Powerbeats Pro 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro: A killer upgrade for runners and gym nuts alike

After nearly six long years, Apple finally gave the Powerbeats Pro the refresh it deserves. Beats revealed the Powerbeats Pro 2 on February 11, 2025, following months of teasers featuring high-profile athletes and celebrities.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 gain many of the AirPods Pro 2's best features — including the H2 chip, ANC and transparency modes, Spatial Audio, and the ear tip fit test — plus an optical heart rate sensor for workouts and a more compact design. They also retain the original Powerbeats Pro's iconic ear hook for stability and its $250 retail price.

For people still rocking the original Powerbeats Pro years later, is it time to finally upgrade to the Powerbeats Pro 2? Or, is there any reason to get the Powerbeats Pro in 2025? After spending over five years running with the Powerbeats Pro, and testing the new Powerbeats Pro 2 side-by-side with their predecessor for the past week, I'm ready to answer both questions.

Powerbeats Pro 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro: Design and comfort

Looking at the new Powerbeats Pro 2 beside the original Powerbeats Pro, it's clear they're both similar and a lot different. Beats kept the general idea of Powerbeats intact, with a housing shaped like a bar and an ear hook for stability. However, it's not the same hook as the Powerbeats Pro. Instead of the adjustable ear hook on the first-generation earbuds, which could be molded and retained shape, the Powerbeats Pro 2 have a flexible ear hook. It's half the size and will still keep your headphones from falling out.

Smaller is a theme for the Powerbeats Pro 2. The earbuds are smaller overall despite housing more technology inside. Is this a good thing? That depends. After a lot of testing, through walks, runs, and daily use, I can definitively say that I find the original Powerbeats Pro more secure and comfortable. The bigger size actually fills up my ear better, adding to the stable feel.

That isn't to say that Powerbeats Pro 2 aren't comfortable. They come with five ear tip sizes, from XS to XL, and support the ear tip fit test. This is a software tool that will let you know if you're using the right ear tip size in the Beats app for Android or the settings app for iOS. Paired with the ear hook, there was never a time I was worried about the Powerbeats Pro 2 falling out.

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Comfort is subjective, but I'd estimate the Powerbeats Pro feel about 10% more comfortable than the Powerbeats Pro 2. It's not a dealbreaker, but something to consider.

To get the best experience, you also have to wear Powerbeats Pro 2 correctly. With the new design, the bar needs to be pointing sharply upward, with the ear hook following the natural shape of your ear lobe. This is a departure from how the original Powerbeats Pro fit; they sat closer to the horizontal plane in your ear. If you don't wear Powerbeats Pro 2 correctly, the heart rate sensor won't be able to get accurate readings.

Another great thing about the Powerbeats Pro 2 is that it's still equipped with tactile, physical buttons. Each earbuds has a volume rocker at the top and play/pause button on the Beats logo. Again, the play/pause button feels slightly better on the originals — it's bigger and more pronounced — but the difference isn't that big of a deal.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 charging case is a massive upgrade. It now supports USB-C wired charging and Qi wireless charging. Beyond that, it's smaller, and it's finally pocketable — though you will be left with a bulge and it's still not perfect. In the photo above, you'll see the difference between the Powerbeats Pro, Powerbeats Pro 2, and AirPods Pro 2 charging case.

The new shape of the earbuds makes putting them into the charging case right a bit trickier. However, in my experience, they snap into place perfectly once you find the right spot. This is a big deal, because the original Powerbeats Pro had finicky and sensitive charging contacts, and were notorious for not charging properly.

Powerbeats Pro 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro: Hardware and sound quality

The Powerbeats Pro 2 refresh is important because, unlike the AirPods Pro/AirPods Pro 2 refresh, the Powerbeats have design and hardware improvements. In fact, just like the Powerbeats Pro and AirPods Pro before it, the Powerbeats Pro 2 are very similar to the AirPods Pro 2 in terms of hardware. Both have an H2 chip for fast-pairing and low-latency connection for Apple products — including ultra-low-latency for Apple Vision Pro. Powerbeats Pro 2 also support one-touch pairing on Android, which the AirPods Pro 2 don't support.

Powerbeats Pro 2 add support for the ear tip fit test, Spatial Audio, active noise-canceling (ANC), transparency mode, and voice isolation — all of which the original Powerbeats Pro does not support. Voice isolation will help clean up input from the Powerbeats Pro 2's six microphones (compared to the Powerbeats Pro's two), but is only available on iOS. As such, Android users will get a bit worse microphone quality than Apple users.

