The best Bluetooth speakers

The Bose SoundLink Revolve+ looks great, it's easy-to-use, it offers 16 hours of battery, and it sounds good, too.

There are dozens of Bluetooth speakers out there, but the best speaker you can buy for moving around the house is the Bose SoundLink Revolve+. There are a number of things that make this speaker such a nice option for most people, from its great sound to its nice design.

Let's start with the design of the speaker, which is really quite good. It's reminiscent of new smart speakers like the Amazon Echo or Google Home, so it'll look right at home in any tech-savvy person's house. On top of that, it offers extremely easy-to-use controls, with six buttons located on the top of the speaker for things like volume control and Bluetooth control. Bose also added a handle to make it easy to bring the speaker with you from room to room.

We tested it out and we were impressed by the SoundLink Revolve+'s great sound quality and how easy it is to move from room to room. It blended right in with our decor, too.

The speaker even has some smart features, including Wireless Bluetooth pairing with voice prompts, the ability to take calls, and access to Siri or Google Now. If you buy two speakers, you can sync them up together for party mode, too.

The speaker will give you 16 hours of play time, so it should get you through the day very easily — especially if you're good at keeping devices charged up. The 16-hour lifespan makes it good for holiday parties and when you're at the beach. You won't have to worry too much about the speaker getting damaged, either, thanks to its water-resistant design. The speaker can handle splashes and other interactions with water, though we wouldn't recommend actually taking it in the water with you.

So what about audio quality? Generally, it's good enough for most people's needs. As any audiophile will tell you, don't expect any Bluetooth speaker to beat a good wired speaker. Still, it does offer generally louder volume than other wireless speakers and is able to offer deep and clean bass easily without distorting.

Other reviewers largely agree that this is a great speaker, too. CNET and WhatHiFi both gave it 4/5 stars. That's not to say, of course, that it doesn't have its downsides. The main downside is the fact that it's a little pricey, coming in at $300.

Pros: Good sound, nice design, easy to use, long battery life

Cons: Expensive

The UE Boom 3 is well designed and sounds pretty good, but it's also water resistant, making it great for use by the pool or at the beach.

Looking for something that you can take to the beach or use by the pool without fear of it breaking due to water damage? The UE Boom 3 is the way to go. This speaker is well designed and sounds great, but perhaps the best thing about it is that it's water resistant.

The speaker may not sound as robust as the Sonos Move, but it still sounds pretty great, especially considering how small it is. The speaker offers a decent bass response, along with a well-tuned mid range, and a decent amount of clarity in the high frequencies. One of the best things about it is that it can also get super loud, which is great for use outside.

The speaker is also pretty well designed. It's relatively small and portable, and it's available in a range of different colors. On the side, you'll get buttons for controlling volume, while on the top there are controls for things like Bluetooth pairing and power. Safe to say the UE Boom 3 is super easy to use.

The UE Boom 3 is built for use near water. The speaker is not only waterproof, but it's also designed to float, so you won't have to worry about losing it at the bottom of the pool. The Boom 3 is capable of being submerged in up to 1 meter of water for up to 30 minutes, so it shouldn't break due to water damage.

Like anything, the UE Boom 3 isn't perfect. While the audio sounds pretty good, audiophiles may want something with a little more detail in the high end. The battery life is also around the same as the previous generation speaker, though it's not that bad, coming in at 15 hours. Despite those downsides, it has gotten some excellent reviews. TechRadar and Trusted Reviews both scored the speaker 4/5, which is pretty impressive.

Pros: Good sound quality, nice design, water resistance

Cons: High frequencies aren't as detailed as other speakers

The Anker Soundcore Flare Mini may cost less than $50, but it still looks and sounds pretty good.

Looking for an inexpensive speaker that still looks and sounds pretty good? The Anker Soundcore Flare Mini may well be the way to go. This speaker may be priced at less than $50, but it still sounds decent and won't break the bank.

The speaker is designed to look a lot better than other speakers in its price range. It's a cylindrical design with a fabric covering around the side and controls on the top. Those controls include power, volume, and Bluetooth pairing. There are even LED lights on the bottom, and you can control those lights through five different lighting modes.

The design of the speaker plays into how it sounds too. The speaker can deliver 360-degree audio, so no matter where you are around it, it should sound pretty good. It definitely won't sound quite as powerful as some of the more expensive speakers in this price range, but it can still get pretty loud and offers a decent amount of bass.

You'll get 12 hours of battery life out of the speaker, which isn't bad at all, and it's water-resistant with an IPX7 water-resistance rating.

Considering the price range, perhaps the only real downside to the speaker is that it can't really match more expensive offerings in the audio department.

