Let’s start with a description of Autism. Autism is an individual’s emotional state that they think, feel and interact with others in a different way. It is a lifetime condition that cannot be cured. They are not broken whatsoever, but getting a pair of headphones will reduce their stress and anxiety.
If you have a child or an adult that suffers from Autism, the sure thing you have noticed is that they have hard times dealing with noises. A suitable pair of headphones can have an impact on the kid’s life.
Let’s distract them from the world and drop their reaction to unnecessary noises. Together with the comfort and great sound quality, I have listed a couple of products that will be useful to prevent those extreme reactions. With no waste of time, now straight to the point and take a look at the best headphones for autism.
| Image | Product | Features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
Best Overall  | 10 | Check Latest Price | |
Best For Ear Protection  | 9 | Check Latest Price | |
Best for Kids with Special Needs  | 8.5 | Check Latest Price | |
Best Noise Cancelling Headphones  | 8.8 | Check Latest Price | |
Best Feature-packed  | 8.6 | Check Latest Price |
The Top 5 Best Headphones For Autism
1. Master & Dynamic MW65- Best Overall
Master & Dynamic MW65 noise canceling headphones provide a high-grade comfort with their anodized aluminum built and fine leathers. The super-lightweight design will be autistic adults’ favorite headphones because of its elegant and sleek look.
The most important feature for an autistic person is the Active Noise Cancelling feature, since they can’t handle very well the louder environments, this feature will block the noises giving them peaceful music listening times. Active Noise Cancelling has dual mode. One “high” mode for city streets, planes, and concerts, and the other one is “low” for wind and a less noisy environment. Alternatively, you can turn the ANC off.
The superiority continues with the sound quality too. These noise canceling headphones are suitable for every music genre where it serves balanced sounds and bass production. The highs, lows, and mids are super clear and enjoyable to hear.
The built-in microphone allows you to make clear voice calls and makes it possible to reach the autistic person when it’s needed.
The battery life of these noise canceling headphones on the other side is excellent. It holds up 24 hours of playtime, letting you fully enjoy the day without interruption. Definitely a great pair of noise canceling headphones.
Technical Specs:
- Dimensions: 6.5 x 2.6 x 3.54 inches
- Weight: 8.6 ounces
- Type: Over-Ear
- Noise Cancelling: Dual ANC (high and low)
- Built-in Mic: Yes
- Driver Size: 40mm
- Impedance: 32 ohms
- Frequency Range: 20Hz to 20kHz
- Battery Life: 24 hours
Why Should You Buy It?
Really nice bass depth and crisp clarity
Comfortable
Noise cancellation is pretty well in 2 modes
Excellent battery life
The built-in microphone makes clear voice calls
Premium Design
2. ZOHAN EM030- Best For Ear Protection
Comes in many colors such as nebula, purple graffiti, rap, skull, music symbol, and unicorn design. As you can see this model is mainly targeting kids and the price point is superior according to the offered features.
ZOHAN EM030 is free from silicon, and ultra-soft cushions provide full comfort for our lovely kids. The colorful and lightweight design will make our autistic kids fall for them and never take them out of their ears.
Protection is all the kids need, that is why ZOHAN EM030 won’t block the entire noise to not harm their ears over time, but only eliminates harmful loud noises that they usually struggle with. The NRR feature stands for Noise Reduction Rating and is rated at 22dB. For instance, let’s say, the environmental noise is 92dB and the rating is 22dB. These over ear headphones reduce the noise and make equal to 70dB which is the right amount preferred by otolaryngologists.
ZOHAN EM030 is useful on the plane, while studying, traveling, concerts, fireworks, sports events, and many more, so basically they are capable of removing all background noise and loud noises.
The sound quality is decent too. The tonalities are warm and clear enough for autistic kids to enjoy. Definitely one of my favorite noise reduction headphones.
Technical Specs:
- Dimensions: 5.83 x 5.71 x 4.09 inches
- Weight: 9.6 ounces
- Type: Over-ear
- Noise Cancelling: Reduction
- Built-in Mic: No
- Battery Life: Doesn’t Require Batteries
Why Should You Buy It?
