5 Best Gaming Headsets Under $100

Specs:

• Type: Over-ear closed-back
• Connectivity: 2.4Ghz Dongle/ Wired 3.5mm
• Transducer: 40mm Dynamic
• Mic: Detachable Noise-Cancelling Boom Mic

This SteelSeries headset is our overall best since it can accommodate most gaming setups and situations without much compromise.

First, it sounds great; it has accurate audio reproduction plus it has a decent soundstage and imaging, and it has minimal latency both on wired and wireless mode since it uses a 2.4Ghz USB-C dongle (it’s compatible with PCs, Laptops, consoles, tablets, and phones with USB-C). That’s a point for competitive gaming and compatibility!

Second, you can use it in most situations. It’s already a given fact that this will perform perfectly on consoles and PC, but about for portable and mobile gaming? Well, if your phone can support this, you can technically bring it anywhere! While it can’t fold in itself, the earcups do swivel flat so you can slide this into your bag, and the mic (which sounds great by the way) is detachable.

Lastly, it’s just easy to use, both wired and wireless modes are literally plug and play, plus the mic mute switch and volume slider are built into the earcups.

Specs:

• Type: Over-ear closed-back
• Connectivity: Wired 3.5mm (Detachable)/ USB-A DAC
• Transducer: 40mm Dynamic
• Mic: Detachable Boom Mic

Some people just don’t want to move on to wireless headsets, and I understand, wired headsets are straightforward to use, you get terrific audio and mic quality, and you don’t have to worry about batteries degrading over time (and it’ll inevitably render your headset useless someday). If you’re one of them, have a Logitech G433!

Aside from being labeled as the best-wired gaming headset on this list, this is also the most comfortable pair that I can find for under $100. It has a lightweight design, and most of the comfort comes from all the padding in the earcups and headband since the padding is quite soft, smooth, and breathable. All paddings are also hydrophobic so it can repel a liquid we call “gamer sweat.”

This headset has great sound but it’s a bit focused on the mids, and bass is also good but the padding on the earcups just doesn’t produce a tight enough seal to prevent bass leakage. You can change the earpads out but you’d trade the comfort with it. On the other hand, I have no complaints with the detachable mic!

Lastly, I love the swag that comes within the box, it has a carrying pouch, USB DAC adapter, extra pads, Y splitter adapter, 3.5mm cable with remote (to be used with the detachable mic, and lastly it also includes a 3.5mm cable with a built-in mic if you want it to be a bit more portable. So, with all this swag, you’re pretty much covered no matter what gaming device you pick to play this with.

Specs:

• Type: Over-ear closed-back
• Connectivity: Wired 3.5mm (non-detachable)
• Transducer: 50mm Dynamic
• Mic: Swivel to Mute Noise-Cancelling

Let’s say that you clicked on this list of best headsets at a $100 budget despite having less budget than that? Well, I still got you covered! The HyperX Cloud Stinger is a sub $50 headset that performs as well as $100 headphones!

It has a decently balanced sound profile although both bass and treble can get inconsistent at times. It also has excellent sound imaging, and the soundstage is surprisingly good for closed-back headphones, and it’s probably caused by the bulky earcup design.

Going further into the design, it’s bulky and it’s a bit flashy (as you might expect for a gaming headset), but despite all that, it’s fairly comfortable even during prolonged gaming sessions. Unfortunately, the cable isn’t detachable, so unless you have soldering skills, you might want to take extra care of this headphone.

Lastly, the mic on the HyperX Cloud Stinger is just superb. It’s not detachable though, and it does have a swivel to mute and noise-canceling features to make up for it.

Overall, this pair of affordable cans is as simple as it gets but that doesn’t mean it’s not of good quality, it performs great for its price and if it’s all about sound and mic quality, it’ll smash some of the headsets at a full $100 price point.

Specs:

• Type: Over-ear open-back
• Connectivity: Wired (detachable)
• Transducer: 50mm Dynamic Drivers
• Mic: Detachable Boom Mic

Open-back headsets aren’t usually the preferred choice for gaming, they leak out a lot of sounds, and they don’t have enough bass most of the time. But there’s one important feature that an open-back headset has that we gamers want, and that’s the amazing soundstage.

The Philips SHP9600MB is a headset that brings excellent soundstage and imaging. It’s the successor to the famous Philips SHP9500, but it has a newer and more modern look to it, and it’s tuned for more bass, remember when I said that most open-back headphones lack bass? Well, not this pair! It’s even audiophile-grade for how great it sounds.

This model of headphones typically doesn’t include a mic, so it’s technically not a headset, but fortunately, they have an option to include a detachable wire with a built-in boom mic. It’s a clever and inexpensive way to bring a mic to an audiophile-grade headphone.

Lastly, this headset is also one of the most comfortable out there, it’s light and well padded, but since it’s an open-back headphone, it doesn’t muffle your ears which might be uncomfortable for some people (myself included). It’s also breathable thanks to the ear pads and the open-back design as well.

But it’s important to know that this is a sitting-down headphone; it’s not portable at all, and it’s meant to be used at your desk, and with a long cable included, I don’t see how this would be comfortable to use with console and mobile. Still, if you want the best soundstage out of your gaming session, the Philips SHP9600MB is for you!

Specs:

• Type: Over-ear closed-back
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0
• Transducer: 40mm Dynamic Drivers
• Mic: Pin-hole mic

Our last headset is the Razer Opus X, it isn’t the best gaming headset by any means, it has unacceptable levels of lag if you’re going to use it to compete, and it has poor and muffled mic quality compared to most mics in this list.

However, this shines in casual, mobile, and portable gaming, it has a portable design and it doesn’t have the hassle of a boom mic, so you can just toss this one in your bag and you’re good to go, and with its design, I bet you’d be proud to wear it.

It’s not all about looks though, this Razer headset has a neutral sound profile with a slight bass boost, which makes this surprisingly good for music. It’s also comfortable as well, it has good head clamping pressure, although it can be a bit hot to wear. Oh, it also has ANC as well!

Again, I don’t recommend this for competitive gaming. It’s great for mobile or casual RPG games, as for consoles it’s perfect for Nintendo Switch!