A good pair of headphones is key to victory in many games – particularly shooters like Valorant, Fortnite and CSGO – where hearing a single footstep from a wayward enemy could mean the difference between a delicious chicken dinner and an ignoble defeat. That’s why we’ve gathered up our top recommendations for the best gaming headsets for the money on the market right now.
Whether you prefer the lower cost and audio fidelity of wired headphones or the convenience of wireless headsets, we’ve got you covered. We’ve also included recommendations for the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch and PC, so no matter what system you game on, you’ll be able to find at least a couple of top-tier gaming headsets to consider, each far better than your TV or monitor’s built-in speakers. We’ll also consider both open-back and closed-back headphones, as the former tend to offer a wider sound stage that’s conducive to locating enemies, while the latter minimise sound leakage to ensure you don’t bother your flatmates.
Before we get into the recommendations, it’s worth mentioning what we’ll be looking for when choosing the best gaming headsets. We want a comfortable pair of headphones you can wear for hours without discomfort, perfect for marathon gaming sessions. Sound quality is also key, so that you can hear each sound clearly and become totally immersed in the game. Naturally, you’ll need to communicate with your friends or teammates too, so a built-in mic with good noise mitigation is also important. Finally, we also would like to see support for multiple systems, so that if you own a console and a PC, or multiple consoles, you can use the same headset on both.
