Table of ContentsTable of ContentsTesting the testIn the labApple made waves when it announced that its AirPods Pro 2, when combined with iOS 18.1, could fulfill the role of OTC hearing aids. Given that OTC hearing aids can often run as much as $1,500, it seemed too good to be true that the same hearing benefits could be had for just $249 or less. Better yet, given the popularity of Apples wireless earbuds, theres an excellent chance that those who could benefit already own them (if you live in a country where Apples hearing aid feature has been approved).So how good are the AirPods Pro 2 as OTC hearing aids?Recommended VideosTo find out, I looked at two key performance criteria: the accuracy of Apples software-driven hearing test, and their ability to provide speech enhancement.RelatedTypically, prescription hearing aids are provided by a licensed audiologist. Before you get them, the audiologist will test your hearing using professionally calibrated instruments in a sound-proof booth. The results, known as an audiogram, are used to customize the hearing aids for you. At-home OTC hearing aids perform a similar test via software, and rely on the user to find a suitably quiet location.Related:How to take the AirPods Pro 2 hearing testMy maternal grandfather struggled with hearing after he turned 60, and my father has moderate hearing loss in one ear. With that kind of family history, I get my hearing professionally checked annually to monitor my own health.Heres how Apples audiogram of my hearing (December 2024) compares to my most recent audiologist exam (October 2024).While the Apple audiogram slightly overestimated my high-frequency loss (possibly because my test environment wasnt quiet enough), it accurately measured my sensitivity across other frequencies, including the slight differences between my left and right ears.I shared the Apple result with my audiologist, and she agreed that it looked fairly accurate, exceeding her expectations for an at-home test.HearAdvisorIn an ideal world, wed evaluate the AirPods Pro 2s speech enhancement using both qualitative results (gathered from peoples real-world assessments) and quantitative results (lab-based testing).Unfortunately, I wasnt able to gather qualitative data, but I did get in touch with HearAdvisor, an independent hearing aid testing company. HearAdvisor has lab-tested a variety of OTC and prescription hearing aid models, including the AirPods Pro 2, and maintains a published list of the best products.For OTC products, the testing methodology evaluates devices based on five major criteria using the initial settings created by the software-based hearing test. When possible, those settings are professionally tuned and the tests are repeated to see if theres a difference in the results.The AirPods Pro 2 received a B grade, placing them in the second tier of HearAdvisors rankings. While that doesnt seem especially noteworthy, the tests revealed a substantial difference between the initial and tuned results. Speech in quiet and speech in noise arguably the most important criteria for any hearing aids both increased by more than double (111% and 225%, respectively) after being tuned.This suggests that while Apples audiogram generation may be accurate, the companys tuning undercuts the potential of the AirPods Pro 2 to deliver the best hearing enhancement.Why would Apple do this, when presumably it has access to the same (or better) assessment technology as HearAdvisor? They may do this because new hearing aid users often prefer less-than-prescribed gain (probably to preserve naturalness, at the cost of intelligibility), HearAdvisor scientific adviser Andrew Sabin told me.Curiously, the current king of the OTC hearing aid hill according to HearAdvisors tests is Sonys CRE-E10, with an A grade, and a perfect 5/5 overall score for both their initial and tuned results. Still, the CRE-E10 sell for between $898 and $1,199 (260%-480% more than the AirPods Pro 2) and yet they dont deliver similarly large increases in performance.The CRE-E10 proved 18.4% better than the AirPods Pro 2 in speech in quiet, and 73% better in speech in noise. Arguably, this makes the AirPods Pro 2 an excellent value, and a great way to experiment with hearing enhancement if youre on the fence. Even if you end up turning the feature off, youre still getting a very good set of wireless noise-canceling earbuds for music and phone calls.Editors Recommendations