# Sony WH-1000XM5

23 Hacker News commenters recommended Sony WH-1000XM5 and 17 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** People recommend these for strong noise cancelling, good sound and comfort for all-day wear. The most common caveat is shallow earcups that don't fit some people's ears.

## Why people recommend it

- Strong noise cancelling (2 comments): "The noise cancelling is nearly perfect." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47884528)) "good ANC and "bassy": Sony xm5/xm6" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47403572))
- Comfortable for all-day wear (4 comments): "my Sony XM4s have been holding up well, sound good, are decently comfortable for a day's work" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47403299)) "The audio quality of the Sonys is just as good but the comfort is a much better." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47408970)) "they are so comfortable that I can wear them all day" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49300550))
- Good sound quality (4 comments): "The audio quality of the Sonys is just as good but the comfort is a much better." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47408970)) "even my AirPods or Sony XM4s are high fidelity" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49634142)) "Sony's wh-1000xm3 and later are suberb." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47404095))
- Holds up over years (3 comments): "my Sony XM4s have been holding up well, sound good, are decently comfortable for a day's work" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47403299)) "I've also never had a problem with them not turning off due to inactivity" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47405850)) "I have no such issues whatsoever with my Sony WH-1000XM4" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47409447))

## What people warn about

- Bluetooth pairing and reconnection problems (3 comments): "there is like a 90% chance they stop working and I have to reconnect them" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47374857)) "they do a much worse job sharing connections between multiple devices to the point where I have to reset them constantly" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47520430)) "I've tried multiple combinations with my WH-1000XM6 and WF-1000XM5, but nothing works stable on Windows." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45899002))
- Shallow earcups hurt or don't fit (2 comments): "the earcups are not deep enough for my big ears" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47402434)) "worse sound (for me at least) and shallow earcups which hurt my ears" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47403661))
- Affected by Bluetooth security flaw (2 comments): "Examples of affected vendors and devices are Sony (e.g., WH1000-XM5, WH1000-XM6, WF-1000XM5)" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46411457)) "Most vendors gave the security researchers either silent treatment or were slow" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46453855))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [AirPods Max](https://hackerapproved.com/p/airpods-max-2.md): 56 recommend
- [Bose QuietComfort headphones](https://hackerapproved.com/p/bose-quietcomfort-headphones.md): 22 recommend
- [Sennheiser Momentum 4](https://hackerapproved.com/p/sennheiser-momentum-4.md): 7 recommend
- [Sennheiser HDB 630](https://hackerapproved.com/p/sennheiser-hdb-630.md): 6 recommend
- [Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones](https://hackerapproved.com/p/bose-quietcomfort-ultra-headphones.md): 5 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Sony+WH-1000XM5+wireless+noise+canceling+headphones&tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Official site](https://www.sony.com/electronics/headband-headphones/wh-1000xm5)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Sony WH-1000XM5", https://hackerapproved.com/p/sony-wh-1000xm5/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).