Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 Review: Premium Noise Cancelling That Also Works for Running

Introduction

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 cost £280 in the UK or $299 in the US, and they are, first and foremost, premium lifestyle earbuds. But plenty of runners will want to use one pair of earbuds for everything: the office, the commute, the gym, and the daily run. This review focuses on how they hold up for running, alongside the usual sound and noise cancelling considerations.

The short version: they are better for running than expected, with a few caveats around fit nudging, touch controls, and wind noise in awareness mode.

Fit and Comfort for Running

The QuietComfort Earbuds 2 are noticeably smaller and lighter than the original version, with more of a stem, which should create a more secure fit. Bose redesigned the fit system with in-ear tips plus a stability band or wing, and three sizes of each come in the box. Using the largest wing, the fit proved reliable across running, indoor cycling, yoga, and strength workouts.

It is a mostly secure fit rather than a locked-in one. Expect the occasional nudge back into place during a run, and those adjustments often set off the touch controls, which is a minor annoyance. It would also have been nice if Bose included a larger stability band for a truly locked-in sports fit.

Comfort is a real strength. These are easy to wear for an hour or more of running and then all day at a desk without discomfort. If the stability bands bother you, they come off quickly and easily.

The earbuds carry an IPX4 rating, which is not fully waterproof but has proven completely fine for sweaty runs and runs in the rain.

One design limitation to know about: the earbuds do not currently work independently. The right bud handles the connection to your device, and the left bud pairs off it. That could change in a future software update, but for now it is a small frustration.

Sound Quality

The sound is genuinely fantastic. The default profile is balanced and crystal clear at all ranges, open and atmospheric, with every voice and instrument easy to pick out on a track. The Bose app lets you tweak the EQ if you want to pump up the bass, which many people do for sports, but the neutral default is very good as it stands.

If there is one complaint, it is total volume. The maximum setting is loud enough, but on hard runs it would be nice to push a little higher, and you keep hitting the volume ceiling.

The earbuds also feature Bose’s CustomTune technology: when you pop them in, a little tone plays as the earbuds scan your ear to personalize the sound profile, for both playback and noise cancellation. It is hard to verify exactly what it is doing, but there were no complaints on sound quality either way.

Be aware of the classic thump you get when running with in-ear headphones. These do produce some internal head bumping from footfalls, possibly slightly less noticeable in awareness mode. It does not tend to bother most runners, but it is there.

Noise Cancelling and Awareness

Bose claims the best noise cancellation available on earbuds like these, and it is hard to argue. It is the most effective tested to date, immense on trains and other transport, and impressively pinpointed at voices around you in an office. On a treadmill or exercise bike, cardio machine noise simply disappears.

Awareness mode is a different story on the run. It works beautifully in everyday situations, but wind noise comes pouring in while running, to the point where it is difficult to hear cars, which is exactly what you want awareness mode for. Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 handle wind noticeably better in this regard.

The app lets you create custom sound modes, and a half-cancellation running mode was tried, but in practice the custom modes did not add much, so it is simplest to stick with Quiet and Aware modes. A dedicated off mode for extra battery life would have been welcome.

Controls

Each earbud has a touch panel for play/pause, voice assistant, switching between sound modes, and volume via swiping. In everyday life the controls work perfectly well.

On the run they are fiddly. Swiping takes real focus and may even mean slowing down, and there is no way found to turn the touch controls off. Because the fit needs occasional adjusting, you will keep accidentally pausing your music, which turns a small annoyance into a recurring one.

Battery Life and Charging

You get six hours per charge plus another 18 hours from the case, for a total of 24 hours. Quick charging delivers two hours of playback from a 20-minute charge.

The six-hour figure holds up in real use, even with active noise cancellation on and volume turned high. There is no wireless charging, which feels like an odd omission at this price, and the quick charge ratio is weaker than the five-minutes-for-an-hour deals common elsewhere. A faster top-up before heading out the door would be welcome.

How They Compare to the Alternatives

The AirPods Pro 2 are smaller and more comfortable, with almost as good sound and noise cancelling, and a better awareness mode on the run. Their fit is hit and miss for running, though adding a cheap third-party silicone wing fixes it. The catch: those wings do not fit in the case, and there is no equivalent third-party wing market for the Bose.

Within Bose’s own range, the older Bose Sport Earbuds offer a better, more secure sports fit with a large wing and are cheaper, but they lack noise cancelling and have weaker sound and battery life. You are downgrading to get a better fit.

The Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Sport offers a very secure fit, but the buds are big, dig into the ears, and are not as comfortable for long periods, with slightly spotty connections. The Master & Dynamic MW08 Sport sounds amazing but did not feel sporty at all, with big buds that did not stay put.

You do not have to spend this much: the Jabra Elite 4 Active, around £120, deliver good noise cancelling, sound, and fit with lots of features. The Sennheiser Sports True Wireless, also around £120, offer hard-to-beat sound at that price with a secure fit, though the buds are chunky and less comfortable over long periods.

Buying Advice

If you want the best lifestyle-and-sports crossover earbuds, this probably comes down to the QuietComfort Earbuds 2 versus the AirPods Pro 2. The Bose wins on sound and noise cancellation; the AirPods are smaller, more comfortable, easier to use, and better in windy awareness situations, provided you can get on with the fit or add a silicone wingtip.

Conclusion

The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 are fantastic lifestyle earbuds that also work well for running. The fit could be slightly more secure, the controls could be easier on the move, and awareness mode struggles with wind, but everything is good enough on those fronts. In return you get outstanding sound, the best noise cancellation around, and strong everyday comfort. For runners who want one premium pair for everything, they are an easy recommendation.