No metal and silicon-free design is super comfortable
Colorful options that kids will love
Noise Reduction feature
Doesn’t require batteries
Ear protection from harmful noises
Affordable price range
3. Fun and Function- Best for Kids with Special Needs
Protects these kids at all costs, you can start this process by getting Fun and Function. These headphones come in blue color and super cute smiley face orange color. The headband is thick to not cause any discomfort while wearing. The cushions are made of soft leather material and let the ear breathe. Plus, for easy porting, Fun and Function can be folded to fit basically anywhere.
We know that kids with special needs need care and compassion. Use Fun and Function to increase their concentration, improve their attention, and have an impact on unnecessary overreaction to small things. It is not dedicated to only autistic kids, but also to other sweethearts with special needs.
It is suitable for all ages and will increase their productivity throughout the day by minimizing the voices which make this pair of over ear headphones best for noisy ambient like the lunchroom, sports event, airports, and birthday parties.
The Noise Reduction feature is also there reducing the disturbing and harmful voices by 20dB. Yes, it wouldn’t be able to block all the noises out, but it’s for protection’s sake because the healthy noise level is considered 70 dB by professionals. So let’s say, you took the child to a wedding. There is 95 – 105 harmful dB noise. Fun and Functions reduce these noises and make it ideal for your kid’s ears and lets the ear breathe.
Technical Specs:
- Dimensions: 7 x 6 x 6 inches
- Weight: 7 pounds
- Type: Over-ear
- Noise Cancelling: Reduction
- Built-in Mic: No
- Battery Life: Doesn’t Require Batteries
Why Should You Buy It?
Very affordable price
Noise Reduction at 20dB
Super useful for kids 5+ age
Supports Auditory defensiveness
Increased focus, attention and productivity
Fun design for kids
4. Bose Headphones 700 – Best Noise Cancelling Headphones
Bose 700 noise canceling headphones come in silver luxe and triple black color together with a carrying case. The extremely cool and premium design will make you adore the looks that can never go out of date. Premium materials like a stainless steel headband and super soft earcups are tilted to fit perfectly and ensure full comfort all day long.
Bose 700 noise canceling headphones have a specific target, everyone can use them such as travelers, students, and adults with special needs, so basically everyone who wants the best quality is free to purchase.
The music experience with Bose 700 noise canceling headphones is pleasant, it doesn’t have any booming bass, everything, treble, and vocals are very well put together. Bose also has a dedicated app to equalize where you like the music to be emphasized more.
These noise cancelling headphones have some other useful features aswell, such as a virtual assistant Alexa and a built-in mic. If any misfortune events happen, the autistic person can call for help hands-free. Also, is useful for playing music, picking up calls, or asking for navigation.
The Noise Cancelling feature is very successful. Low-frequency noises are completely blocked out and high frequencies less than 200Hz won’t be loud, the voices will come very deeply almost, unnoticeable. This will help autistic kids to focus and pay attention
Bose 700 noise canceling headphones have a long-lasting battery life that will keep up with 20 hours of playtime. These are definitely one of the most comfortable noise cancelling headphones you can buy, plus you can wear these noise cancelling headphones almost all day without a problem.
Great noise canceling, long battery life, comfortable ear cups and many more features make these wireless headphones one of the best headphones for autism.
Technical Specs:
- Dimensions: 2 x 6.5 x 8 inches
- Weight: 8.8 ounces
- Type: Over-Ear
- Noise Cancelling: Yes
- Built-in Mic: 4 mics (Alexa for hands-free use)
- Driver Size: 40mm
- Water Resistant: IPX4
- Impedance: 60.05 Ohm
- Frequency Range: 100 Hz – 10 kHz
- Battery Life: 20 hours
Why Should You Buy It?
High-end look and durable materials
Superior Noise Cancelling feature
Alexa, the virtual assistant helps you use it hands-free
Built-in mic catches super clear voices
Excellent 20 hours of battery life
Water Resistant: IPX4
5. Skullcandy Venue- Best Feature-packed
Three colors are available, white, deep red, and black. Skullcandy Venue noise canceling headphones have a really low profile look and specifically targets the audience who don’t use the noise canceling headphones for longer hours. The ear cushions are comfortable, but if the autistic child or adult has a bigger head, the Venue might not be the perfect choice because, after a couple of hours of use, it may get tight.
