Tested by 
RW verdict: The Jabra Elite 8 Active earbuds boast unrivalled durability for the toughest of workouts. They offer an impressive all-round package of sound, fit, battery life and extra features (not to mention looks) that make them some of the best wireless running headphones on the market.
Pros
- Fantastic durability
- Super comfortable
- Great sound quality
- Impressive battery life
Cons
- Three ear-tips may not be enough for some
| Type | In-ear |
|---|---|
| Battery life | 8 hours (plus 32 hours with charging case) |
| Noise-cancelling | Yes |
| Touch controls | Yes |
| Weight | 5g per bud, 46g charging case |
If you're someone who spends a lot of time pounding the pavements or hitting up your local trails, a gripping podcast or upbeat playlist can be just the source of motivation to see you through the many miles. And much like a GPS running watch, investing in the right pair of wireless running headphones can really enhance your overall running experience.
The Jabra Elite 8 Active launched onto the market in 2023 and Jabra says they're 'built to last', boldly calling these the 'world's toughest earbuds'. As well as being dust-proof, waterproof and – most importantly – sweat-proof, they have active noise cancellation, ShakeGrip technology (a fancy way of saying they're designed to not budge or shift, no matter how hard you're running) and six-microphone windproof call technology. At £199, they're pretty competitively priced, too.
Jabra Elite 8 Active: Set-up and design
At 5g for each bud, the Jabra Elite 8 Active are brilliantly light, with a compact wing-tip-free secure fit. That secure fit is helped by a special silicone coating that grips more when it gets wet or sweaty. They're probably the most secure-feeling earbuds without tips that I've run in, as they nestle a lot more snuggly in the ears than something like the Beats Studio Buds+ and don't leave your ears feeling sore.
The Jabra Elite 8 Active are available in four stylish colours: black, caramel (the pair I tested), grey and navy blue. If you're someone who's looking for a pair of headphones that can double up for everyday use (including in the office), then design-wise, these are spot on – sleek and discreet.
The earbuds themselves come with three ear tips (10mm, 12mm and 14mm), which is decent, although some other products offer more (5+). There's also a USB-A to USB-C charging cable and the earbuds come with a 2-year warranty – you just need to remember to register them.
When it comes to durability, Jabra says these are the toughest buds it's ever made. They are IP68 rated, which means they can be submerged up to 1.5 metres, be rinsed underwater, get splashed during water sports and get soaked on a rainy day. So, even for the hardcore runners, these should see you through most activities. They’re also dust-proof and military tested to MIL-STD-810h.
The running belt-friendly compact case is also IP54 rated – so that’s dust-protected and splash-proof, too. Good news if you want to carry it with you on a run.
Setting up the earbuds is super simple – just take them out of the case, pop them in your ears and you'll hear a voice directing you to the Bluetooth settings on your phone. From here, you'll see 'Jabra Elite 8 Active' under 'Devices' – tap to connect, and you'll be ready to listen. It really does take just 15 seconds.
If you're on an iOS device, your phone will automatically ask you if you want to download the Jabra Sound+ app for an enhanced listening experience. (You can also download the app if you're on Android – I just happen to use an iPhone.) Once you've downloaded it, the app should automatically detect the Elite 8 Active as the model you're using.
It's well worth downloading the app for all the additional features and controls you have access to:
- View the exact battery life of your left and right earbud (plus the battery case)
- Switch between three sound modes (ANC, HearThrough and Off)
- Select music presets
- Configure button controls to your personal preferences
- Enable SpotifyTap
- Activate Find My Jabra (to help if you lose your Jabra device)
- Enable mono earbud use
Jabra Elite 8 Active: Controls
The controls on the Jabra Elite 8 Active aren't much different to those that you'll find on the older Jabra Elite 7 Active, but this is a case of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it', rather than a criticism.
As well as all the standard controls you'd expect from a pair of premium earbuds, a comprehensive selection of extra smarts is rounded out with Find My Buds geolocation, Spotify Tap (which plays your last Spotify track in one tap) and Bluetooth 5.3 multipoint, so you can connect to two devices simultaneously and switch from laptop to phone without having to reconnect. This is great for those work from home days when you’re just back from a run and need to jump on a Zoom call.
