AirPods Max

Apple refreshed the AirPods Max in March 2026, adding an H2 chip that brings it in line with the AirPods 4 and the AirPods Pro 3. With a new update, now is a good time to buy the AirPods Max. Apple does not update the AirPods Max frequently at all, and we are not expecting another refresh anytime soon. The AirPods Max were introduced in 2020 and did not receive a major update until 2026.

With a $549 price tag, AirPods Max are more expensive than Apple's smaller in-ear AirPods and AirPods Pro, and its Beats brand products. Apple also charges more than competitors like Sony and Bose, but Apple does use premium materials like aluminum. Compared to options from other companies, AirPods Max offer easy pairing and device switching for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV users.

The 2026 AirPods Max headphones use Apple's H2 chip, which brings features that were not available with the prior-generation model, like Live Translation and Adaptive Audio. ANC and sound quality have also improved with the update, but there have been no design or fit updates.

If the AirPods Max are too expensive or you do not need over-ear headphones, the AirPods, AirPods Pro, and Beats headphones also offer the same easy pairing and device-switching experience. All AirPods Max features like Active Noise Cancellation are available with the $249 AirPods Pro 3, and the even more affordable AirPods 4 with ANC.

• AirPods Max 1 vs. AirPods Max 2 Buyer's Guide: 25+ Differences Compared

To get MacRumors readers the best prices on the AirPods Max, we have a dedicated AirPods Max deals guide that highlights the best sales each month.

AirPods Max are the only Apple-branded over-ear headphones, though Apple does also have the Beats brand with over-ear headphones options. Apple first released the AirPods Max in 2020, updated them with USB-C in 2024, and then added an H2 chip with new features in 2026. The AirPods Max have not seen a design or fit update since their 2020 debut.

The AirPods Max feature oval-shaped ear cups with a U-shaped, inverted knit mesh headband and knit mesh ear cushions. The design of the headband allows it to evenly distribute weight and reduce on-head pressure, plus it has adjustable arms to fit a range of head sizes.

Ear cups attach to the headband through adjustable arms in a mechanism meant to balance and distribute pressure, and each ear cushion was created with acoustically engineered memory foam to create a seal for immersive sound.

Ear cushions attach to ear cups magnetically and are interchangeable, with Apple selling ear cushions on a standalone basis. AirPods Max come in five colors: Blue, Orange, Purple, Midnight, and Starlight, all with matching ear cups. AirPods Max colors were updated in September 2024 and did not change with the March 2026 update.

At the top of one of the AirPods Max ear cups, there's an Apple Watch-inspired Digital Crown that provides precise volume controls and gestures for playing/pausing audio, skipping tracks, answering/ending phone calls, and activating Siri. The Digital Crown on the 2026 model is also able to activate the camera, so it serves as an iPhone or iPad camera remote button.

To provide excellent sound quality, the AirPods Max are equipped with a 40mm Apple-designed dynamic driver. With a dual neodymium ring magnet motor, AirPods Max maintain a harmonic distortion of less than 1 percent across the audible range, even at max volume. The AirPods Max 2 have a new high dynamic range amplifier for richer bass, more natural vocals, and improved localization of instruments.

Apple added the H2 chip to the AirPods Max 2, replacing the H1 chip from the prior-generation model. The H2 chip provides up to 1.5× better Active Noise Cancellation thanks to a new computational audio algorithm that better detects and mitigates ambient sound. Active Noise Cancellation works through outward-facing microphones on each ear cup that detect environmental noise, along with additional microphones in the ear cups to monitor the sound reaching the listener's ear. Apple's software adapts the noise cancellation to the environment in real-time.

Adaptive Audio support adjusts the level of ANC to your environment, and Transparency sounds more natural thanks to an updated digital signal processing algorithm. Transparency mode lets in outside sounds so you can hear your surroundings.

Loud Sound Reduction automatically reduces loud environmental sounds, while Personalized Volume learns your volume preferences in different environments and adjusts automatically. Conversation Awareness lowers the volume of what you're listening to when you start to talk, boosting the voices around you so you can hear. When the conversation is over, the sound returns to its previous volume.

Voice Isolation isolates your voice in noisy environments and cuts down on background noise so people can hear you while you're on a call, and it lets creators capture high-quality vocals without interference. Adaptive EQ was retuned for the H2 chip and it now extends to higher frequencies. Users get a more consistent listening experience across different fits, movements, and ear geometry, improving Spatial Audio. Spatial audio uses dynamic head tracking to place sounds anywhere in space for an immersive, theater-like experience.

