The Shokz OpenSwim Pro is the best headphone for swimming: it is rated IP68 and submersible to 2 m, and it holds 32 GB of music on board so it does not rely on Bluetooth, which does not travel through water. It runs about 6 hours in MP3 mode and 9 hours over Bluetooth on land. A sweat rating such as IPX4 or IP55 is not a swimming rating and will not survive a pool.
The physics
Bluetooth does not work underwater
This is the single fact that shapes the whole category, and it is why swimming headphones look so unlike everything else on this site. Bluetooth is a 2.4 GHz radio signal, and water absorbs 2.4 GHz almost immediately. A few centimeters is enough.
So a swimming headphone cannot stream. It has to carry the music, which means on-board storage, which means you load files before you go, the way people did in 2004. Any product that promises underwater Bluetooth streaming from a phone on the pool deck is promising something the physics does not allow.
The reason your swimming headphones have a file manager is not laziness. It is that radio waves stop at the surface.
The ratings
IPX4 is not a swimming rating, and the difference is total
| Rating | What it covers | Swim safe? |
|---|---|---|
| IPX4 | Splashing water from any direction. Sweat, rain | No |
| IP55 / IPX5 | Low-pressure water jets. A hose, heavy rain | No |
| IPX7 | Immersion to 1 m for up to 30 minutes | Brief immersion only |
| IP68 / IPX8 | Continuous submersion, to the depth the maker states | Yes |
The OpenSwim Pro states IP68 and 2 m of fresh water specifically. Fresh water is also part of the specification: chlorine and salt are harder on seals than tap water, so rinse after every session regardless of the number.
Availability
An honest note about this category
We check that every product we recommend is actually on sale before we publish. At the time of writing, several of the obvious alternatives here — the original Shokz OpenSwim and the H2O Audio TRI 2 and TRI 2 PRO — were showing as sold out on the manufacturers’ own stores.
Rather than pad this page out with products you cannot buy, we have left it short. That is a smaller category than most roundups on this site, and it reflects what is genuinely available rather than what would make a longer article.
Practical
Three things that decide whether you keep using them
Get them under the cap
A swim cap over the band is what keeps a bone-conduction headphone in place through a tumble turn. Without one, the band will move, and a moving band on a cheekbone is a quiet band.
Load the files before you leave
This is the step people skip and then blame the product for. Treat it like charging: something that happens the night before, not at the pool.
Rinse and dry properly
Chlorine is the enemy of every seal and every contact. Fresh water after every session, dry before charging. The same discipline applies to sweat on running headphones — see the running roundup.
In short
Key takeaways
- Shokz OpenSwim Pro is the pick: IP68, submersible to 2 m, 32 GB on-board storage, about 6 hours in MP3 mode.
- Bluetooth does not work underwater — water absorbs 2.4 GHz within centimeters. On-board storage is not optional.
- IPX4 and IP55 are sweat ratings, not swim ratings. Only IP68 or IPX8 covers real submersion.
- The Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 looks similar and is IP55. It is a poolside product, not a pool product.
- Several obvious alternatives were sold out at the manufacturers' own stores when this was written, so this page is deliberately short.
At a glance
Quick picks
Scores are our editorial judgment from published specifications and cited third-party measurements, not our own testing. The rubric is published in full. Tap any row for the full write-up.
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Shokz OpenSwim ProThe rare headphone that actually works underwater, because it stores the music on board rather than relying on Bluetooth, which does not travel through water. | Best for swimming | 8.68.6 out of 10, our editorial score | |
| 2 |  Shokz OpenRun Pro 2An open-ear headphone that leaves your ear canal empty, so you hear the traffic behind you as well as the playlist. The point of it is the opposite of noise canceling. | For the poolside, NOT for the water | 8.58.5 out of 10, our editorial score |
#ad Amazon links are affiliate links. No live price is shown anywhere on this site, so every button reads “Check price on Amazon”. How this is funded.
The picks in full
Every pick, in detail
1. Best for swimming
Shokz OpenSwim Pro
The rare headphone that actually works underwater, because it stores the music on board rather than relying on Bluetooth, which does not travel through water.
Our editorial score: 8.6 / 10
#ad Live price not shown. How this is funded
Also sold direct by Shokz — we earn nothing there, so check both.
This is the one on this page that genuinely swims. Shokz rates it IP68 and submersible to 2 m of fresh water, and it carries 32 GB of on-board storage so it does not need a radio link at all once you are under.
That storage is the part that matters. Bluetooth is a radio signal and water absorbs it within a few centimeters, so any swimming headphone that relies on streaming from a phone at the end of the lane is going to cut out the moment your head goes down. A file on the device does not.
It weighs 27.3 g, runs 6 hours in MP3 mode and 9 on Bluetooth, charges in 1.5 hours and reads MP3, FLAC, WAV, AAC, M4A, APE and WMA. It switches to Bluetooth 5.4 on dry land, so it is not a single-purpose purchase.
The catches are real: loading files is a step you have to actually do, the charging cable is a proprietary 4-pin magnetic one, and bone conduction underwater is clear rather than rich.