On-earbud controls:
- Play/pause music
- Volume up/down
- Next track
- Restart track or previous track
- Calls: Answer/end/reject; volume up, volume down
- Switch between HearThough and ANC
- Active voice assistant
The controls also use a button, rather than touch control. I genuinely find this comes down to personal preference – I'm more of a button fan because you know when you've actually pressed it, and there's no risk of accidentally brushing against it and pausing your tunes.
Jabra Elite 8 Active: Battery life
On paper, the buds offer an excellent 8-hour run time battery, with a further 24 hours’ charge in the case. That’s a total of 32 hours' buds-plus-case playback. Those numbers drop if you’re running with the Active Noise Cancellation and the awareness modes on, though – and in our tests, they came up slightly shorter than billed, but not far off.
If you make strategic use of the rapid charge – which adds an hour for just 5 minutes on the plug – you can easily get a month of daily running with minimal charging. It takes 3 hours to fully recharge the earbuds.
As mentioned previously, you can view the exact battery life of both the buds and the case in the Jabra app. There's also LED lights on the earbuds and the charging case: green indicates high battery, yellow is medium battery and red is low battery.
Jabra Elite 8 Active: Sound quality
The customisable sound on the Jabra Elite 8 Active is great. It’s not necessarily the very best, but there’s good top volume, decent nuance and richness and plenty of butt-kicking bass. If you need full sound for that motivational boost, you’ll get it here. There’s Dolby Spatial sound, too, although it’s not as good as you’ll get on the Apple Airpods Pro 2.
You can also switch between awareness modes: Active Noise Cancellation and HearThough (or just choose 'Off'). The former blocks out all other sounds, while the latter lets you hear surrounding sounds through the earbuds while you wear them. Overall, these awareness modes are much improved over the previous generation Jabra Elite 7 Active and no longer suffer from wind interference the way some do. The ANC in particular is fantastic for blocking out noisy gyms if you're smashing out a treadmill session.
Jabra Elite 8 Active: RW verdict
For those leading an active lifestyle, the Jabra Elite 8 Active really are some of the best wireless earbuds around, combining crisp sound quality with a sleek design and secure and supremely comfortable fit. As far as wing-tip-less earbuds go, I'd say these are up there.
At £199, I don't think the price is a real turn-off, either. Sure, it's still a fair chunk of money, but it's just below the Apple Airpods Pro (2nd gen) at £204.00, and £100 less than the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds. While you're getting more in-depth noise cancelling features and customisation with the latter, for a lot of people these will simply be features you pay for and never use.
Alternatives to the Jabra Elite 8 Active
Sennheiser Sport True Wireless
Beats Powerbeats Pro
Shokz Openrun
If you're looking for something a little cheaper, but don't want to have to sacrifice sound quality, then the Sennheiser Sport True Wireless are a good bet. For just a pinch over £100, you get a super customisable fit, with three different sizes of ear adapters and four different sizes of fins. The sound quality punches way above the price tag, too.
Or, if you've got more to spend, then the Beats Powerbeats Pro wowed our testers at the RW Lab. Their adjustable hooks fit around the ear to make sure they stay in place during the toughest workouts, and the punchy bass is great for pacing.
Or, if you want to prioritise safety on the run, why not consider a pair of bone-conduction headphones? The Shokz Openrun are lightweight, with a nano protective coating and watertight rubber gaskets that make them fully sweat-proof and waterproof. Despite the bone-conduction design, there's surprisingly little compromise on sound quality, too, although you do get some leakage in noisy environments.
A 53-time marathon finisher, 14-time ultramarathoner (including a top 100 position in the Marathon des Sables) and cofounder of The Run Testers, a YouTube running gear reviews channel, Kieran has been testing the latest running gear for more than a decade. A sub-3 marathon runner, you'll find him covering everything from virtual reality and smart scales to the latest health trackers. Kieran is also passionate about using the latest technology to hack his health in search of marginal gains and you'll always find him with a running watch on either wrist.