In terms of audio hardware, the Powerbeats Pro 2 are now equipped with a venting channel to avoid pressure, a high-output amplifier, and axial-aligned transducers. The latter simply means that the transducers are parallel to the acoustic nozzle, which means the sound will go straight into your ear without changing direction. In simple terms, the Powerbeats Pro 2 should sound better than the originals.

In the real world, though, the difference wasn't nearly as noticeable as it might sound. Both the Powerbeats Pro 2 and original Powerbeats Pro could handle music of all genres, with a slight preference to low-frequency sounds. Yes, that means Powerbeats Pro 2 sound excellent while listening to hip-hop/rap/R&B tracks from artists like the Wu-Tang Clan and SZA, but it also means they'll excel at jazz pieces from groups like Booker T. & the M.G.'s.

You won't want to upgrade from the Powerbeats Pro to the Powerbeats Pro 2 for sound quality alone. The huge differential just isn't there. However, you may want to upgrade for Spatial Audio, ANC, and transparency modes. ANC modes on the Powerbeats Pro feel equivalent to AirPods Pro 2 in terms of their capabilities, which is a huge compliment. I can block out just about any sound I need to, and let it in when necessary.

Transparency mode will be a game-changer for runners and cyclists. As a long-distance runner who likes to work out outdoors, I rarely wear both Powerbeats Pro earbuds. It just isn't safe. I need to hear cars, bikes, and generally be aware of my surroundings. With Powerbeats Pro 2, I can do that while wearing both earbuds.

Of course, we can't forget the optical heart rate sensor inside the Powerbeats Pro 2, which are the earbuds' headlining feature. It's essentially a miniature version of the optical sensor inside the Apple Watch, and compiles readings from each earbud to create a measurement. It records a reading every five seconds, and is comparable to high-end fitness watches like the Garmin Enduro 3 in my testing.

Heart rate monitoring (HRM) is arguably better on Android than iOS, because it's easier to manually control via the Beats app. It works with almost any device that supports Bluetooth heart rate monitors, including smartwatches. Is it a must-have feature?

Maybe, maybe not. I won't replace a dedicated fitness watch for Powerbeats Pro 2 anytime soon, but I could see why someone might. For example, certain activities — like weightlifting, core workouts, and yoga — can be difficult with a wearable on the wrist.

Powerbeats Pro 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro: Battery life

Apple improved the battery life of the Powerbeats Pro 2, which helps offset any hit that HRM or ANC would've had. The original Powerbeats Pro could get 9 hours of playback on a single charge, plus an additional 15 hours via the charging case. Meanwhile, the Powerbeats Pro 2 can get up to eight hours of playback on a single charge with an ANC mode active, plus an additional 28 hours via the charging case. With Adaptive EQ enabled, the Powerbeats Pro 2 can reach their maximum battery life of 45 hours including the case.

A quick five-minute charge gives you 1.5 hours of playback on both the Powerbeats Pro 2 and the originals. The Powerbeats Pro 2 charge from 0% to 100% in two hours.

Powerbeats Pro 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro: Should you upgrade?

Powerbeats have existed for 15 years now, and went through multiple iterations since they debuted in 2010. Powerbeats Pro 2 are very good workout headphones, but they are a slight departure from the familiar and consistent Powerbeats design and fit. As a result, I'm still fond of the Powerbeats Pro and would consider still using them for certain where perfect fit and stability is absolutely necessary.

Overall, the Powerbeats Pro 2 show why change is also necessary. The Powerbeats Pro had glaring flaws, from the charging case to the lack of ANC and transparency mode, and the Powerbeats Pro 2 seemingly fixed them all. It's hard to be disappointed when Powerbeats Pro fans got exactly what they wanted. And even if the Powerbeats Pro 2 are slightly less comfortable than their predecessor, they're still ahead of the competition by miles.

If you're looking for the best pair of workout earbuds today, it's probably the Powerbeats Pro 2. They sound excellent, are comfortable, support ANC and transparency mode, and work well with iOS and Android. At $250, I'm absolutely willing to recommend these headphones — especially considering my first-generation pair is still in use after five years.

But let me tell you this: if you can live with Lightning charging and a bulky case, the original Powerbeats Pro are still a sneaky value buy at their new price of just over $100.