How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
I recommend the JSAUX USB C to 3.5mm adapter as my top pick for most people, because it turns the USB-C port you already have into a working headphone jack for the wired cans and car stereos you already own.
• JSAUX USB C — best for keeping your existing wired headphones alive; pick this if your phone or laptop dropped the 3.5mm jack but your favorite cans still have a plug.
• PHILIPS Earbuds USB C — best for all-day listening and calls on a USB-C phone; pick this if you want real earbuds with a built-in DAC, a mic and a 3-button remote in one cable.
• Ugreen USB C — best for the pickiest listeners and the widest device mix; pick this if you want a 24bit/96kHz DAC and a braided cable that also works with a PS5 or a Switch 2.
• Samsung OEM — best for Galaxy owners who still have a headphone jack; pick this if you want the in-ear buds designed for the S8/S9/Note 8 era with a tangle-free fabric cable.
• Rayleigh USB-C Earbuds 3-Pack — best for households, backpacks and spares; pick this if you want three pairs of USB-C earbuds so one can live in every bag.
This is not a pair of headphones. It is a small grey adapter that plugs into a USB-C port and gives you a 3.5mm female jack on the other end. That distinction matters, because it is the reason I put it first: it does not ask you to replace anything. Your existing wired headphones, your headset, your car's aux cable and your desk speakers all keep working exactly as they are.
Inside is a Smart DAC chip. In plain terms, that is the little converter that takes the digital audio coming out of your phone and turns it into the analog signal a headphone plug understands. JSAUX rates it at up to 16Bit/48kHz, which is the standard resolution for everyday streaming and calls. It is low power draw, so it is not quietly draining your battery while it sits in the port, and the shielded enamel wire is there to keep the signal stable rather than letting noise creep in.
The practical value here is the mic and remote passthrough. The 3.5mm port is CTIA-compatible, which is the wiring standard most modern headsets use, so pause, volume and call buttons on your headphones still work. You also get metal-coated connectors and a strain relief design rated for 15000+ bending tests — the kind of number that matters when the adapter lives in your pocket and gets yanked around.
The trade-offs are real and you should know them before buying. Apple EarPods with a 3.5mm plug will not give you microphone or volume control through this adapter. OMTP-wired headsets and TS/TRS mono mic-only devices are not supported either. And JSAUX explicitly warns that if your USB-C device already has its own 3.5mm jack, call support may not work — some Galaxy S8/S9/S10 and Note 8/9 models and certain iPad Pro sizes fall into that group.
So who is this for? Someone with a USB-C phone or laptop, a drawer full of wired headphones they actually like, and no interest in buying new ones. It is also a smart pick for a car with an aux input, or for plugging into a rental car or a hotel speaker on a trip. In my opinion, if you already own good wired headphones, this is the cheapest path to keeping them — not a downgrade, just a bridge.
These are actual wired earbuds that end in a USB-C plug, no adapter needed. Philips builds in a DAC, which is the part many cheap USB-C buds skip — and skipping it is exactly why so many of them sound thin and quiet on certain phones. Having it inside the earbuds means the conversion happens in the right place, and Philips describes the result as enhanced sound quality from the source.
The drivers are listed at 10mm in the feature copy, and the sound signature is pitched toward big bass. Impedance is 16 ohm with 101 dB sensitivity and a 20Hz–20,000Hz range, which tells me these are easy to drive — you should get decent volume without pushing your phone hard. If your playlists lean toward hip-hop, pop, EDM or podcasts with a lot of low-end, that tuning is aimed squarely at you.
Comfort is where Philips put obvious thought. The acoustic tube is oval-shaped rather than round, and you get three sizes of rubber tips in the box, so you can actually get a seal instead of just jamming them in. A proper seal is what gives you both the bass and the isolation. The cable runs 1.2 meters, which is long enough to reach a pocket or a bag without tugging.
The 3-button in-line remote handles calls, track navigation and your voice assistant without touching the phone, and there is a built-in mic so you can jump from music to a call. There is also a faux leather carrying case, which is a small thing that makes a big difference in a backpack.
The honest trade-off: these are wired, and the cable is the cable. There is no active noise cancellation here — noise control is listed as none — so isolation depends entirely on how well those tips seal. And the 3-button remote means you are controlling playback from the cable, not the phone. For anyone who misses physical buttons and hates charging earbuds, that is a feature, not a flaw. I would point a commuter or a student with a USB-C phone straight at these.
This is the other adapter in the list, and it is the one I would hand to someone who cares about audio quality. Where the JSAUX tops out at 16bit/48kHz, Ugreen supports up to 24bit/96kHz, and the spec sheet calls that out directly against the more common 16bit/48kHz. Higher numbers here are not marketing noise — they mean more information preserved in the conversion, and Ugreen pairs it with active noise reduction in the signal path.
The build is where this one separates itself. The cable is nylon braided with an aluminum alloy housing, which resists scratches and rust and survives being stuffed into a bag pocket every day. It is slim and light. The finish is metallic grey, and it is the kind of accessory you forget is in your pocket until you need it.
