We all want our games to look their best, but having them sound their best is important, too – and one of the best ways to do that is to kit your PC out with one of today’s best gaming headsets. Gaming headsets are a great way to improve your PC’s audio, and they’re also handy for chatting with your mates when you’re playing online as well thanks to their built-in microphones. If you want an easy audio setup that doesn’t involve hundreds of different cables, choosing one of our best gaming headset recommendations is the way to do it.
The problem is finding the best gaming headset for you and your budget. After all, there are loads of headsets to choose from these days, and they’re all at various different price points, too. To help you in your quest, I’ve put together a list of all the very best gaming headsets that I’ve tested here at RPS, helping you sort the symphonic wheat from the aural chaff no matter your budget. Here, you’ll find everything from the best budget gaming headset all the way up to the best wireless gaming headset, and everything in between. No matter what you’re looking for, I’ve got a best gaming headset recommendation for you.
Here’s our best gaming headset list at a glance. To help make things a bit easier, you can either click on the headset you want to read about, or you can just continue scrolling to read the whole thing – and while you’re here, be sure to check out our best gaming keyboard and best gaming mouse lists as well if you’re in need of some more peripherals.
How to choose the best gaming headset: To earn a place on our best gaming headset list, a headset not only needs to sound fantastic, but it also has to be super comfortable and have an excellent microphone. After all, what’s the point of having a microphone at all if your mates can’t hear you speak very well when you’re playing online? Of course, testing a gaming headset can be a very subjective experience. Everyone has a different shaped head, for example, so what’s comfortable for me may not be comfortable for other people (especially those with larger heads than mine), and musical tastes differ as well.
I prefer a balanced-sounding headset whose bass doesn’t drown out the highs, and I test for this in a variety of ways, playing games such as Doom, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice and Final Fantasy XV to see how a headset handles their various in-game soundtracks against gun shots, dialogue and environmental effects, and I also listen to regular orchestral, rock and pop music from my own music library to see how it holds up as a general listening headset. I also test a headset’s microphone by recording myself talking in Audacity.
There are a couple of other things to consider when buying a new gaming headset as well. You’ll find lots of headsets claim they can do 7.1 surround sound, but don’t be fooled by this. In a traditional audio setup, a 7.1 system would require seven individual speakers and a subwoofer (the “.1” bit), while a gaming headset will only ever have two physical speakers (one for each ear). Consequently, any headset that says it has 7.1 surround is always going to be doing it virtually via onboard software. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it often makes your game audio feel like it’s been turned into one great big echo chamber. Unless you’re going to be watching a lot of films on your PC that support 7.1 surround sound, it’s usually better to stick to a simple stereo headset (or at least leave its 7.1 surround feature turned off).
The same goes for Hi-Res certified headsets. Hi-Res (or High Resolution) audio is meant to provide the absolute pinnacle of music quality, which is great if you already own lots of Hi-Res audio tracks or subscribe to a service like Tidal, but as for gaming… it’s pretty much useless. Personally, I’ve never been able to tell the difference between Hi-Res audio and non-Hi-Res audio, and that’s after multiple demos and tech PRs doing their darnedest to convince me otherwise. As a result, don’t feel like you should go all out on a Hi-Res headset if you’re only going to be using it for games. With all that in mind, here are our best gaming headset picks for 2020.
Logitech G Pro X – the best gaming headset
The Logitech G Pro X headset is a truly incredible bit of kit. Not only is it one of the most comfortable gaming headsets I’ve ever worn, but it’s also got the best darn microphone this side of a Blue Yeti. That’s mostly because its mic has Blue’s Voice technology built into it, which is the closest you’ll get to having a broadcast quality mic on a gaming headset. Logitech’s GHub software also gives you plenty of options to get your microphone sounding just right, and it really does put all other gaming headset mics to shame.
The Logitech G Pro X also sounds absolutely sublime. Thanks to its rich, detailed soundscape, I was able to hear sounds in my test games I’d never even noticed before, making everything feel more immersive as a result. I was also able to pinpoint exactly where certain sounds were coming from in fast-paced action games such as Doom – and that was without switching on its virtual 7.1 surround sound feature, too.
It also comes with a replacement set of ear pads, loads of different cables and connections so you can use it with other devices, plus a very lovely carry case to make sure nothing gets lost. If you’ve got the cash, you definitely won’t be disappointed. Alternatively, it’s also available in a regular G Pro model for £81 / $92, which has exactly the same design but doesn’t come with the Blue Voice tech inside the mic.
Logitech G432 – the best budget gaming headset
Available for around half the price of its Pro X cousins, the Logitech G432 is a fantastic headset for those on a budget. Compared to other £50 / $50 headsets such as the Razer Kraken X and the Steelseries Arctis 1, the Logitech G432 beats them all by a country mile.
