JBL Charge 5 vs Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY

Which Speaker Is Better?

Products

JBL Charge 5
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Sep 29, 2025 07:24 PM

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Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Oct 17, 2024 05:03 PM

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Our Verdict

JBL Charge 5

Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY

The JBL Charge 5 and the Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY are very similar speakers despite their slightly different designs. However, the JBL's performance justifies its higher retail price. Both have 14-hour battery lives and feature single-driver designs, so they can't playback stereo content without downmixing to mono, and their directivity suffers as a result. The JBL has a more bass-heavy sound that's well-suited to playing back music genres like EDM and hip-hop, and there's even a graphic EQ in the companion app that lets you customize the sound. It can also get louder, with less compression at max volume. The Ultimate Ears' hand strap and ergonomic control scheme make it the ideal fit for handheld use.

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Variants

  • JBL Charge 5 (Black)
  • JBL Charge 5 (Blue)
  • WONDERBOOM PLAY (Black)

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Black
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
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Amazon.com
Blue
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Camo
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
B&H
Gray
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
Ultimate Ears
Green
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
Walmart.com
Pink
JBL Charge 5
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Amazon.com
 
Red
JBL Charge 5
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Amazon.com
 
Teal
JBL Charge 5
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Amazon.com
 
White
JBL Charge 5
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Amazon.com
 

Main Differences for
Music

Threshold 

0.10

Music 
 

6.5
5.8

Dynamics 
 

6.6
4.9

EQ 
 

Graphic
No

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.7
6.4

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Style Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 Style Photo
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Style Photo

RGB Lights  

No
No
Show Text 

Portability 
 

9.1
9.3

Dimensions Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 Dimensions Photo
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Dimensions Photo

Volume 
 

121 in³ (1,982 cm³)
58 in³ (945 cm³)

Weight 
 

2.0 lbs (0.9 kg)
0.7 lbs (0.3 kg)

Power Source 
 

Battery & USB
Battery & USB

One-Hand Carry 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Build Quality 
 

8.3
8.5

Build Quality Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 Build Quality Photo
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Build Quality Photo

Material Quality 
 

Great
Great

Water Resistance 
 

Submersible (IPx7)
Submersible (IPx7)

Dust Resistance 
 

Dust-Proof (IP6x)
Dust-Proof (IP6x)

Impact Resistance 
 

Unspecified
Unspecified

Floats In Water 
 

Unspecified
Yes
Show Text 

Controls 
 

6.6
6.5

Controls Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 Controls Photo
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Controls Photo

Controls Photo 2 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 Controls Photo 2
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Controls Photo 2

Ease Of Use 
 

Great
Good

Feedback 
 

Good
Good

Music Play/Pause 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Call Answer/End 
 

No
No

Volume Up/Down 
 

Yes (Physical)
Yes (Physical)

Track Next/Previous 
 

Forward Only (Physical)
Forward Only (Physical)

Microphone On/Off 
 

No
No

Additional Controls 
 

Yes
No
Show Text 

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 In The Box Photo
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY In The Box Photo
Show Text 
Sound

Frequency Response Accuracy 
 

6.7
6.4

Frequency Response Graph  

 Preview Graph
JBL Charge 5 Frequency Response Graph
 Preview Graph
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Frequency Response Graph

Slope 
 

0.49
1.57

Std. Err. 
 

3.75 dB
5.00 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

59.1 Hz
55.8 Hz

High-Frequency Extension 
 

18.5 kHz
16.7 kHz
Show Text 

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw Frequency Response Graph  

 Preview Graph
JBL Charge 5 Raw Frequency Response Graph
 Preview Graph
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Raw Frequency Response Graph

Binaural Recording @ 1m 
 

Binaural Recording @ 2m 
 

Soundstage 
 

5.8
5.8

Directivity Graph  

 Preview Graph
JBL Charge 5 Directivity Graph
 Preview Graph
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Directivity Graph

Directivity Index 
 

4.27 dB
4.11 dB

Stereo 
 

No (mono)
No (mono)
Show Text 

Dynamics 
 

6.6
4.9

Dynamic Range Compression  

 Preview Graph
JBL Charge 5 Dynamic Range Compression
 Preview Graph
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY Dynamic Range Compression

SPL @ Max Volume 
 

90.2 dB SPL
80.0 dB SPL

DRC @ Max Volume 
 

3.15 dB
4.25 dB
Show Text 
Active Features

Battery 
 

8.7
9.0

Battery Life 
 

14.5 hrs
14.5 hrs

Charge Time 
 

3.8 hrs
2.4 hrs

Power Saving 
 

Yes
Yes

Charging Port 
 

USB-C
USB-C

Battery Powered 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Voice Assistant 
 

0.0
0.0

Alexa 
 

No
No

Google Assistant 
 

No
No

Speakerphone 
 

No
No

Siri 
 

No
No

Voice Assistant 
 

No
No

Voice Activation 
 

No
No

Microphone Mute 
 

No
No

Far-Field Performance 
 

No Microphone
No Microphone

Ambient Noise Performance 
 

No Microphone
No Microphone
Show Text 

App 
 

7.9
0.0

App Picture 
 

Compare High-Res
JBL Charge 5 App Picture
Compare High-Res
Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY App Picture

App Name 
 

JBL Portable
No App

iOS 
 

Yes
No

Android 
 

Yes
No

EQ 
 

Graphic
No

Stereo Pair Mode 
 

Yes
No

Party Mode 
 

Yes
No

Multi-Room 
 

No
No
Show Text 
Connectivity

Wired 
 

Aux Input 
 

No
No

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Other Ports 
 

Yes
No
Show Text 

Bluetooth 
 

8.5
7.6

Bluetooth 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth Version 
 

5.1
5.3

Bluetooth iOS Latency 
 

125 ms
275 ms

Bluetooth Android Latency 
 

102 ms
211 ms

Bluetooth Range 
 

328.1 ft (100.0 m)
334.6 ft (102.0 m)

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

2 Devices
2 Devices
Show Text 

Wi-Fi 
 

0.0
0.0

Wi-Fi Version 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi Frequency Band 
 

No Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 
 

No
No

Apple AirPlay 
 

No
No

AirPlay Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Google Chromecast 
 

No
No

Chromecast Latency 
 

N/A
N/A

Check Price

Black
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Blue
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Camo
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
B&H
Gray
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
Ultimate Ears
Green
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Black
WONDERBOOM PLAY
Walmart.com
Pink
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
 
Red
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
 
Teal
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
 
White
JBL Charge 5
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
 

JBL Charge 5

Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY

Comments

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JBL Charge 5 vs Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM PLAY: Main Discussion

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