Functionally it does everything the category should: it supports 3.5mm earphones, in-line volume control and calling, and it connects USB-C phones, tablets and laptops to headphones, car radios, speakers and hi-fi systems. The compatibility list is genuinely broad — recent iPhone models, the Galaxy S26/S25/S24/S23/S22 lines, Pixel 10 down through Pixel 6, iPad mini, iPad Pro and iPad Air, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac mini, iMac, and notably PS5 and Switch 2.
That PS5 and Switch 2 mention is not filler. It means this dongle is a legitimate solution for getting wired headphone audio out of a console's USB-C port or a handheld, which is a use case most people do not think about until they need it.
The trade-off is the same as any dongle: you are adding a small piece of hardware to your chain, and if you lose it, your headphones stop working with that device. It also does not add a mic to headphones that lack one. But if you want one adapter that covers your phone, your laptop and your console, and you want the higher-resolution DAC and the tougher cable, this is the one I would pick.
These are the in-ear headphones designed for the Galaxy S8, S9, S8 Plus, S9 Plus and Note 8, tuned by AKG. The important thing to flag up front: the connection is a 3.5mm jack, not USB-C. I am including them because a lot of shoppers searching for USB-C headphones are really Galaxy owners trying to replace a lost pair, and this is the original part rather than a random substitute.
The build is the appeal. The earpieces are housed in a sleek metal finish, and the cable is tangle-free fabric — that second detail is the one people actually notice day to day, because fabric cables resist the knots and kinks that turn a cheap cable into a frustrating one. The impedance is 32 ohm with a 20Hz–20kHz frequency range, so they are a standard, easy-to-drive in-ear.
They include a microphone and an in-line remote with volume control, so calls and playback work from the cable. The spec sheet also lists active noise cancellation under noise control, which is unusual for a wired in-ear at this level and worth knowing if you want some quieting without a battery.
The main trade-off is obvious: if your current phone is a modern Samsung or any recent iPhone, there is no 3.5mm jack to plug into, and these will not work without an adapter. The "bluetooth version 5" entry in the spec sheet is also worth reading carefully — these are a wired 3.5mm product, so treat that line as a listing artifact rather than a wireless feature. If you still use an S8, S9 or Note 8, or you have a USB-C adapter like the ones above and want the original buds, this is the right call.
This is the practical, unglamorous option: three pairs of wired USB-C in-ear earbuds in one box. The set comes in black, gold, white, purple and blue across the pack, plus a user manual, and the theme list — gaming, sports, movie, outdoor — tells you Rayleigh is aiming at general everyday use rather than audiophile listening.
The specs are straightforward. Dynamic drivers, a 20Hz–20,000Hz frequency range, USB-C termination, wired connection. The marketing describes heavy bass and stereo sound with noise isolation, which is the passive kind — the tips block outside sound rather than electronics cancelling it. There is a single button control for playback, and the enclosure is plastic with a fabric or plastic carrying case.
Here is the honest case for a three-pack. Earbuds get lost, left at the office, stuffed in a gym bag and forgotten in a jacket pocket. Buying three at once means you stop having that problem. One pair lives in your backpack, one at your desk, one in the car. If you have kids, or a household where earbuds vanish constantly, this is the format that makes sense.
The trade-offs are what you would expect from a value multi-pack. One-button control is minimal — you get play, pause and call handling, not a full three-button remote. The build is plastic rather than metal. And there is no DAC spec listed, so I would not expect the same conversion quality as the Philips or Ugreen options. The 2-year warranty is a genuine plus for the category, though.
How We Picked
I compared the published specifications and feature sets on each data sheet — DAC resolution, driver type, impedance, frequency range, connector type, controls, build materials and stated compatibility — and weighed them against realistic everyday use.
The ranking is my independent editorial opinion, based on what the specs tell a buyer, not on hands-on testing. No brand paid for placement, and no brand saw this list before you did.
how to use usb c headphones on mac
Plug the USB-C connector directly into a USB-C port on your MacBook, MacBook Air, Mac mini or iMac. The Ugreen adapter lists MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, Mac mini and iMac in its compatibility, and Philips states its earbuds connect to any USB-C-equipped PC or tablet without a conversion adapter. Then select the device as your audio output in your sound settings.
how to use usb c headphones on android phone
Plug them straight into your phone's USB-C port — no adapter needed for USB-C earbuds like the Philips or the Rayleigh set. For 3.5mm headphones, use a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter; both the JSAUX and Ugreen adapters list broad Galaxy and Pixel compatibility. Audio should route automatically, and in-line buttons handle volume and calls where supported.
how to use usb c headphones on android
Same idea, though older Android phones with their own 3.5mm jack behave differently. JSAUX warns that on some Galaxy S8/S9/S10 and Note 8/9 models, an adapter may not support phone calls or music control because the phone already has a headphone jack. On a modern USB-C-only Android phone, just plug in and play.
how to use usb c headphones on ps5
Use a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter and plug your wired headphones into it, then connect the adapter to the console. The Ugreen adapter explicitly lists PS5 and Switch 2 in its compatible devices, which makes it the safest of these picks for console use. Set your audio output to the connected headset in the console's sound settings.
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See also: Gsangoo USB C Headphones vs TECHAIRLINE USB C Headphones, MAS CARNEY USB C Headphones vs APETOO USB Earbuds, BESNOOW Earbuds vs GREKING USB C Headphones