These 6 Soundbars Are the Best of 2025

These 6 Soundbars Are the Best of 2025
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Article updated on  Ty Pendlebury Editor
TV and home video editor Ty Pendlebury joined CNET Australia in 2006, and moved to New York City to be a part of CNET in 2011. He tests, reviews and writes about the latest TVs and audio equipment. When he’s not playing Call of Duty he’s eating whatever cuisine he can get his hands on. He has a cat named after one of the best TVs ever made.
Expertise Ty has worked for radio, print, and online publications, and has been writing about home entertainment since 2004. He is an avid record collector and streaming music enthusiast. Credentials

  • Ty was nominated for Best New Journalist at the Australian IT Journalism awards, but he has only ever won one thing. As a youth, he was awarded a free session for the photography studio at a local supermarket.

Budget

Before anything else, you should consider how much you’re willing to spend on your new soundbar.

HDMI Connections

A soundbar should have at least one HDMI input, and preferably more. The ability to connect multiple cables will help users with a large selection of sources

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Any television you buy today will have onboard speakers, but every single one can be improved with the addition of a great-sounding soundbar. With the right model, you get the benefits of a home theater system or AV receiver without having to run messy wires or take up much space. I’ve tested hundreds of products from big-name brands over the years to help you discover the best soundbar for your needs. From cheap and cheerful models to those packed with features like Dolby Atmos, Bluetooth, built-in streaming, multiroom audio and immersive surround sound, here are my picks for the best soundbars of 2025.

sv210m-0808

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The Yamaha YAS-209 soundbar and subwoofer in a living room set up with a wooden console table and colorful rug.

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Image of Sonos Ray

Best value Sonos soundbar

Sonos Ray

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A black Bose Smart Ultra Soundbar sits just in front of a Television on a light grey TV stand.

Best Dolby Atmos soundbar

Bose Smart Ultra Soundbar

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Best soundbar of 2025

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Vizio SV210M review

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Sonos Ray review

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Klipsch Flexus Core 100 review

What we updated:

Use the following guide to see which soundbar length we recommend for each TV size.

Audio format compatibility

Match your soundbar’s audio format to the content you enjoy most. Here are a few of the most important audio formats and their use cases to consider when choosing a soundbar:

  • Dolby Atmos for 3D soundscapes with height channels that create immersive experiences perfect for movie buffs
  • DTS:X for object-based audio that adapts to your specific speaker setup, ideal for home theater enthusiasts
  • PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) for uncompressed digital audio commonly found on Blu-ray discs and gaming consoles
  • Dolby Digital 5.1 for traditional surround sound with five speakers and a subwoofer, the standard for DVD content
  • Bluetooth audio codecs (AAC, aptX, LDAC) for wireless streaming with varying levels of quality, essential for music streaming from mobile devices

Check your TV’s connection options (HDMI ARC/eARC, optical) to ensure compatibility with the soundbar you choose.

Speaker length (in inches) Recommended TV screen size
12 Any
38 to 45 42-inch to 50-inch
50 55-inch to 65-inch
60 70-inch and larger

Sonos Arc Ultra ($1,099): The high-end Sonos Arc Ultra has even better bass than the previous model, and it’s great for music in particular. Yet it isn’t as expansive-sounding as before and it costs more than the original, as well as its main rival: the Bose Smart Ultra Soundbar. Read my review of the Sonos Arc Ultra.

JBL Bar 500 ($600): Alongside Klipsch, JBL has long had a reputation for being a rock ‘n’ roll brand with a big sound and even bigger cabinets. During my tests, the JBL Bar 500 fulfilled both parts of the brief by pairing excellent sound with one of the largest subwoofers I’ve ever seen with a soundbar. Yet, while it includes both HDMI and networked music streaming, the JBL is missing Dolby Atmos height speakers — which is disappointing for the price. You can save yourself a lot of money by getting the even bigger-sounding Klipsch Cinema 400 instead. 

Polk Signa S3 ($300): If you’re looking for a speaker that can do music as well as play the latest episode of The Last of Us, then the Polk Audio Signa S3 has a lot to offer. It’s great for accessing streaming services, as it has Chromecast built-in in addition to Bluetooth and an HDMI input. Read my Polk Signa S3 review.

Sony HT-S2000 ($298): Better in some ways than the competition and worse in others, the Sony HT-S2000 boasts a better bass response than the Sonos Beam. For its original price of $500, it missed a lot of the features of its single-bar competition, namely Dolby Atmos compatibility and Wi-Fi streaming. It can now be found on sale for closer to $300. See how it stacks up against the Sonos Beam in our Sony HT-S2000 Soundbar vs. Sonos Beam comparison.

Zvox SB500 ($400): If you’re looking for a single audio bar that’s even cheaper than the Sonos Arc, the Zvox SB500 is a great option for people who still prize sound quality. This speaker offers multiple sound mode options, tighter bass and better sound than most other single-speaker options. While it may lack the Sonos’ Wi-Fi streaming, the Zvox still includes Bluetooth connectivity for streaming audio from your phone or tablet. Read the Zvox SB500 review. 

Sennheiser Ambeo Max ($3,000): The Sennheiser Ambeo is the best surround experience I’ve had from a single speaker. Without rears, the Sennheiser can make voices hover over the top of your head, even if it still can’t convince you that things are behind you.

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If you plan on playing music through your soundbar, wireless streaming through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi is a must-have. Wireless streaming lets you play music from a multitude of sources — like Spotify on your phone, or iTunes on your computer — via your soundbar. Higher-end soundbars usually have both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth streaming, but most budget and mid-range options have one or the other.

Bluetooth is the easiest way to wirelessly stream audio to your soundbar. It works with the music stored on your device and any music app, plus it’s platform-agnostic — virtually all iOS, Android and Windows phones and tablets have built-in Bluetooth. Likewise, almost every soundbar on the market features Bluetooth, and if it doesn’t you can buy an adapter like those made by Belkin or Logitech. 

Still, Wi-Fi offers several upgrades to Bluetooth including the ability to listen in multiple rooms and even control it with Google Assistant or Alexa. Wi-Fi streaming generally sounds better, too, as its higher bandwidth allows for uncompressed audio (unlike Bluetooth). That said, most people won’t notice a difference in most situations.

So, if you prioritize convenience and quick connections from multiple devices, Bluetooth works well. But if sound quality is your primary concern, Wi-Fi streaming is generally superior.

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Source: CNET.

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