A must-have feature, the ANC (Active Noise Cancelling) feature is also available to eliminate the loud environment noises and provide peaceful hours for our special kids and adults. There is an Ambient Mode for awareness purposes of the surroundings. In case any unpleasant situation happens, with Ambient Mode, you will be able to notice what’s going on around you.
The sound quality is nice, not something extra but the sub-bass boost and sculpted high notes are surprisingly amazing.
If you lose the phone, there is a Tile app, so you can easily find where the heck did you leave it the last time.
Skullcandy Venue noise canceling headphones have a built-in microphone to make and receive phone calls. Voice assistant helps you navigate the headphone’s volume, calls, and pause/stop by using only your voice.
Just as the features, the battery life is excellent as well. The Venue series provides up to 24 hours of playtime.
Technical Specs:
- Dimensions: 2.5 x 10.2 x 8.2 inches
- Weight: 15.4 ounces
- Type: Over-Ear
- Noise Cancelling: ANC (Active Noise Cancellation)
- Built-in Mic: Yes
- Driver Size: 40mm
- Impedance: 32 ohms
- Frequency Range: 20Hz-20KHz
- Battery Life: 24 hours
Why Should You Buy It?
ANC (Active Noise Cancellation)
Built-in mic
Hands-free use and virtual assistant
Great sub-bass boost and sculpted high notes
Excellent 24 hours of battery life
Fin the headphones with Tile app
Things to Know: Headphones for Kids/Adults with Autism
Noise Cancelling or Noise Reduction Feature
Autistic people really have a hard time handling environmental noises and this can result in behavioral overreaction. The adversity can be from even small things like touching the wall with nails, itching, chewing gum, and many other things that create high sensitivity.
Because these children are gifted to hear noises from the distance very well, it most likely to notice the small details that a normal person has trouble noticing. For that reason, Noise Cancelling is a must-have feature. This feature blocks out all the noises and helps them relax while listening or not listening to music.
Since loud venues are hard to bear for an autistic person, canceling the voices will help them avoid the noises that disturb them the most.
Comfort
Comfort is the second issue to look for, if the chosen headphones aren’t that comfortable, it is most likely that the child won’t wear them. Since every detail gets into their nerves, the discomfort will be the top reason. Ear cushions should provide the best comfort and let the air breathe while blocking the background noises.
Shape and design also play a significant role in comfort. Try to avoid extremely bulky designs and non-adjustable headbands. Look for super-soft foam, so the thickness of soft materials can avoid discomfort.
Sound Quality
Just as normal human beings, autistic individuals also look for sound quality. As I mentioned previously, autism is not a disease, it’s an overreaction to small details that usual individual doesn’t do. Noise Cancelling can be annoying at times, and if the sound quality isn’t good enough to cover that, no comfort or Noise Cancelling feature will work.
With good sound quality, you can play “therapeutic sounds” to disguise the leftover noises from the Noise Cancelling feature with good relaxing instruments.
Design
Most autistic children nowadays are into fashion. Maybe finding the design that the kid\adult will adore can make them wear the headphones for longer. Since you are close to that particular autistic person, I’m sure you already know what are their preferences for example their favorite color or style.
A little bit about Autism & Headphones
Autistic kids and adults are super sensitive to environmental noises because their hearing senses are more open. Even from the distance, they are able to hear the conversations in clarity.
The noises are literally painful to them because they cannot determine correctly which voice is more important and which one is less important.
They can be easily distracted by events that happen in the ambient, so blocking the sound will show amazing results in their behavior.
A Brief Summary
We need to protect our special children and adult by treating them with a nice pair of headphones. Since they have difficulties in louder environments, they do struggle a lot and overreact to small details which is unnoticeable to other humans.
Autistic individuals can hear everything perfectly fine in clarity even at the distance (gifted) and for that reason, Noise Cancelling is a must-have feature. Other features to consider are comfort, sound quality, design (for children) as well as having cool features would be nice.
Further Reading
In case none of the above-mentioned products didn’t satisfy you, I have some other headphones to offer like Headphones For Studying for my nerds, Focal Headphones, and Dolby Atmos Headphones.
To break the monotony, there are Japanese Headphones that show equal performance as high-end headphones. Go check them out.
Equipment Tester & Reviewer
I’m an unbiased audio equipment tester & reviewer, dedicated to keeping you up-to-date on the latest and greatest in audio gear.
