanced (0 dB)

MicYes

Sound Signature Warm

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Our Verdict

Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless

Bose QuietComfort Headphones Wireless

The Bose QuietComfort Headphones Wireless and the Sony WH-1000XM5 are headphones with excellent noise isolation. Both are equally stable, built well, and remarkably mitigate background noise from train engines to ambient conversation. The Bose are significantly more comfortable than the Sony, but they lack a dedicated virtual soundstage feature and leak more audio.

Variants

WH-1000XM5 (Black)
WH-1000XM5 (Midnight Blue)
WH-1000XM5 (Silver)
WH-1000XM5 (Smoky Pink)

QuietComfort Headphones (Chilled Lilac)
QuietComfort Headphones (Cypress Green)
QuietComfort Headphones (Moonstone Blue)
QuietComfort Headphones (Sandstone)
QuietComfort Headphones (Steve Lacy)
QuietComfort Headphones (Triple Black)
QuietComfort Headphones (Twilight Blue)
QuietComfort Headphones (White Smoke)

Review

See Bose QuietComfort Headphones Wireless Review

Check Price

Black

WH-1000XM5

Chilled Lilac

QuietComfort Headphones

Midnight Blue

WH-1000XM5

Cypress Green

QuietComfort Headphones

Silver

WH-1000XM5

Moonstone Blue

QuietComfort Headphones

Smoky Pink

WH-1000XM5

Sandstone

QuietComfort Headphones

Steve Lacy

QuietComfort Headphones

Triple Black

QuietComfort Headphones

Twilight Blue

QuietComfort Headphones

White Smoke

QuietComfort Headphones

Main Differences for

Sports And Fitness

Threshold

0.10

Sports And Fitness

7.2

7.5

Comfort

7.0

8.5

Full Comparison

Sports And Fitness

7.2

7.5

Travel

8.2

Office Work

8.2

7.7

Wireless Gaming (In Development)

6.0

6.2

Wired Gaming (In Development)

7.6

7.4

Audio Reproduction Accuracy

8.1

7.2

Noise Isolation

9.1

9.0

Microphone (In Development)

7.6

6.2

Frequency Response Consistency

7.5

7.8

Sound

Sound Profile

Normalization Frequency

1,450 Hz

1,200 Hz

Bass Amount

Very Emphasized (6 dB)

Very Emphasized (5 dB)

Treble Amount

Slightly Emphasized (1 dB)

Balanced (0 dB)

Sound Signature

Warm

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Frequency Response Consistency

7.5

7.8

Consistency L

Consistency R

Std. Deviation

0.99 dB

0.90 dB

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Raw Frequency Response

Raw FR L

Raw FR R

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

7.4

7.8

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

5.6 dB

4.9 dB

Low-Frequency Extension

20 Hz

Low Bass

4.95 dB

5.79 dB

Mid Bass

5.47 dB

4.39 dB

High Bass

6.37 dB

3.21 dB

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Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

8.3

9.6

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

2.24 dB

0.72 dB

Low Mid

3 dB

0.11 dB

Mid-Mid

-0.55 dB

-0.61 dB

High Mid

-0.88 dB

-0.13 dB

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Treble Profile: Target Compliance

9.8

9.1

Treble Profile: Target Compliance

RMS Deviation From Target

1.51 dB

2.37 dB

Low Treble

1.25 dB

-0.59 dB

Mid Treble

0.51 dB

0.03 dB

High Treble

-5.32 dB

-4.36 dB

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Peaks/Dips

8.3

7.7

Peaks/Dips Graph

Peaks

0.9 dB

1.27 dB

Dips

1.64 dB

1.83 dB

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Stereo Mismatch

7.5

7.7

Frequency Response Mismatch

Phase Response Mismatch

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch

0.32 dB

0.56 dB

Weighted Frequency Response Mismatch

1.50 dB

0.92 dB

Weighted Phase Mismatch

2.7°

0.9°

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Group Delay

8.6

4.2

Group Delay

Weighted Group Delay

0.6 ms

1.8 ms

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Cumulative Spectral Decay

CSD

Bose QuietComfort Headphones Wireless CSD

PRTF

4.8

4.3

PRTF

PRTF Accuracy (RMS Deviation)

3.68 dB

3.44 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.)

7.72 dB

5.99 dB

PRTF Distance

6.74 dB

3.64 dB

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Harmonic Distortion

9.1

8.1

Harmonics Levels

THD Ratio

WHD @ 94 dB SPL

0.07%

0.20%

WHD @ 104 dB SPL

0.23%

0.46%

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Electrical Aspects

Impedance

Sensitivity @1kHz-1V

113.0 dB SPL

114.5 dB SPL

Bluetooth Max SPL

104.9 dB

106.0 dB

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Virtual Soundstage

4.1

0.0

Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling

On/Off

Speaker Modeling

On/Off

Room Ambience

Head Tracking

Virtual Surround

360 Reality Audio

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Test Settings

Firmware

2.3.1

1.0.6-80+f5f219b

Power

Connection

Bluetooth

Codec

SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ

Off

No EQ

ANC

Quiet

Tip/Pad

Default

Microphone

Integrated

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Design

Style

Design Picture 2

Type

Over-ear

Enclosure

Closed-Back

Wireless

Yes

Transducer

Dynamic

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Comfort

7.0

8.5

Comfort Picture

Weight

0.55 lbs

0.52 lbs

Clamping Force

0.8 lbs

0.7 lbs

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Controls

7.6

8.1

Controls Picture

OS Compatibility

Not OS specific

Ease Of Use

Good

Feedback

Decent

Good

Call/Music Control

Yes

Volume Control

Yes

Microphone Control

Mute/Unmute

Channel Mixing

Noise Cancelling Control

On/Off

Talk-Through

On/Off

Additional Controls

Voice Assistant

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Portability

6.0

6.4

Portability Picture

L

8.1" (20.5 cm)