The AirPods Max are Apple's only headphones that offer lossless audio, providing 24-bit 48kHz lossless audio when connected to an iPhone or iPad over USB-C.

Apple also updated the AirPods Max with Bluetooth 5.3, replacing Bluetooth 5 for reduced wireless audio latency. With the H2 chip, Siri responds to just "Siri," and there's no need to use "Hey." Siri gesture support lets users respond to Siri hands-free by nodding their head yes or shaking their head no for doing things like answering or declining an incoming call.

Live Translation is available on the AirPods Max, providing real-time translations between two languages during in-person conversations. Translations are given right in the AirPods, and responses can be delivered via an iPhone. Two-way Live Translation conversations are possible if both participants have AirPods with Live Translation.

All of the devices in the AirPods family feature automatic device swapping on any device where the user is signed into their iCloud account, along with quick pairing, Siri access, and audio sharing. AirPods Max have optical sensors to detect when they're on a user's head.

When put on, AirPods Max can play audio, and when removed, the action pauses the AirPods audio. The built-in microphones allow for clear phone calls and ensure that Siri hears user commands even when music is playing.

AirPods Max have a battery that lasts for up to 20 hours for listening to music, talking on the phone, or watching movies with Active Noise Cancellation enabled and the volume set to 50 percent. For charging, Apple provides a Smart Case made out of a soft material that puts AirPods Max in an ultralow-power state to preserve battery charge when not in use. AirPods Max charge using USB-C and a five-minute charge provides 1.5 hours of listening time.

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Apple will accept pre-orders for the AirPods Max 2 on Wednesday, March 25. The headphones will launch in early April, but Apple has not yet provided an exact date.

AppleCare+ is available for AirPods Max for $59, with the coverage including two incidents of accidental damage every two months, subject to a $29 service fee. Out-of-warranty battery service is priced at $79.

The AirPods Max have oval-shaped brushed aluminum ear cups attached to a retro-style U-shaped curved headband with telescoping arms for size adjustment purposes. There are mesh ear cups that are made from an acoustic fabric that Apple says better conducts sound.

The headband curves upward and is made from a breathable knit mesh material between a stainless steel frame that Apple created to distribute the weight of the headphones across the head to make them more comfortable. The frame is covered by a soft-touch material.

The AirPods Max headband can be removed with a standard SIM card ejector tool, facilitating easy headband repairs. At the current time, Apple does not sell headbands. There's also a small Lightning-like connector inside that allows the headband to connect each ear cup together.

Apple says that the AirPods Max design allows for an "uncompromising fit" that creates an optimal acoustic seal for many head shapes. Each ear cup rotates independently on the frame to balance pressure, and the mesh material and memory foam internals of the ear cushions are meant to offer pillow-like softness.

Apple sells AirPods Max in five colors: Blue, Orange, Purple, Midnight, and Starlight. Each color has a matching color for the ear cushions and the headband. Apple did not update the design of the AirPods Max or the color options with the 2026 refresh.

The AirPods Max ear cushions attach to the ear cups magnetically, and they are interchangeable. Apple sells standalone ear cushions for $69 per pair, allowing for different color mixes.

AirPods Max are heavier than many noise cancelling headphone sets from other manufacturers, weighing in at 13.6 ounces or 386.2 grams.

Unlike the AirPods Pro, AirPods Max are not waterproof or water-resistant, and Apple warns customers not to get moisture in any of the openings.

Digital Crown and Button

Like the Apple Watch, the AirPods Max have a Digital Crown to provide physical controls. The Digital Crown can be used to turn the volume up or down, skip between tracks, answer phone calls, and activate Siri through both rotating and pressing gestures.

Turning the Digital Crown controls volume, pressing once answers a call or plays/pauses a song, pressing twice skips forward one track, pressing three times skips back one track, and pressing and holding activates Siri.

With the 2026 update, the AirPods Max Digital Crown can be used as a camera remote for the iPhone or the iPad. It works with the built-in camera app, or any third-party camera app.

The button next to the Digital Crown allows Active Noise Cancellation to be controlled, switching between ANC and Transparency mode.

LED Light

AirPods Max have an LED light on the bottom of the right ear cup, which can be used to determine charge level when pressing the power button while the AirPods Max are charging. At above 95 percent, the light is green, at below 95 percent charge, it's amber. Pressing the button on the AirPods Max when the headphones are not charging shows a green light if there's more than 15 percent battery life remaining, while it shows an amber light if there's less than 15 percent charge.

