Jabra Elite 5 review: An impressive pair of earbuds
The Jabra Elite 5 are Jabra's new true wireless earbuds. Active noise cancelling, HearThrough mode, multipoint and a good microphone. What more could you want? But what about the sound? How well does the ANC really work? And has Jabra finally nailed the fit again? We'll test all of that in this review.
In this article
Pros and cons
Here are the pros and cons of the Jabra Elite 5. See at a glance whether these earbuds are right for you.
| Pros | Cons |
| ✔️Outstanding sound ✔️Very good microphone ✔️Multipoint ✔️Good fit |
❌Fit better with foam ear tips for the Jabra Elite 5. |
Jabra Elite 5 specifications
- Price: ~150
- Chipset: Qualcomm QCC3050
- Codec: AptX
- Bluetooth: 5.2
- Range: 10m
- Case battery: unknown
- Earbud battery: unknown
- Cable: usb c
- Number of microphones: 3 per earbud
- Waterproof: unknown
Jabra Elite 5 sound quality
The Jabra Elite 5 sound very good. That might even be an understatement. Jabra delivers genuinely high-quality sound time and time again. Sound for discerning listeners. And with a long break-in period, it only gets better over time (more on that a little further down).
The bass comes through just as you'd like: present, but not overpowering. The highs (percussion, hi-hats and so on) come through nicely too.
The Jabra Elite 5's midrange is a little less powerful, especially compared with the Jabra Elite 85t. But those earbuds sacrificed some comfort.
Jabra earbuds also always need a fairly long break-in period. That means the sound only really starts to come through clearly and become balanced after about 20 hours of playtime. That may sound unlikely. But really, it's true. I've personally tested all the Jabra earbuds at Eardopes (the 75t, the 85t, the Elite 7 pro and the Elite 4). I've spent many hours wearing almost all of them, except the last pair. And all of them sounded better after a week than they did on the first listen.
Anyway, back to the Jabra Elite 5's sound. How is it? Very good, though the mids could be a little better.
Luckily, there's the Jabra app. It lets you adjust the equalizer however you like. Lovely! Samsung, with its Buds Pro and Wear app, could learn a thing or two from that. Here's how we set the equalizer for the Jabra Elite 5:
Now let's hope you don't look at the time on this screenshot. Oh well, I write these reviews best when everyone else is asleep.
For us, the Jabra Elite 5 strike a great balance between comfort and beautiful sound.
The ear tips you use on these earbuds are crucial, though. Those are the little silicone attachments. My ears are usually pretty average when it comes to fit. I always use medium ear tips, but in this case I use large ones. I mention it because ear tips that are too small always cost you bass. And you don't want that.
Sound quality score: 8
A good score for sound, then. But the microphone matters too, of course. So we tested that thoroughly as well.
Microphone: are the Jabra Elite 5 good for calls?
Jabra earbuds usually have a solid microphone. But how do the Jabra Elite 5 stack up?
A recording says more than a thousand words. So we've recorded a sample for you:
My voice is very clear in this recording. Better than average. Earbud microphones almost always lose the very low frequencies, and these are no exception. That makes sense: these are tiny earbuds that also have to transmit the signal to your device over Bluetooth.
How do the Jabra earbuds handle wind?
Wind is a microphone's worst enemy. That's why camera crews always have a big furry windscreen over their microphone. It's all about keeping wind noise out. Earbuds always struggle with wind.
So it's worth testing whether you can still hear me when I'm sitting 1 meter in front of a fan on its highest setting.
Listen to the Jabra Elite 5 recording with lots of wind here:
As you can hear, my voice is still very clear. I was really surprised when I heard the recording. There's very little wind noise, much less than with other earbuds.
Microphone score: 8
All in all, the microphone scores an 8. Plenty of eights for the Jabra Elite 5.
By the way, do you appreciate us thoroughly testing earbuds we don't sell ourselves? And going a step further by recording a sample in windy conditions, for example? Then buy the earbuds through our links. The retailer (Bol or Coolblue) gives us a small percentage of the purchase price. It's only small change, but it lets us keep testing and reviewing the latest earbuds in depth, just as we've done here with the Jabra Elite 5.
Fit: how do the Jabra Elite 5 feel?
The Jabra Elite 5 have an excellent fit. They don't stick out far from your ears, and they feel really comfortable. Jabra has gone back to its roots here. They take up little space and are nice and light.
With the right ear tips, the Jabra Elite 5 won't fall out of your ears. For us, foam ear tips turned out to be the best solution. They're not included, though.
You can see how naturally the earbuds sit in your ears. We're really pleased that Jabra has scaled back the size in this design. The earbuds are smaller, and it pays off.
The Jabra Elite 5 are lightweight. We measured 5 grams. And Eardopes wouldn't be Eardopes if we didn't show you the proof:
Keep in mind that the ear tips run small. If you normally use the medium ear tips supplied with earbuds, you'll probably need the large ones here. That does mean you'll need to buy other ear tips if you have larger ears. In that case, make sure you buy a set that fits the earbuds.
