Best AirPods deals of January 2021

Don't miss the latest bargains! Find the best price for the AirPods Max, AirPods Pro and basic AirPods models

AirPods are the hot ticket right now: Apple's popular wireless earbuds already had an iconic look and exceptional convenience of use, but twin updates in 2019 added a new Pro design, improved audio quality, active noise cancellation, new features and wireless charging. They're not cheap, however, and it's proved difficult to get hold of a pair at anything lower than Apple's RRP.

Fortunately, however, we're seeing excellent deals on the AirPods Pro and early-2019 AirPods, while retailers are understandably keen to sell off the older 2016 models at a tasty discount. It's early days for the AirPods Max, so don't expect huge savings there - but you'll find the best prices on this page.

In this article we round up the best AirPods discounts and bundle deals to help you save money.

Best AirPods Pro deals right now

Apple sells the AirPods Pro for £249, which isn't cheap - making it all the more important to find the lowest price currently available.

The price-comparison widget below gathers the latest and best offers on the AirPods Pro from the major retailers so you can be sure not to miss out on any deals.

You'll see that currently most resellers have £30 off the price of the AirPods Pro. However, we've spotted an excellent deal at Appliances Direct, which has the AirPods Pro for just £195. That's £54 off the usual price - which is definitely still £249 on Apple's site - and we're not sure why the site is only claiming a saving of £35.

AirPods Pro (normally £249)

Best AirPods deals right now

Apple sells two kinds of standard AirPods: the AirPods with Wireless Charging Case are £199, and the AirPods with standard charging are £159.

Laptops Direct has a good deal worth checking: the AirPods with charging case for £124.

The price-comparison widgets below gather the latest and best prices on the AirPods from the major retailers.

AirPods with Charging Case (normally £159)

AirPods with Wireless Charging (normally £199)

If those all sound too expensive, you might be able to get the first-generation AirPods - we've seen them for around £100 on eBay. Alternatively, you can check out our guide to the best AirPods alternatives.

AirPods Max

Right now, the AirPods Max are available to buy directly from Apple. The headphones are also listed over at Currys PC World in the UK and Best Buy in the US.

For an in-depth look at your options here, read Where to buy AirPods Max.

How to get a good deal on AirPods

Good AirPods deals are rare and tend not to last long. If you see one (and you're sure the supplier is legit - look it up on TrustPilot if you've not bought from there before), grab it.

The RRP of the AirPods Max is £549 / US$549 / AU$899.

The RRP of the AirPods Pro is £249 / $249 / AU$399; for the early-2019 AirPods it's £159 / $159 / AU$249, or £199 / $199 / AU$319 with the wireless charging case. You should never pay more than these prices: we've seen unscrupulous retailers claim the RRP is £20 or so higher and work out 'savings' based on that.

The 2016 AirPods were removed from sale as soon as the early-2019 models came out, so never officially got a price cut - but if you do plump for these older models, you shouldn't be paying anywhere near £159. If you can't find a good deal, go for the new ones instead.

Remember to take postage into account when evaluating deals - we include it in our list of prices but most retailers won't add it until you're at the checkout. And watch out for deals that seem too good to be true, but turn out to have no stock. We see this a lot.

Bundle deals

The best way to get a good price on AirPods may be to bundle them with a phone. But at this point bundles are not available with the new Pro models - the best you'll do is the early-2019 models.

Three offers a variety of bundles that includes the AirPods. Visit the company's accessories page to browse the best options for you.

EE lets you add AirPods to your plan for £13 a month spread over 11 months (with the basic charging case) plus a £10 upfront fee, or £17 a month + £10 with the wireless case. The AirPods Pro are £22 a month + £10. In each case you'll need to click Apple, then your choice of AirPods model.

Vodafone and O2 aren't currently bundling the AirPods with their iPhone plans, although O2 sells the early-2019 AirPods and AirPods Pro on their own and Vodafone points you to discounts on both models on getgofone.co.uk.

Whichever bundle you go for, remember to check if you're getting the AirPods Pro, the early-2019 AirPods (sometimes called the AirPods 2, but any mention of a wireless charging case also confirms this) or the old 2016 models.

AirPods buying advice

Wondering if a pair of AirPods is right for you? Let's discuss the pros and cons.

First of all, there are four models: the original AirPods (2016); the early-2019 AirPods, which are similar but add wireless charging and Hey Siri; the late-2019 AirPods Pro which add improved audio quality and active noise cancellation, plus a new design; and the AirPods Max from 2020, which are over-ear headphones and essentially a completely different product to the rest of the AirPods range. For this reason we will discuss the Max model separately.

All three non-Max models are wireless, sitting in your ears and in theory staying there through snugness of fit alone. The advantages of this are clear - they allow you to go running or work out without worrying about snagging the cables - but they may fall out once you pick up the pace. Our experience, however, is that the AirPods are among the best earbuds around in this regard.

The AirPods Pro offer a snugger fit than the previous two models because they have a choice of flexible tips, and are actually able to tell you whether you've selected the right tip or not.

Sound quality is decent but not exceptional on the original and early-2019 models; the AirPods Pro are a step above thanks in part to their better fit and implementation of active noise cancellation. What AirPods consistently do better than non-Apple headphones is co-ordinate with other Apple products, thanks to the W1 chip (in the 2016 model) and H1 chip (2019) which makes pairing with an iPhone a breeze.

Battery-wise, the AirPods will last around five hours, but that's not the end of the story: they come with a little charging case with its own larger battery, so you can pop them back in for a rapid top up. The case should offer another 24 hours (give or take) before it'll require charging. We've got some advice on getting better AirPods battery life.

Apple's 2019 AirPods can respond to Hey Siri commands, charge wirelessly if you opt for the Wireless Charging Case, and offer more talk time than the originals.

For more detailed advice and thoughts on the best alternatives to Apple's three cheaper AirPods models, read our guides to the Best wireless headphones and, more specifically, the Best wireless earbuds.

The AirPods Max are a lot more expensive and a totally different proposition. Audio quality is almost universally considered to be exceptional, but it's debatable whether it's exceptional enough to justify that £550/$550 price tag. And many reviewers have pointed out that the case is oddly designed, given that the one part of the headphones that it doesn't protect - the mesh headband - is the one that's most vulnerable to damage.

We haven't got hold of review samples of the AirPods Max yet, but we'll post our verdict as soon as we can. It's an appealing prospect, but unlikely to be a practical for most budgets.