Rank 2 of 8 in Over-ear headphones

Sony WH-1000XM6

5 tests from 4 countries · 3 of them not from the UK

Score by criterion

Sound 93

Noise cancelling 89

Comfort 90

Battery 89

Retailers

Very good noise cancelling (sub-score 9.7 out of 10) and a wide, warm sound (HIFI.DE)
Detailed, dynamic and spacious sound; call quality convinces too (What Hi-Fi?)
Battery lasted 37 hours 14 minutes in testing with ANC on (SoundGuys)

No audio playback over USB-C, no aptX; the case remains large (What Hi-Fi?)
Sound is weaker in passive mode; hands-free calls reach their limits in extreme conditions (Clubic)

Source	Country	Issue	Original verdict	Converted
HIFI.DE	Germany	05/2025	9.1	91
Clubic	France	05/2025	9 / 10	90
TechRadar	United Kingdom	05/2025	4.5/5	90
What Hi-Fi?	United Kingdom	05/2025	5/5	100
SoundGuys	USA	05/2025	8.3	83

Each dot is the average test result of one country, converted to 0–100. The further apart the dots, the more it pays to read the individual reports.

Sony WH-1000XM6 ± 6 pts