The included ear tips are cleverly packaged, too. It makes them easy to store in a drawer. And the packaging tab closes neatly again after opening. Someone has thought that through as well. Take a look:
The Jabra 75t were among the most comfortable earbuds. They took up little space and weren't too heavy. These earbuds are even a little lighter, though, and about the same size as the Jabra 75t in your ears. That's a nice improvement.
Fit score: 8
The right size ear tips also make the ANC work much better. If your ear tips are too small, outside noise gets in far too easily through the gaps between your ears and the ear tips. You need a seal with no gaps.
ANC: how good is the noise canceling?
The Jabra Elite 5's ANC is very good. Better than the Jabra Elite 4, for example. As we mentioned, the right size ear tips are essential for noise canceling. Without a complete seal, the ANC won't work properly. Better to have an ear tip that's too large than too small.
You can adjust the ANC to your liking in the Jabra app, from stronger to weaker. Turning ANC on does shorten battery life. Noise canceling puts the chipset to work at full capacity.
We can give a clear verdict on the Jabra Elite 5's noise canceling: it's extremely good. Press the left button and the background noise disappears.
Fit score: 8
Compared with other brands such as Samsung, the Jabra Elite 5 are a step ahead of the Samsung Buds Pro.
Earbud controls
As always with Jabra, you get physical buttons. And I'm a big fan of that. Buttons and touch controls can both work well. It really depends on how they're implemented. A button shouldn't be too stiff, because pressing it pushes the earbud into your ear. And that doesn't feel good.
These buttons take just the right amount of pressure, though. It's also good that Jabra made the button cover the earbud's entire flat surface.
Controls: 8
How do the Jabra Elite 4 touch controls work?
| Left | Right | |
| 1x |
Music: ANC/HearThrough/off Calls: mute/unmute |
Music: pause/play Calls: mute/unmute |
| 2x | Music: previous track Calls: answer/hang up |
Music: next track Calls: answer/hang up |
|
hold |
Volume down | Volume up |
The nice thing is that the Jabra app makes it easy to choose which actions you assign to specific buttons.
Can you connect the Jabra Elite 5 to a laptop?
You can connect the Jabra Elite 5 to your laptop. With Jabra earbuds, though, you often need to put them into pairing mode first. Hold down both buttons to do that. You'll hear: "To connect, go to the Bluetooth settings and select the Jabra product from the list." Here's how to connect them to a Windows computer or laptop:
- Click the notification icon in the bottom-right corner
- Right-click Bluetooth
- Go to settings
- Choose 'new Bluetooth device'
- Open the case and put the Jabra 5 in your ears
- You should now see Jabra Elite 5 (if not, hold down both buttons until you hear the instructions)
- Click 'Jabra Elite 5' and choose 'connect'
The Jabra Elite 5 also work well for calls and online meetings through Teams or Zoom.
Multipoint: connect your laptop and phone at once
The Jabra Elite 5 let you connect multiple devices at once. That means you can connect the earbuds to your laptop and your phone at the same time.
Say you're listening to music through your earbuds on your laptop because you have an online meeting coming up. Your girlfriend calls your phone before the meeting. You don't need to take your earbuds out. Even while you're listening to music from your laptop, you'll get an alert that someone is calling your phone, which is also connected to the earbuds. Answer the call (press twice) and the earbuds automatically switch to your phone so you can talk. Once the call ends, you'll hear your laptop's music again.
Multipoint is a handy feature that lets you connect multiple devices to your earbuds in a smart way.
Battery: how long can you use the earbuds?
The earbuds themselves last 7 hours with ANC on. With the charging case, you get 28 hours in total. That's good battery performance.
Battery life has never really been Jabra's standout feature. But it certainly doesn't disappoint either. A total of 27 hours of use with ANC on is a solid result.
Battery score: 7
And the earbuds can last 7 hours without recharging in the case. That's good too.
Conclusion: are the Jabra Elite 5 good?
| Score | |
| Sound | 8 |
| Microphone | 8 |
| Fit | 8 |
| Battery | 7 |
| Controls | 8 |
| ANC | 8 |
Alternatives
Jabra Elite 5 vs. Jabra 85t vs. Jabra 75t vs. Jabra Elite 9 pro
Like the 75t, the Jabra Elite 5 sit just below Jabra's flagship models, the 85t and Elite 9 pro. But for me, the Elite 5 reviewed here offer the best balance.
Here's a chart comparing the 4 pairs of earbuds:
Are sound and microphone quality your top priorities? Go for the Jabra 85t. Just be prepared for a less comfortable fit. All that technology needs space inside the earbuds, which makes them bigger and bulkier.
Also check out our Jabra Elite 85t review.
Want good sound, a good microphone and a good fit? Go for the Elite 5 in this review. They've now truly dethroned the Jabra 75t.
In short, the Jabra Elite 5 are an excellent choice.
Thank you!
Thanks for reading this Eardopes review of the Jabra Elite 5. We hope it gave you the information you needed.
Others also viewed:
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- These are the best noise-canceling earbuds
- These are the best earbuds under €50
- These are the earbuds with the best microphone
- Also check out our article on alternatives to AirPods
- Also check out the best earbuds for running or the gym
- Also check out our hands-on with the Eardopes B6 pro.