Its sound quality is absolutely fantastic for this kind of price, producing sparklingly detailed audio in every game going. It’s so clear, in fact, that I had to remind myself that I hadn’t accidentally put the Pro X on again by accident. It’s also got a brilliant microphone, and comes with both a USB DAC and a combined and dual 3.5mm splitter to use with your PC, laptop and consoles. I did, admittedly, have a few issues with the headset’s overall comfort – especially compared to the featherweight Arctis 1 – but when the G432 sounds this good, I’m willing to overlook it in this case.
Yes, there are cheaper headsets out there, such as the £40 / $40-odd Turtle Beach Recon 150, but the Logitech G432 is absolutely worth the extra expense in this case, and I’ve yet to find a better-sounding headset for less.
Alternatively, if you’ve got a bit more to spend and fancy some RGB lighting in your headset, then the next best thing is the Corsair Void Elite RGB, which is an updated version of the excellent Corsair Void Pro RGB. This can currently be had for £70 / $58, making it slightly cheaper than the non-X model of the Logitech G Pro.
Steelseries Arctis 7 – the best wireless gaming headset
If you’ve ever had as much trouble finding a comfortable headset as I have, then the Steelseries Arctis 7 is a revelation. Its ski-goggle headband might not look as comfy as other headsets with fistfuls of padding to their name, but its clever suspension design means the steel frame never actually touches your head, allowing me to wear it for hours and hours without issue. Whereas other headsets often always leave me with a vice-like headache after 30 minutes, the Arctis 7 just lets me get on with playing games.
It sounds great, too, and is completely wireless, allowing you to keep your gaming desk nice and clean without another tangle of cables in the mix. What’s more, its wireless transmitter isn’t just a little USB stick – it’s got its own cable, so you can position it wherever you like for the best signal. You also get a regular 3.5mm audio cable so you can use it as a wired headset as well if you prefer.
The Arctis 7 is more expensive than other wireless gaming headsets on this list, but it does come with a couple of extra handy features, such as its ChatMix slider. This lets you filter out all game music to focus solely on your multiplayer chat, and it works vice-versa as well, helping you drown out those screaming 11-year-olds who can’t believe you didn’t make that headshot from half way across the map.
Corsair HS70 – the best budget wireless gaming headset
I love a good wireless gaming headset, but as you’ve no doubt just seen, the best ones demand well over £100 / $100, which can often be a step too far for those looking to keep costs down. Thankfully, the brilliant Corsair HS70 is here for those after the best wireless gaming headset that doesn’t break the bank.
It’s still a fair chunk of change, I’ll admit, but the HS70 is an absolutely superb headset in its own right. It doesn’t have as many fancy features as the Arctis 7 or the battery life of the HyperX Cloud Flight (although its 16 hours of uninterrupted air time is still nothing to be sniffed at), but if you’re after something simple that gets the job done, feels great and doesn’t involve trying to unravel a million cables, the HS70 is the headset for you.
Sennheiser GSP 370 – the best wireless gaming headset with the best battery life
If you’re after a headset that can go for months and months without charging, the Sennheiser GSP 370 is the wireless gaming headset for you. Its 100-hour battery life puts all other gaming headsets to shame, including the Steelseries Arctis 7. It does, however, come at a cost.
For some, the Sennheiser GSP 370 will almost certainly be worth the extra cash over the Arctis 7. It’s a bit on the chunky side design-wise, but this is still a supremely comfortable headset whose audio quality and fold-down microphone are top of their class. However, the main reason why this is sitting in our best wireless gaming headset spot is because it still lacks a couple of key features that sets the Arctis 7 apart. This includes the Arctis’ ChatMix feature and sidetone controls for its microphone. The Arctis 7 also comes with a 3.5mm audio cable so you can use it with other devices, too, whereas the GSP 370 is USB-only.
Still, if you’re not fussed about any of that, then the Sennheiser GSP 370 more than justifies its high price. With its excellent audio quality and that stonkingly large battery life, the GSP 370 is a fantastic wireless gaming headset that should be at the top of your consideration list.
Steelseries Arctis Pro + GameDAC – the best ‘money is no object’ Hi-Res gaming headset
If you’ve got money to burn and want the absolute best of the best, look no further than the Steelseries Arctis Pro + GameDAC. Not to be confused with its more expensive wireless and cheaper GameDAC-less Pro siblings, this middle offering in Steelseries’ Arctis Pro line-up is arguably the best of the lot – if only because it’s the only one to have proper Hi-Res audio support.
Hi-Res audio isn’t the be all and end all for games at the moment (see our buying guide below for more info), but if you’ve got lots of Hi-Res audio tracks that you listen to at home or subscribe to services like Tidal, this could be a handy solution that meets both your home and game listening needs without having to buy a second pair of headphones.
Combined with that handy titular GameDAC control that gives you every settings option you could possibly want right at your fingertips (all on a lovely big tactile dial, to boot), this is the best and comfiest way to get 96kHz, 24-bit audio from your game library and beyond.
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