- Table of Contents
- Intro
- Updates
- Comparison
- Best Speakers
- Conclusion
- Discussions
We've currently tested five Sonos speakers. Sonos is an American brand that manufactures home audio products, primarily soundbars and speakers. Some of their speakers are compatible with their soundbars to make a surround sound setup. Sonos speakers tend to have many different features, so you can find one that best suits your needs. Many Sonos speakers have a wired design, making them most suitable for home use.
Updates
- 03/31/2022 Sonos Roam SL reviewed
- 01/25/2022 Sonos One Gen 2 updated
- 01/20/2022 Sonos Roam updated
- 11/30/2021 Sonos Move updated
- 11/30/2021 Sonos Five updated
Best Sonos Speakers
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Best Sonos Speaker
Music7.0Videos/Movies6.5Podcasts8.1Voice Assistant8.6Outdoors7.7BluetoothYesWi-FiYesVoice AssistantYesBattery PoweredYesSpeakerphoneNoThe best Sonos speaker we've tested is the Sonos Move. This Bluetooth speaker is battery-powered and comes with a built-in handle on its rear so you can easily move your favorite music with you from room to room without needing to look for a power outlet. It's well-built, with an IP56 rating for dust and water resistance, certifying it for protection against direct contact with water for up to three minutes and dust for around two to eight hours. It means you can take it outdoors with you without having to worry about it getting wet or dirty. It also offers outstanding voice assistant support with Google Assistant and Alexa built-in when connected to a Wi-Fi network and can easily understand your commands from far away and in noisier rooms.
With its room correction feature enabled, it has a well-balanced sound profile suitable for many different types of audio content. There are also bass and treble adjustments that give you some control over its sound profile which you can use to tweak it to your liking. The room correction feature is currently only available with iOS devices. It also requires a second unit to play stereo content and downmixes stereo audio to mono when using it on its own, resulting in a soundstage that isn't as immersive. However, if you're looking for a good Sonos speaker, its versatility and solid performance across the board make it a great choice.
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Best Sonos Speaker For Music
Music7.5Videos/Movies6.3Podcasts6.3Voice Assistant2.9Outdoors4.7BluetoothNoWi-FiYesSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantNoBattery PoweredNoIf you're a music lover and don't care for voice assistants, the best speaker by Sonos we’ve tested for music is the Sonos Five. Unlike other Sonos speakers we've tested, this speaker doesn't come with any built-in voice assistants. It can get loud enough to fill a large room with sound. With its room correction feature enabled, it has a bright sound profile with a neutral mid-range, so vocals and lead instruments sound clear and present in the mix. It also produces a deep low bass, so you can feel the thump and punch in bass-heavy music like EDM and hip-hop.
There are bass and treble adjustments featured in its companion app, which lets you tweak its sound to your liking. You can even place the speaker horizontally when you want to listen to stereo audio and vertically for mono. However, it isn’t Bluetooth compatible, so you have to connect to it via a Wi-Fi connection. There’s also a lot of compression at max volume that affects audio quality at louder volume levels. If you’re looking for a speaker that offers a punchy low-bass for playing your favorite music, it's a solid choice.
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Best Portable Sonos Speaker
Music6.3Videos/Movies6.2Podcasts7.2Voice Assistant8.5Outdoors6.6BluetoothYesWi-FiYesSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantYesBattery PoweredYesThe best portable Sonos speaker we've tested is the Sonos Roam. This lightweight smart speaker is small enough to fit in one hand and easy to bring along with you on the go. It's very well-built, with an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance that certifies it to be fully dust-tight and submersible in up to a meter of water for 30 minutes, so you can take it outdoors with you without needing to worry about it getting wet. With its room correction feature enabled, it has a neutral sound profile overall, suitable for listening to different types of audio content. There are bass and treble adjustments you can use to tweak its sound to your liking. Like most speakers its size, it struggles to reproduce low-bass.
Alexa and Google Assistant are built into this speaker and can understand you from far away or in noisy environments with ease. However, they only work while connected to Wi-Fi, making it difficult to use the assistants on the go. If you don't care for voice assistants and room correction, the Sonos Roam SL doesn't have a built-in microphone or voice assistants and is offered at a slightly more affordable price point than the Sonos Roam.
Compared to other brands
- Built-in voice assistants. Some Sonos speakers have built-in voice assistants, typically Alexa and Google Assistant. They also have little trouble understanding you, even if you're far away or in a noisy room.
- Well-balanced sound profile. The Sonos speakers we've tested tend to have well-balanced sound profiles, making them suitable for listening to most audio content. Many can also produce a thumpy low-bass, which will please fans of bass-heavy genres.
- Sound customization options. The Sonos S2 app is compatible with most of the Sonos speakers we've tested, and it has bass and treble sliders, letting you tweak the speaker's sound to your liking. Although it doesn't include a full graphic EQ, it has a Trueplay room correction feature that automatically adjusts the speaker's sound profile to the room it's in. However, it's currently only available with iOS devices.
- Multiple devices can be linked together. Using the Sonos S2 app, you can pair multiple Sonos speakers to amplify your audio or play it across different rooms in your house. Also, some Sonos speakers, like the Sonos One SL, can be paired with compatible soundbars to create a surround sound system.
- Wired-only design. Many of the Sonos speakers that we've tested need to be plugged into a power source to work, so they're not very suitable for outdoor use. That said, Sonos is expanding its lineup of speakers to include more wireless models.
- Often no Bluetooth compatibility. Most of the Sonos speakers we've tested can't stream audio over Bluetooth. However, there's currently one Sonos speaker with Bluetooth compatibility, the Sonos Move. Fortunately, Sonos speakers tend to be Wi-Fi compatible, and you can stream audio using Apple AirPlay.
- Downmixes stereo content into mono. In general, the Sonos speakers we've tested have to downmix stereo content into mono when using them on their own, which results in a soundstage that isn't as immersive-sounding. However, you can often pair them to another compatible speaker to create a stereo pair.
Overall, Sonos makes speakers with well-balanced sound profiles suitable for home use. Some are even compatible with certain Sonos soundbars, letting you create a surround sound system. Many of their speakers have built-in voice assistants, like Alexa and Google Assistant. They're typically compatible with the Sonos S2 app, which has customization features like a room correction Sonos calls 'Trueplay' and bass and treble sliders. However, Trueplay is currently only available with iOS devices, which may disappoint some users. Some Sonos speakers don't support Bluetooth, so you may have to stream audio over Apple AirPlay or an AUX port.
Recent Updates
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May 27, 2022: The text was updated for consistency and accuracy. No changes were made in product picks.
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Jan 27, 2022: Verified picks for availability, and updated text for clarity.
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Oct 29, 2021: Confirmed the picks are still available and are still the best recommendations for our users.
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Jul 02, 2021: Replaced the Sonos One Gen 2 as the 'Best Sonos Speaker For Voice Assistant' with the Sonos Roam as the 'Best Portable Sonos Speaker' since it's a better speaker overall. The text was updated for consistency.
Conclusion
Sonos offers a variety of speakers that are suitable for different uses. Generally, they have well-balanced sound profiles, and some can even produce a thumpy low-bass. Some Sonos speakers come with built-in voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant, making them suitable for home use. However, many have a wired-only design, so they're hard to use outside.