The Best OTC Hearing Aids of 2024

• Self-fitting or preset: Self-fitting
• Warranty: One year and only covers repair
• Battery life: Up to 26 hours
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA cleared

The Sony CRE-E10 hearing aids receive our best overall award because they do everything reasonably well. As a widely recognized maker of high-quality electronics, Sony does not disappoint with its flagship entrance into the over-the-counter hearing aid market. The Sony CRE-E10 devices are comfortable and rest in the ear, they have rechargeable batteries, and their sound quality and fine tuning are impressive.

The Sony Hearing Control app is also among the easiest to use and pair on both iOS and Android devices, given that these hearing aids had no pairing difficulty throughout our extensive testing period.

These reliable, self-fitting hearing aids cost around $1,300, which is reasonably priced compared to the competition. Perhaps most importantly, the devices offer many contemporary conveniences modern buyers might expect. There are app controls for volume and sound balance, as well as fine tuning settings that allow for a truly personalized hearing experience. The Sony CRE-E10 rechargeable batteries last about 26 hours on a single charge.

The only noteworthy shortcoming the Sony CRE-E10s have is a lack of Android support for audio streaming. Though the Hearing Control app can be accessed on either iOS or Android devices, Android users will find themselves unable to stream music or phone calls, which is not entirely uncommon, as very few hearing aids actually have Android streaming support.

For iOS users, however, these are far and away the best overall OTC hearing aids I have tested. For Android users these devices may still be best overall, though the Sennheiser All-Day Clears are a strong option that offers the missing media streaming support. Read the full Sony CRE-E10 product review.

• Self-fitting or preset: Self-fitting
  
• Warranty: 45-day, risk-free trial with one-year warranty. Extended plan can be purchased for $180.
• Battery life: Up to 18 hours plus additional charge with charging case
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA cleared

The Lexie B2 Powered by Bose are an outstanding value and a personal favorite of mine in the OTC hearing aid space. During our testing, these felt the most like prescription devices, and the hearing test was a near identical match to what I see when visiting a professional audiologist.

The B2s feature a rechargeable battery with an acceptable 18 hours per charge. The included carrying case only recharges if you purchase the B2 Plus model, but the devices recharge quickly, taking about 3 hours to replenish from zero to 100%.

Unlike most other hearing aids we’ve tested, the Lexie B2s feature a behind-the-ear design, meaning its receivers are placed in the ear canal and the hearing aid body, which consists of a power button and volume controls, is tucked away behind the ear. This means you don’t always need the app to control the device’s volume.

This deviation accounts for the most comfortable design I’ve tested, and no sound quality is lost because of it. Many hearing aids with in-the-canal designs are bought down by uncomfortable ear fatigue with all-day usage, which may cause headaches or ear discomfort and pressure.

The B2s exhibited none of these flaws. I also found that these hearing aids do a great job tailoring to one’s hearing loss needs by allowing users to easily adjust bass, treble, and world volume without affecting your initial hearing test results. This makes the user experience simple but sophisticated.

The Lexie B2 Bose hearing aids use Bluetooth to pair with devices and adjust noise levels, but it should be noted that only iOS devices are capable of audio streaming, and only newer models of the hearing aids support this feature. Streaming is also most tailored to phone calls, though it is possible to listen to other media with decent results. Read the full Lexie B2 product review.

• Self-fitting or preset: Self-fitting
  
• Warranty: One year, with a two-year extended plan possible at clinics
• Battery life: 16 hours
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA cleared

If you are seeking a high-quality media streaming device with hearing-enhancement features, the Sennheiser All-Day Clear Hearing Aids are our new favorite. Not only can these hearing aids stream media and phone calls equally across Android and iOS, but we love this product for its strong sound performance and excellent feature set.

We love that, like the Lexie B2s, these hearing aids also have physical volume buttons, and they allow the user to make that volume level far louder than other products we’ve tested.

