Can kids use headphones every day?
Yes, it can be safe for kids to use headphones every day, but it’s worth monitoring the amount of time that they use the headphones. Keeping the sound level locked at below 85db is a good start, of course, but it’s worth also keeping listening sessions to under an hour. A prolonged time using headphones can start to affect hearing.
We’d also suggest making sure the volume is kept at around 60%, even with one of these safer pairs. That limit is a maximum and at full volume, 85db is still as loud as a motorbike – you wouldn’t want to blast something that loud for long!
Security alarm sirens go up to 110db or more, which is a good reminder of why volumelimiting models are essential for children. We also encourage a low volume so that kids remain aware of what’s going on around them.
Are noisecancelling headphones safe for kids?
While we haven’t tested out any noisecancelling headphones for this list, these models are safe for kids and have the added benefit of reducing external distractions which makes little ones less likely to turn up the volume to hear it over ambient rumbles.
One downside of the models we’ve tested and included here is that they don’t feature much passive isolation, so a lot of background noise will get through for kids listening while on a train or during a loud car journey. Most of these won’t be that useable during flights too, for the same reason.
If you’re using an iPhone or an iPad, though, it’s worth knowing that you can limit the volume in the system settings (this is worth doing to protect your own hearing too!) and that noisecancelling cans will help cut out annoying ambient noise, allowing you to keep the volume low.