What works on a plane
- IP68 to 2 m is a real submersion rating, not splash resistance with optimistic marketing
- 32 GB of on-board storage is the only thing that works underwater, and it is generous
- Switches to Bluetooth on land, so it is not a single-purpose purchase
- 27.3 g under a swim cap is light enough to forget about
What does not
- Bluetooth does not work submerged, so lap swimming means loading files first
- A proprietary 4-pin magnetic charging cable is one more thing to lose
- Bone conduction in water is clear but never rich — expect intelligibility, not depth
How it scores against the five travel axes
Published specifications
| Spec | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 27.3 g | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| Water resistance | IP68, submersible to 2 m of fresh water | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| Battery, Bluetooth | 9 hours | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| Battery, MP3 mode | 6 hours | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| On-board storage | 32 GB | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| File formats | MP3, FLAC, WAV, AAC, M4A, APE, WMA | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| Bluetooth | 5.4 | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
| Full charge | 1.5 hours, 4-pin magnetic cable | Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifications |
2. For the poolside, NOT for the water
Shokz OpenRun Pro 2
An open-ear headphone that leaves your ear canal empty, so you hear the traffic behind you as well as the playlist. The point of it is the opposite of noise canceling.
Our editorial score: 8.5 / 10
#ad Live price not shown. How this is funded
Also sold direct by Shokz — we earn nothing there, so check both.
It is on this page as a warning as much as a recommendation. The OpenRun Pro 2 is the same family and looks almost identical, but it is rated IP55 — sweat and splashes — and Shokz says plainly that it is for non-aquatic activity.
If your swimming is the warm-up and the session is really a gym session, this is the better buy: 30.3 g, up to 12 hours, Bluetooth 5.3 and multipoint. Take it in the pool and you will destroy it, and the warranty will agree with us.
What works on a plane
- Your ear canal stays open, so road and trail awareness is not a compromise
- 30.3 g on a titanium band means it stops registering as something you are wearing
- IP55 shrugs off sweat, which is the failure mode that kills running earbuds
- 12 rated hours covers a marathon block without a mid-week charge
What does not
- Bone conduction gives up bass depth against a sealed earbud, and no firmware fixes physics
- IP55 is splash resistance, not submersion — this is not a swimming headphone
- Open by design, so it is the wrong tool on a plane or in an open-plan office
How it scores against the five travel axes
Published specifications
| Spec | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 30.3 g | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Battery | Up to 12 hours | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Quick charge | 5 minutes for 2.5 hours | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Full charge | 1 hour | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Bluetooth | 5.3 | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Water resistance | IP55 (sweat and splashes, not swimming) | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Drivers | Bone conduction plus an 18 x 11 mm air-conduction low-frequency unit | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
| Multipoint | Yes | Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 specifications |
How we decide
How these picks were chosen
We do not run a test lab and we do not claim to have flown with these units. Every verdict on this page is one of three things: a measurement published by somebody who does own a test rig and is credited by name, a manufacturer specification we quote and then interpret against what a long flight actually demands, or a plainly-labeled editorial judgment. The five axes we score on — cabin-noise reduction, battery on a long-haul, pack size, comfort past hour three, and wired fallback — are the ones that decide a travel purchase, and the weighting is published in full.
Questions
Common questions
Can you use AirPods or normal earbuds for swimming?
No. Standard earbuds carry sweat ratings such as IPX4, which cover splashes and perspiration and explicitly do not cover submersion. Beyond the water ingress, Bluetooth will not reach them once your head is under, so even a sealed pair would go silent.
Why do swimming headphones need built-in storage?
Because Bluetooth is a 2.4 GHz radio signal and water absorbs it within a few centimeters. Streaming from a phone on the pool deck stops working as soon as you submerge, so the music has to be on the device itself.
What IP rating do I need for swimming?
IP68 or IPX8, which cover continuous submersion to a stated depth. The Shokz OpenSwim Pro specifies IP68 and 2 m of fresh water. IPX7 covers immersion to 1 m for up to 30 minutes, which is a brief-dunk rating rather than a lap-swimming one.
Does chlorine damage waterproof headphones?
It is harder on seals and contacts than fresh water, which is why manufacturers usually specify their depth ratings in fresh water. Rinse under a tap after every session and let them dry before charging, whatever the rating says.
Do bone conduction headphones sound good underwater?
They sound clear and perfectly intelligible, and they do not sound rich. Bone conduction transmits through the cheekbone rather than moving air, so you get the melody and the beat rather than depth. Underwater it is actually one of the better-behaved ways to hear anything at all.
Sources
Where these figures come from
Read next
Related reading
- Best headphones for running
Where a sweat rating is enough, and a submersion rating is not needed.
- Best noise-canceling earbuds for travel
The same hub, for the opposite environment.
- How to clean headphone ear pads
The maintenance habit that decides how long any of this lasts.
- ANC vs passive isolation
Why an open-ear design blocks nothing, by design.
- How we choose
Including why we leave a page short rather than list products you cannot buy.