Smart Case

Apple ships AirPods Max with a soft Smart Case that wraps around the ear cups but that does not provide protection for the headband. The case puts the AirPods Max into an ultra low power state that preserves battery life, utilizing magnets.

The Smart Case has not been popular with customers who bought prior-generation AirPods Max headphones, but Apple opted not to refresh the case with the AirPods Max 2. The case is the same design as the one that came with the original AirPods Max.

The AirPods Max pair high-fidelity audio with Active Noise Cancellation. Active Noise Cancellation has improved with the H2 chip, and the AirPods Max 2 have up to 1.5× more ANC. Apple also introduced a new computational audio algorithm that detects and counters external sound.

There's a custom-built driver inside the AirPods Max that produces ultra-low distortion sound across the audible range. Apple added a new high dynamic range amplifier in the AirPods Max 2, which provides more headroom for the driver. Bass is richer, vocals sound more natural, and there's improved localization of instruments. Apple says that users can expect more accurate and consistent bass, plus more natural sounding mids and highs.

The driver is equipped with a dual-neodymium ring magnet motor that's modeled after the drivers in high-end floor-standing speakers. The magnet motor minimizes distortion to provide clearer sound.

Spatial Audio

The AirPods Max support Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos to Apple Music, allowing AirPods Max owners to listen to Spatial Audio tracks in Apple Music.

Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos provides an immersive, multi-dimensional audio experience that allows artists to mix music in a way that makes it sound like the notes are coming from all around you.

Spatial audio applies directional audio filters and subtly adjusts the frequencies that each ear receives to place sounds virtually anywhere in space for an immersive listening experience. The feature uses sensors in the AirPods Max along with sensors in the iPhone or iPad to track the motion of a person's head as well as the position of their device, comparing the motion data and remapping the sound field so that it stays anchored to the device even as the head moves.

With studio-like recording capabilities, personalized Spatial Audio can be used for recording and mixing audio, which is an AirPods Max exclusive feature that Apple advertises as an option for musicians and content creators.

Spatial Audio works with Apple Music content, the Apple TV app, and third-party apps. With TV and movies, it provides a movie theater listening experience on the AirPods Max.

Lossless Audio and Ultra-Low Latency

The AirPods Max 2 support 24-bit 48 kHz lossless audio, allowing listeners to hear music the way the artist created it in the studio. Lossless audio and ultra-low latency require listening via a USB-C to USB-C cable, and the AirPods Max are Apple's only headphones with lossless audio support.

Lossless audio support also extends to Personalized Spatial Audio to provide a more accurate and immersive experience. Musicians can use the AirPods Max with USB-C to create and mix Personalized Spatial Audio with head tracking. Apple sells a USB-C to 3.5mm audio cable that allows the AirPods Max to be connected to the audio-out port of a Mac, in-flight entertainment system, or other device.

Bluetooth

The AirPods Max 2 support Bluetooth 5.3, up from Bluetooth 5. Wireless latency is reduced in the AirPods Max 2 compared to the prior-generation model. Lower latency is available with a wired connection using a USB-C to USB-C cable.

The AirPods Max 2 have the H2 chip, which is an upgrade to the H1 chip in the original model. Apple first introduced the H2 chip in the AirPods Pro 2, and has since used the chip in the AirPods 4 and the AirPods Pro 3.

The H2 chip powers Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency, and the drivers in the AirPods Max. It enables several features that were already available with other AirPods models, but that are new to the AirPods Max, plus it improves ANC.

Active Noise Cancellation

As with the AirPods Pro and some Beats headphones, the AirPods Max feature Active Noise Cancellation capabilities. There are nine total microphones, including eight microphones for Active Noise Cancellation and three microphones for voice pickup. Two of the nine microphones are shared between ANC and voice pickup, and there's one dedicated voice microphone.

Combined with Apple's software, the microphones allow the AirPods Max to determine and mitigate the outside noise level while fine-tuning the audio that's playing.

These microphones power Active Noise Cancellation. Two of these microphones and one additional microphone also make sure Siri can be heard for voice commands even with music playing and that voice calls are clear even when it's windy.

Transparency Mode

Transparency mode can be activated for users who are worried about Active Noise Cancellation drowning out the sounds in the environment, which is useful when it's important to hear what's going on.

Transparency mode turns down the Active Noise Cancellation so AirPods Max owners can listen for traffic, hear flight announcements, and more, without having to turn off their audio. On AirPods Max, Transparency mode can be activated by pressing on the noise control button that's at the top of the headphones.

Apple is using a new digital signal processing algorithm built for the H2 and the AirPods Max microphone array to make Transparency sound more natural. Your own voice will sound more realistic, and so will other sounds.