Pros: Well-designed, very inexpensive, water-resistant, good battery life

Cons: Sound quality is only fine

The B&O Beoplay P2 doesn't just sound good and feature a slick design, it's ultra-portable, too.

The Bose and UE speakers are really nice, but they probably won't fit into your bag all that easily. Thankfully, there are plenty of speakers out there that will, like the B&O Beoplay P2.

Now, generally speaking, smaller Bluetooth speakers can be a little hit and miss, but the BeoPlay P2 is a hit. That's largely thanks to its sleek and stylish design, coupled with hidden and intuitive controls. For example, you can double tap the speaker grill to play and pause your music, or you can program the speaker through the accompanying app to activate your digital assistant of choice, whether it be Google Assistant or Siri. That happens through your phone because the speaker doesn't have those assistants built-in.

So how does the speaker sound? You can't expect studio-quality sound, but it's not bad. The speaker features mono audio and an impressive bass response for a speaker of its size. The high-end isn't as responsive, though it's still not bad.

So what do reviewers think? Well, TechRadar gave the speaker 4.5/5 stars, while PCMag gave it 4/5.

Pros: Great sound, very portable, intuitive touch-controls

Cons: A little pricey for its size, could use more high-end

The Amazon Echo is well-designed, sounds good, and has Amazon's super-smart Alexa digital assistant built right into it.

The original Amazon Echo paved the way for smart speakers, and now on its third generation, the Echo is still the best Bluetooth-enabled smart speaker out there.

The Echo has gone through a few design tweaks since it first came out, and the current iteration looks pretty classy. It's a cylindrical design, with a fabric covering around the sides, a light ring at the top, and controls for those like volume and muting the microphone. It's available in a few different colors too, including Charcoal, Sandstone, Heather Gray, and Twilight Blue.

Of course, perhaps the best thing about the Amazon Echo is the fact that it has Alexa built right into it. In other words, using the speaker, you can control smart home devices, find out information from the web, play music, and more using only your voice. Alexa is already pretty smart, but Amazon routinely makes it smarter too.

The 3rd-generation Echo has achieved some pretty stellar reviews too. PCMag gave it an impressive 4.5/5, while Pocket-Lint went a step further with a rating of a massive 5/5.

Pros: Inexpensive, well-designed, sounds good, Alexa built in

Cons: Still doesn't sound as good as Sonos speakers

The JBL Link 20 sounds good and features a nice design, but perhaps the best thing about it is that it has the Google Assistant built right into to it.

JBL doesn't just make great standard Bluetooth speakers — It's also been working with Google on some excellent Google Assistant-powered speakers. In other words, if you want a decent smart speaker, you're not stuck with Amazon's Alexa.

Unlike the Flip 4, JBL has stuck with a slightly low-key design for the Link 20. The speaker comes in black or white, and it looks great. On the top, you'll find volume controls, playback controls, and a Google Assistant button. Oh, and did we mention that it's water-resistant and features a 6,000mAh battery that should get you through 10 hours of playback?

The Link 20 sounds pretty good, too. The bass, mids, and highs are relatively well-balanced without going overboard with the bass, and the speaker gets plenty loud for most uses.

Most reviewers like the JBL Link 20, too. It scored 9/10 on Tom's Guide, and Trusted Reviews gave it a cool 4/5 stars. We also recommend the smaller Link 10 in our portable speakers guide and the Link series is our top pick for a Google Assistant powered multiroom speaker setup.

Pros: Well-designed, Google Assistant, nice sound, water-resistant

Cons: A bit pricey

The JBL Flip 4 is available in a range of colors and sounds pretty darn good for less than $100.

Looking for an awesome speaker but have a budget cap of around $100? The JBL Flip 4 is the speaker for you. Boasting a great design, nice sound, and waterproofing, the JBL Flip 4 is a great choice for those that want a speaker they can take on the road with them.

Let's start with the design, which is very nicely done. The speaker is available in a range of different colors, including black, red, gray, white, and even camo. On the outside, you'll find volume controls, along with playback controls, and a Bluetooth switch.

The speaker can connect to up to two different devices at a time, so you don't have to go through pairing the speaker again every time you want to switch device.

Of course, the best thing about the speaker is that it sounds great. There's a powerful bass response, and while the upper-mids aren't the most well-tuned around, the high-end brings back some of that clarity that helps make music sound so great.

The JBL Flip 4 has been pretty well-reviewed, too. It received a score of 8/10 on Digital Trends, and it has an average rating of 4.5/5 stars, which is a very good score.

Pros: Portable, lots of colors, inexpensive, easy to use

Cons: High-mids aren't super well-tuned