7.1" (18.0 cm)

W

6.9" (17.6 cm)

5.4" (13.8 cm)

H

1.8" (4.5 cm)

1.7" (4.3 cm)

Volume

99.08 in³ (1,623.60 cm³)

65.17 in³ (1,068.00 cm³)

Transmitter Required

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Case

8.0

Case Picture

Type

Hard case

L

9.3" (23.6 cm)

8.3" (21.1 cm)

W

8.0" (20.2 cm)

5.7" (14.5 cm)

H

2.3" (5.9 cm)

2.2" (5.5 cm)

Volume

171.64 in³ (2,812.60 cm³)

102.64 in³ (1,682.00 cm³)

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Build Quality

7.5

Build Quality Picture

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Stability

7.0

Stability Picture

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Headshots 1

Angled Picture

Side Picture

Headshots 2

Front Picture

Rear Picture

Top

Top Picture

In The Box

In The Box Picture

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Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range

9.4

9.3

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph

Noise Cancelling

Yes

Overall Attenuation

-25.81 dB

-25.80 dB

Bass

-17.63 dB

-19.74 dB

Mid

-28.25 dB

-27.05 dB

Treble

-33.04 dB

-31.77 dB

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Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios

9.1

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph

Airplane Noise Attenuation

-21.43 dB

-20.95 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio

Office Noise Attenuation

-19.38 dB

-21.22 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio

Street Noise Attenuation

-24.28 dB

-22.79 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio

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Noise Isolation - Voice Handling

Female Voice 1

Male Voice 1

Female Voice 2

Male Voice 2

ANC Wind Handling

ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise

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Leakage

7.7

6.7

Leakage

Leakage Audio

Overall Leakage @ 1ft

35.69 dB

41.02 dB

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Microphone

Microphone Style

Integrated

Yes

In-Line

Yes

Boom

Detachable Boom

Mic

Yes

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Recording Quality

6.7

7.4

Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech

LFE

236.29 Hz

302.04 Hz

FR Std. Dev.

3.43 dB

2.89 dB

HFE

7,240.77 Hz

6,736.4 Hz

Weighted THD

N/A

0.773

Gain

-13.92 dB

15.08 dB

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Noise Handling

8.3

5.3

SpNR

SpNR

7.61 dB

46.49 dB

Noise Gate

Always On

Speech + Pink Noise Handling

8.5

5.5

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample

Speech + Subway Noise Handling

8.0

5.0

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample

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Active Features

Battery

8.5

8.6

Battery Type

Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life

27 hrs

26.1 hrs

Additional Charges

0.0

Total Battery Life

27 hrs

26.1 hrs

Charge Time

3 hrs

2 hrs

Power-Saving Feature

Auto-Off Timer

Audio While Charging

Passive Playback

Yes

Charging Port

USB-C

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App Support

8.0

App Picture

App Name

Sony Sound Connect

Bose Music

iOS

Yes

Android

Yes

macOS

Windows

Equalizer

Graphic + Presets

ANC Control

On/Off

Adjustable

Mic Control

Room Effects

Playback Control

Yes

Button Mapping

Yes

Surround Support

Yes

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Connectivity

Wired Connection

9.8

7.5

Cable Picture

Analog Audio

Yes

USB Audio

Detachable

Yes

Length

4.04 ft (1.23 m)

3.28 ft (1.00 m)

Connector

1/8" TRS

1/16" TRRS

Latency - Analog

0.4 ms

15.8 ms

Latency - USB

N/A

Recorded Latency

Recorded Latency Connection

Analog

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Bluetooth Connection

8.7

8.5

Bluetooth Version

5.2

5.1

Multi-Device Pairing

2 Devices

Quick Pair (Android)

Yes

Quick Pair (iOS)

Line Of Sight Range

330.71 ft (100.80 m)

334.65 ft (102.00 m)

Latency - SBC

241 ms

183 ms

Latency - aptX

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)

N/A

Latency - LDAC

233 ms

N/A

Recorded Latency

Recorded Latency Codec

SBC

AAC Support

Yes

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Wireless Connection (Dongle)

0.0

Line Of Sight Range

N/A

Latency - Dongle

N/A

Recorded Latency

N/A

PC Compatibility

Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

Wired USB

Non-BT Wireless

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PlayStation Compatibility

PS4 Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

PS4 Wired USB

PS4 Non-BT Wireless

PS5 Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

PS5 Wired USB

PS5 Non-BT Wireless

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Xbox Compatibility

Xbox One Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless

Xbox Series X|S Analog

Audio Only

Audio + Microphone

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless

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Base/Dock

0.0

Type

No Base/Dock

USB Input

Line In

Line Out

Optical Input

RCA Input

Dock Charging

Power Supply

No Base/Dock

Check Price

Black

WH-1000XM5

Chilled Lilac

QuietComfort Headphones

Midnight Blue

WH-1000XM5

Cypress Green

QuietComfort Headphones

Silver

WH-1000XM5

Moonstone Blue

QuietComfort Headphones

Smoky Pink

WH-1000XM5

Sandstone

QuietComfort Headphones

Steve Lacy

QuietComfort Headphones

Triple Black

QuietComfort Headphones

Twilight Blue

QuietComfort Headphones

White Smoke

QuietComfort Headphones