Adaptive Audio

Adaptive Audio is a listening mode that blends Transparency and Active Noise Cancellation in real-time, adapting noise control to the wearer's environment as it changes.

Conversation Awareness

When you start to talk, Conversation Awareness kicks on and lowers the volume of what you're listening to while amplifying voices so you can hear a response. When you're done talking, the sound returns to its previous volume.

Personalized Volume

Personalized Volume learns your volume preferences across different environments over time, and automatically adjusts as necessary.

Loud Sound Reduction

With Loud Sound Reduction, the AirPods Max will automatically reduce loud environmental sounds like lawn mowers or construction equipment. It is a feature created for lower frequency sounds, and it is not going to protect hearing from gunshots, fireworks, and other burst noise.

Adaptive EQ

Apple retuned Adaptive EQ for the H2 chip, and the feature now extends to higher frequencies. Adaptive EQ uses inward-facing microphones to sample what you're hearing, adjusting playback in real-time. According to Apple, users will get a more consistent listening experience across different fits, movements, and ear geometry.

Voice Isolation

Voice Isolation isolates your voice in noisy environments so people can hear you when you're on a call. Voice Isolation also lets creators capture high-quality vocals.

Live Translation

Live Translation is an Apple Intelligence feature that provides real-time language translation for in-person conversations. Users can speak naturally while wearing AirPods, with the AirPods translating conversations that are in a different language.

For conversations with non-AirPods wearers, the iPhone is able to display translations back to the speaker, for two-way conversations. The feature works even better when both conversation participants wear compatible AirPods models. An iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence is required.

Siri

AirPods Max support always-on Siri functionality, so users are able to change the music via Siri, make calls, ask questions, and more. With the AirPods Max 2, The headphones activate with just "Siri," so there is no need to add the "Hey."

There are new hands-free Siri gestures available with the H2 chip. Users shake their head no to decline a call, respond to Siri, or dismiss a notification. Users can also nod their head yes to accept a call or respond to Siri.

Pairing, Switching, and Sharing

Like other AirPods, AirPods Max connect automatically to other Apple devices with one-tap setup and pairing capabilities. Connecting AirPods Max to an iPhone or iPad, for example, is as simple as holding the headphones near the device and then tapping the Connect button.

There are also quick device swapping capabilities that let users quickly and easily switch to the AirPods Max on any device they're signed into with their Apple ID.

Automatic device switching lets the AirPods Max automatically switch between iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch as the devices are used, with no need to access Bluetooth controls to swap devices.

Audio on iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV can be shared with two sets of AirPods, and this feature also applies to the AirPods Max.

Sensors in the AirPods Max allow them to determine when they're on the head, so when the headphones are removed, audio pauses, and when placed back on the head, audio resumes. Pausing the music can also be done by lifting up an ear cup.

Each ear cup includes an optical sensor, position sensor, case detection sensor, and an accelerometer. There's also a gyroscope in the left ear cup.

The AirPods Max 2 battery lasts for up to 20 hours of listening to music, watching movies, or talking on the phone with both Active Noise Cancellation and spatial audio enabled. Apple's testing was conducted with the volume at 50 percent.

The headphones charge with a USB-C cable. A five-minute charge provides 1.5 hours of listening time. It takes approximately two hours for the AirPods Max to charge to full. The headphones have no power button, with Apple instead relying on different power modes to preserve battery life.

When AirPods Max are removed but not placed into a Smart Case, they go into a "low power mode" after five minutes. When untouched, they remain in this state for 72 hours. After the 72-hour period, the headphones enter into an "ultra" low power mode that disables Bluetooth and Find My location to further retain charge.

When the AirPods Max are put into the Smart Case when not in use, they go into low power mode immediately to preserve battery. After 18 hours in the Smart Case, the AirPods Max go into the ultra low power mode that turns off Bluetooth and Find My Location. This means that the AirPods Max go into the same "low power mode" in and out of the case, and the case is not strictly necessary for power saving for those who prefer not to use it.

AirPods Max can be tracked in the Find My app and can be located using Apple's Find My Network.

This integration lets the AirPods Max be located even when they're out of Bluetooth range by pinging the Apple devices of people located near them, so you can locate a lost set of AirPods much further away.

Apple occasionally provides new firmware updates for the AirPods Max to address bugs and improve performance.

New firmware can be installed by connecting the AirPods Max to the iPhone, plugging them in to charge, and then waiting for at least a half an hour.

• March 16 - Overhauled for AirPods Max 2.