‘A serious Apple AirPods Pro rival’: five sweet stars prove Huawei’s new FreeBuds Pro 5 are the real deal

20 Mar 2026, 08:00 · TechRadar

TechRadar Verdict

These excellent earbuds are easily the best from Huawei’s FreeBuds Pro line yet, and a serious rival to the Apple AirPods Pro. They're smaller, lighter and genuinely premium-looking. They also fit incredibly well even during workouts, and carry a welcome IP57 rating. Sound is full, detailed and clear and makes for a really enjoyable listen across genres. ANC is much improved and it performs incredibly well in all sorts of environments. They’re excellent value too, at a price that undercuts most rivals. They’re not flawless — the battery with ANC on falls a little short of top-tier, the design is a tad chunkier than rivals and there's no lossless unless you have a Huawei phone — but none of these minor issues spoil an otherwise excellent package.

Pros

+Excellent ANC
+Great-looking, comfortable design
+Packed with features

Cons

-Lossless only for Huawei phones
-Slightly chunkier than rivals
-No foam eartips

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you're buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Jump To:

Huawei FreeBuds Pro 5: Two-minute review

Let’s be clear from the start. For everyday listening, the Huawei FreeBuds Pro 5 are the best earbuds you can get without spending significantly more. They tick every box, deliver across the board and make a compelling case that there’s life beyond Apple for those who have been reluctant to shop around.

They’re the fifth generation of Huawei’s FreeBuds Pro line, which has been around since 2020 and we’ve always rated them well. In fact, I tested the FreeBuds Pro 2 back in 2022. The FreeBuds Pro 4 landed in November 2024 and scored four stars in our review. They were strong but not quite there. The Pro 5 are different and good enough to go head-to-head with the best at this level, including the Apple AirPods Pro 3.

The FreeBuds Pro 5 look and feel more premium than their price suggests, and so does the charging case. They’re smaller and lighter than the Pro 4 at 5.5g per bud, which is noticeable. Build quality is excellent, the stems have a high-shine finish and the case has a satiny coating that feels upscale.

Most importantly, the design translates into a supremely comfortable wear. As someone with small, particular ears who put these through gym sessions, runs and full working days, I can tell you the fit is impressive.

The feature set is extensive. There’s smooth multipoint connectivity, customisable gesture controls that are responsive and the Huawei Audio Connect app is one of my favourites at this level. Battery life reaches around 8.5 hours with ANC off and nearly 6 with it on, with 38 hours total from the case. That’s not as good as rivals for ANC listening time, but the amount of power the case holds is great.

ANC is one of the headline upgrades here. The FreeBuds Pro 5 use a dual-driver system and they work together as noise-cancelling engines, paired with an AI sensing model. In practice, it’s close to silence but without that airless, pressurized quality that heavy ANC can sometimes produce. Call quality benefits from the same tech, I found it to be clear and natural, even in busy environments.

Then there’s sound, which is very good indeed. The dual-driver acoustic system delivers a wide, rich soundstage with strong low-end response, excellent instrument separation and detail that holds up across genres, from driving rock to expansive orchestral soundtracks. I think you’d have to spend significantly more or go wired to do meaningfully better.

Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors