The 10 Best Headphone Splitters

Editor's Notes

January 19, 2021:

One of our main goals during this update was to introduce a little more variety to our recommendations. With that in mind, we eliminated the NuclearAV Atom 5Star and AmazonBasics 5-Jack, because we already have two very similar models, the Onxe Black 5-Way and Belkin Rockstar 5-Jack, and we didn't see the need to keep all of them. Taking their places are the Cubilux USB-C Two-Way and UWeCan 3 in 1. Both of these are ideal for phones and other gadgets that don't have a headphones jack. The former, as the name suggests, plugs into a USB-C port, and the latter into a lightening jack. The latter also boasts a charging slot, which can come in handy on long flights when you don't want to interrupt your movie viewing. Another new addition is the UGreen 70102, which we like for its premium components and step-down plug that can be used with thick cases.

November 02, 2019:

Unlike with other product categories, I see no point to differentiating or meriting certain models in this market based on price alone, since most headphone splitters here (and indeed on the wider market) are sold at a similar price point.

However, you will get a surprisingly good mix of products with regards to quality, with many of the best products completely outperforming average products on performance and durability measures. Indeed, many of the best headphone splitters don’t seem to have built-in obsolescence, so you’ll get more than your money’s worth with some of these products and they may last for years to come if handled with care.

With splitters, you have cable-based models, where the ports are essentially at the ends of cables, (which are especially common for 2-way splitters), and if your intention is to share with only one other person, I would highly recommend the DuKabel 2-Way, as you’ll get a long cable plus the added extension of the split-cable. Conversely, multi-jack models tend to look more aesthetically appealing and you’ve got some great options if you intend to share audio with more than one person, or if you want to mix audio sources.

Do note that there is inevitably a drop-off with volume as more people share the volume source, since the same voltage is now being split multiple times. This is less noticeable with some models and more noticeable with others – just don’t be disappointed if this occurs, since there is no external ‘amplifying’ voltage being fed into the splitter. Both the Honesun 5-Way with UV Coating and Onxe Black 5-Way are models that tend to deal with voltage drops quite well, where the issue is definitely less noticeable. To compound this issue, additional volume loss can occur as a result of low-quality headphones, so its wise to ensure that you have an optimal set of headphones, especially when using a splitter.

Also, just to clarify that multi-port models (>2 ports embedded in the body of the device) allow for ports to function as both inputs and outputs. Output devices are earphones (that 'output' sound or audio), and input devices are audio inputs, like PC's, televisions, MP3 players and iPod's, and any other devices with an auxiliary (3.5 mm) port. This feature allows multi-port models the ability to mix sounds from various devices, however some devices may not allow for this function, as one user observed that his television audio output always switched off when he connected his laptop to the splitter.