.png)
OnePlus is earning a reputation for creating wireless earbuds that are both affordable and quality, and the latest OnePlus Buds 4 continue that trend. The Buds 4 have more in common with the standout Buds Pro 3 than you'd expect, including a full soundstage with deep bass. Plus, they bring along active-noise canceling (ANC), adaptive, and transparency modes.
The most attractive part of the OnePlus Buds 4 are their price: the earbuds retail for $129.99. In typical OnePlus fashion, you can already save big on the Buds 4, using code ONEPLUSBUDS4 on the brand's website to immediately take $30 off the sticker price for a limited time. That would make the Buds 4 just under $100, which is extremely competitive at a time when Amazon Prime Day deals are offering big savings on the best wireless earbuds.
That's where things get tricky. The price is both the best and worst thing about the OnePlus Buds 4. Getting these earbuds for around $100 is a steal, but at their full retail price, they're competing with OnePlus' own Buds Pro 3 for just a bit more. While I thoroughly enjoyed testing the Buds 4, I'd pay a bit more for the premium feel and feature set of the Buds Pro 3 every time.
OnePlus Buds 4: Price and availability
The OnePlus Buds 4 are officially available for purchase as of July 8, 2025 on OnePlus' online store. They retail for $129.99 in the U.S. and $169.99 CAD in Canada. You can get the Buds 4 in a Storm Gray or Zen Green colorways, both of which feature metal and glossy finishes. From now through July 31, 2025, buyers can save $30 with code ONEPLUSBUDS4 on OnePlus' website for a limited time.
For now, the OnePlus Buds 4 are exclusively being sold directly through OnePlus. Starting in August 2025, there will be wider availability through third-party retailers, including Best Buy and Amazon.
OnePlus Buds 4: What's good
I've spent a year praising the OnePlus Buds Pro 3, because while they're not the absolute best-sounding earbuds, they're certainly the best value. Naturally, I expected switching to the OnePlus Buds 4 to come with a noticeable drop-off in sound quality. That didn't end up being the case — it was hard to tell the difference listing to the same tracks back-to-back with the Buds Pro 3 and the new Buds 4.
As it turns out, there may be a hardware reason for that. OnePlus is touting the audio tech inside the Buds 4, which includes an 11mm diaphragm woofer and a 6mm flat diaphragm tweeter. The brand is also using separate dual DACs, one for the woofer and tweeter in each earbud, paired with OnePlus 3D Audio and LHDC 5.0 support.
Coincidentally, those are the exact same sizes as the woofer and tweeter inside the Buds Pro 3. I don't know whether these are identical parts between the two models, but it does seem to explain why the bass and overall range feels consistent across the pairs of earbuds.
Put simply, the OnePlus Buds 4 have an outstanding range for earbuds of this price point. Music across genres sounds consistently great, offering just the right emphasis in just the right places. Listening to hip-hop and rap delivers an excellent low-end sound, and one that isn't pervasive. You actually get low-end frequency audio, rather than a bass that overpowers the rest of the soundstage.
Conversely, the same feels true for other kind of music, like alternative, pop, and jazz. In these genres, the Buds 4 put proper emphasis on instruments like piano and cymbals, as well as the vocals. They sound as balanced as any I've tried lately, right up there with the aforementioned Buds Pro 3. While I might prefer the sound of Samsung's Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, they are certainly more bass-heavy and less balanced than the OnePlus Buds 4.
Surprisingly, OnePlus Buds 4 also come with quality active-noise canceling out of the box. The standard ANC mode can block out a ton of noise, especially when playing music at around 50% volume. Niche noise control modes, like transparency and adaptive mode, are usually where most budget or midrange earbuds struggle. Sure enough, adaptive mode wasn't the best — it sometimes let through the voice of someone talking to me, and other times kept blocking it out.
The solid ANC performance overall shows up on the spec sheet too, as OnePlus claims the Buds 4 can cancel out up to 55 decibels of noise while adjusting up to 800 times per second.