As nice as it is to have a few old-school comforts, the Sennheiser All-Day Clear hearing aids also have modern accoutrements, too. Environmental hearing presets can be accessed through a companion app that’s a downright pleasure to use.

As long as you don’t need to travel much with these, and can adjust to the devices’ battery charging quirks, these are a completely competent pair of hearing aids that folks dedicated to the Android ecosystem should absolutely consider. Read the full Sennheiser All-Day Clear product review.

• Self-fitting or preset: Preset
  
• Warranty: 45-day, risk-free trial, one-year repair warranty, $4 per month protection plan.
  
• Battery life: 20+ hours
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA registered

Audien Atom Pro cuts out the bells and whistles in favor of something simple. This product features no app or Bluetooth and instead relies entirely on manual dials to turn amplification up or down.

Given their smaller technical footprint, the Atom Pro OTC hearing aids have the longest battery life of any rechargeable hearing aid we’ve tested, with an estimated run time of 24 hours per charge. Once adjusted, the hearing aids are the easiest to use out of the box with no additional features to complicate the user experience.

Despite this simplicity, we found the Audien’s sound quality and amplification to be satisfactory. And Audien Atom Pro is by far one of the least expensive in-the-ear-canal hearing aids tested, priced at $249, making them highly affordable for most people seeking over-the-counter hearing aids.

If all you are looking for is a set-it-and-forget-it hearing aid and are willing to sacrifice modern features like streaming and apps, then Audien Atom Pro may be perfect for you. Read the full Audien Atom Pro product review.

• Self-fitting or preset: Self-fitting
  
• Warranty: Two years of coverage
• Battery life: 16 hours
• Battery or rechargeable: Rechargeable
• FDA status: FDA cleared

The Eargo 7 hearing aids are a cut above with regard to sound quality. Though similar to the previous-gen Eargo 6, the Eargo 7s have Sound Adjust+ and improved noise reduction technologies that push their sound quality beyond the competition and its maker’s existing models.

The Eargo 7s sound nearly identical to prescription hearing aids and allow users to carefully adjust their amplification and noise reduction within the Eargo app. There are also environmental presets, like restaurant or television, that quickly adjust your hearing aid to suit common situations you might find yourself in.

While the Eargo app is sometimes buggy during setup, its Sound Match Technology hearing test does a great job identifying your hearing limitations to emphasize lost frequencies without being particularly overbearing.

Eargo devices are also very comfortable and feature a completely-in-canal (CIC) design, making them virtually invisible to others. The battery life is suitable for daily use with a 16-hour lifespan, and the included carrying case stores a full recharge if necessary.

As great as the results sound, though, this is still a $2,900 hearing aid that cannot stream phone calls, music, or video from your smart device. But if you value sound quality above all else and your budget is high, then Eargo 7 doesn’t disappoint. Read the full Eargo 7 product review.

• Self-fitting or preset: Self-fitting
  
• Warranty: One year and only covers repair
• Battery life: 70 hours
• Battery or rechargeable: Battery
• FDA status: FDA cleared

The Sony CRE-C10s are the only hearing aids we’ve tested that use disposable batteries. Otherwise, they are nearly identical in sound quality, amplification, and app experience to the aforementioned CRE-E10s. With this omission, though, the C10s are smaller in size, which could be good for those who want something discreet, but they aren’t capable of audio streaming.

Outside those tradeoffs, there are huge benefits to the C10s with regard to longevity, as the lithium-ion batteries used in all rechargeable products are only expected to last 3-5 years with consistent use. Withe the C10s, one can keep slotting in new size-10 batteries for as long as they’re sold. And each charge lasts a whopping 70 hours, which means users could feasibly get away with replacing batteries just once per week.

Currently priced at $998 per pair, the Sony C10s are a budget-conscious hearing option with potential longevity that’s impossible for current rechargeable models to match. Read the full Sony CRE-C10 product review.