We've currently tested six 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
- 01/19/2023 Sonos One Gen 2 updated
- 01/18/2023 Sonos Roam updated
- 01/04/2023 Sonos One SL updated
- 11/24/2022 Sonos Move updated
- 11/23/2022 Sonos Five updated
Best Sonos Speakers
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Best Sonos Speaker
Music7.0Videos/Movies6.5Podcasts8.1Voice Assistant8.6Outdoors7.7Battery PoweredYesSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantYesBluetoothYesWi-FiYesThe best Sonos speaker we've tested is the Sonos Move. It's a versatile Bluetooth speaker that can please many different types of listeners. With its sleek design, it blends in with your home decor, and its built-in voice assistant support allows for hands-free control while you're catching up on chores around the house. Since it's battery-powered, you can take it out to the patio, and its built-in handle makes it pretty easy to carry. Thanks to its IP56 rating for dust and water resistance, you don't have to worry too much about a little splash of water.
With support for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Apple AirPlay, it's easy to stream your favorite podcasts, audiobooks, and albums right from your phone to the speaker. The overall sound quality is good, and voices and lead instruments are clear right out of the box, with a room correction feature that's designed to optimize the speaker's output based on your room's unique acoustics. You can adjust its bass and treble in the Sonos S2 app and connect it with other devices in your Sonos ecosystem to spread your tunes across your home. However, this speaker is still a little big compared to other models on the market, so if you're looking for something to bring on a hike or out to the park, you might find it a bit too bulky.
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Best Mid-Range Sonos Speaker
Music6.6Videos/Movies5.6Podcasts6.5Voice Assistant7.7Outdoors4.5Battery PoweredNoSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantYesBluetoothNoWi-FiYesIf you're looking for a more affordable alternative, check out the Sonos One Gen 2. It's a small wired speaker that makes for a great addition to your home setup, and you can even pair it with Sonos soundbars to expand your home theater setup. It's a sleek and stylish device that comes in both Black and White color variants to match your decor, with built-in voice assistant support to control your tunes from the comfort of your couch. It supports both Apple AirPlay and Wi-Fi connectivity, so you can stream music from your phone wirelessly, which is a nice touch.
This speaker is suitable for listening to lots of different types of audio content. Out-of-the-box, its Trueplay room correction feature lets you optimize its audio reproduction to meet the unique layout of your room. Dialogue in podcasts and audiobooks is clear and accurate in the mix, and voices and lead instruments are present, too. There's even a little extra punch in the high-bass to bring genres like EDM and hip-hop to life. Bass and treble adjustments are available in the S2 app, too. Of course, since it's a wired speaker, you can't bring it with you outdoors like with the Sonos Move, but if you just plan to use it at home, you may find it's a better value overall.
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Best Budget Sonos Speaker
Music6.3Videos/Movies6.2Podcasts7.2Voice Assistant8.5Outdoors6.6Battery PoweredYesSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantYesBluetoothYesWi-FiYesThe Sonos Roam is Sonos' budget-friendly option. Unlike the Sonos One Gen 2, this smart speaker is battery-powered, lightweight, 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 the Trueplay room correction feature enabled, it has a neutral sound profile overall, suitable for listening to different types of audio content. You can tweak its sound to your liking using the bass and treble adjustments in the Sonos S2 app. It doesn't produce as deep a bass as the Sonos One Gen 2 due to its smaller size.
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 aren't interested in 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.
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Best Sonos Speaker For Music
Music7.5Videos/Movies6.3Podcasts6.3Voice Assistant2.9Outdoors4.7Battery PoweredNoSpeakerphoneNoVoice AssistantNoBluetoothNoWi-FiYesIf 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, like the Sonos Move, this speaker doesn't have 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 much deeper low bass than the Sonos Move, 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 Sonos S2 app to 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, like the Sonos One Gen 2, it isn’t Bluetooth-compatible, so you have to connect to it via a Wi-Fi connection. There’s also more compression than the Move and One Gen 2 at max volume, which degrades the quality of your favorite songs when you blast the speaker. If you’re looking for listening to music, it offers the deepest bass we've tested in a Sonos speaker.
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 room correction feature Sonos calls 'Trueplay' 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 are wired and designed to be used at home, meaning they can't stream audio over Bluetooth. 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 with 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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Dec 21, 2022: No changes in product picks after verifying their accuracy and availability.
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Sep 22, 2022: Added the Sonos One Gen 2 as the 'Best Mid-Range Sonos Speaker' and recategorized picks to better meet user needs.
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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.
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 have 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.