Aside from sound quality and noise cancelation, it's worth pointing out the OnePlus-specific features available on the Buds 4, which are pretty impressive. Game Mode from the Buds Pro 3 comes to the Buds 4, providing 47ms low-latency connectivity for gaming. You also get an AI Translation mode that aims to help you have a natural conversation with someone who doesn't speak your language.
The OnePlus Buds 4 are rated for 45 hours of total battery life and 11 hours from just the earbuds, but this is with ANC off. You can expect less than that if you're primarily using ANC modes.
OnePlus Buds 4: What's not good
If the OnePlus Buds Pro 3 and the new Buds 4 are on-par in terms of sound quality and ANC, it's the intangibles that help create separation. While the Buds 4 have an oval-shaped case now, the earbuds themselves are a bit chunky. They're light, weighing 4.7 grams each, but they don't fit in my ears quite as nicely as other options.
The thicker earbud stems might have something to do with that. The OnePlus Buds Pro 3 have cylindrical stems, whereas the Buds 4 stems are more rectangular with rounded edges. They don't feel as comfortable, and on-earbud controls are much worse. Instead of a quick squeeze or swipe, you're relying on capacitive touch controls on the OnePlus Buds 4, which are frustrating.
One good thing about the design is the IP55 certification against dust and liquid ingress, so rain or sweat shouldn't be a problem.
Aside from the general unreliability of the touch controls, there are some other weird quirks here. By default, there's no play/pause control set out of the box — you have to manually enable a single tap for this function in settings.
Additionally, cycling through ANC modes doesn't provide feedback as to which mode you've switched to. This is a problem now that there are four possible settings: ANC, adaptive, transparency, and off. There's simply too much trial-and-error required to change the right mode or skip to the right song, so I found myself using app controls more often than not.
OnePlus Buds 4: Competition
At their full retail price of $129.99, the OnePlus Buds 4 are competing with the aforementioned OnePlus Buds Pro 3. The latter is often on sale for around $150 or less, and it's probably worth paying more for the Buds Pro 3. You get wireless charging, a faux leather case material, better on-earbud controls, and stronger ANC for just $20 more.
Otherwise, most flagship earbuds are going to be priced a bit higher than the Buds 4. The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 cost $150, the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 cost $230, and the Nothing Ear cost $150. It might be worth grabbing one of those instead if you have the extra cash and a matching phone, but generally, OnePlus earbuds can hang with the best in sound quality.
OnePlus Buds 4: Should you buy them?
You should buy these if...
- You want a solid pair of truly-wireless earbuds for around $100
- You have a OnePlus phone and want exclusives like Game Mode and translation
- You need versatile active noise-canceling modes
You shouldn't buy these if...
- You want your charging case to support wireless charging
- You need better on-earbud controls
- You can afford to step up to the OnePlus Buds Pro 3
For anyone in the market for a new pair of affordable wireless earbuds, the OnePlus Buds 4 are at least worth a look. They borrow the sound quality advancements added to the OnePlus Buds Pro 3 last year, which were some of our favorites on the market. While there are exclusive features for OnePlus phone users — like a low-latency Game Mode and a live translation tool — the best Buds 4 features should work for all Android users.
If you're even remotely interested in the Buds 4, you should buy them now while they're discounted. At $100, there's enough of a price gap between the Buds 4 and the Buds Pro 3 to make for a great value proposition. When the OnePlus Buds 4 are sold at full price, however, it'll get more complicated.
The OnePlus Buds Pro 3 are currently on sale for just $145 on Amazon,and if the pricing remains that close to the OnePlus Buds 4, I'd choose the former for their wireless charging support, better comfort, and easier-to-use earbud controls.
Value wireless earbuds
The OnePlus Buds 4 provide enough value at a deal price of $100 to entice both OnePlus phone owners and Android users as a whole. Long battery life, excellent sound quality, and solid ANC all come together to create a well-rounded experience at this price point.
English (US) ·