What are the Best Cat Ear Headphones? Cats may not be everyone's favorite animal, but they are the most popular pet in America. With that being said, cat-themed products are some of the most sought-after items on the market today.
Capitalizing on this behavior, many brands launched their rendition of cat ear headphones ranging from $10 to $200. We've created a list of 9 Best Cat Ear Headphones that offer the best performance and design for your money to cure your confusion.
There is no shortage of headphones to choose from with various brands and styles to pick from. Therefore, you can find something that suits your taste best.
These 9 pairs are our favorites for anyone who wants cute cat ear headphones for themselves or as a gift for someone else!
Top 3 Best Cat Ear Headphones in 2021
IMAGE | PRODUCT | DETAILS | Check price | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Best Overall | Best Overall |
Razer Kraken Kitty RGB |
|
Check Today's Price |
Runner-Up | Best Affordable |
Edifier HECATE G2 II |
|
Check Today's Price |
Best Cable | Best Design |
Sades MPower Angel Edition |
|
Check Today's Price |
9+ Best Cat Ear Headphones in 2021
1. Razer Kraken Kitty RGB Gaming Headset – Best Overall
To make more money, brands make sure to bring out products to capitalize on modern trends. This is where the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB gaming headset comes into the picture.
For a long time, Razer Kraken has been the brand's popular and affordable gaming headset. This headset is available in black and green colors. Although to get into the Cat Ear Headphones trend, Razer decided to slap two cat ears and pink colors onto the already successful gaming headset.
In terms of design, the Razer Kraken Kitty headset looks beefier due to the two cat ears. The headset is available in black and pink colors. The pink color is also known as Quartz and stays in line with the cat ear headphones rage.
The entire headset is built with plastic, while the headband is metal built. There's enough padding on the earcups and headband for comfortable and long hours usage. However, the headset is slightly bigger and isn’t ideal for teenagers or people with petite bodies.
Being an RGB headset, there's plenty of RGB lighting around the headset. Both earcups have RGB lighting on the outer side, including the Razer logo. The RGB lighting also extends to the two cat ears on the headband and retractable microphone's tip.
You can control and adjust the RGB lighting through Razer's Chroma software and create different lighting combinations as per your requirements. The headset also sports reactive lighting, reacting to audience emoticons and offering alerts during live streaming. You can control this through the Razer Streamer Companion app.
To make this headset ideal for streamers, the ear cushions are infused with cooling gel. The cooling gel ensures that your ears don't get heated and sweaty. Thus, you can use these headphones for a longer time.
Sound quality-wise, the Razer Kraken Kitty headset comes with THX 7.1 surround sound. This headset supports THX spatial audio that offers an immersive audio experience while gaming or watching movies.
Since this headset is meant for streamers, the retractable microphone offers excellent performance. It has active noise canceling feature built into it; thus, the microphone captures your voice clearly and thereby suppressing the surrounding or ambient noise. By using the Razer Synapse software, you can do plenty of tweaks and edits to the microphone to capture audio as per your liking.
Being a PC-only gaming headset, it limits the Razer Kraken Kitty headset's usability. Due to its USB connector, you cannot use this headset with 3.5mm headphone jack devices. Although the USB connector ensures a complete digital audio output, plus most of the features on this headset are possible due to the USB connector.
Pros
- Sturdy built quality
- Programmable RGB lighting
- Cooling gel-infused earcups
- Superb microphone performance
- THX spatial audio support
Cons
- It comes with a USB connector, limiting its usability with other devices like Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch
- Not best for music
- Slightly higher price
Bottom Line
“The Razer Kraken Kitty is a fantastic headset if you want the best cat ear headphones for the money. It's based on Razer's Kraken Ultimate platform and offers all practically helpful features as a streamer. Getting features like THX 7.1 surround sound, ANC microphone, and programmable RGB lighting is a steal at this price.”
2. Edifier HECATE G2 II– Best Affordable
The Edifier HECATE G2 II is the brand's affordable gaming headset trying to capture the cat ear headphones market. It is based on the original Edifier HECATE G2 II available in black color. At the same time, this model has a pink exterior and cat ears.
It is an RGB gaming headset that comes with a removable boom microphone. The microphone has a 2.5mm connector that can be connected to the headphone whenever required. The microphone sound quality is phenomenal for the price. If you're in a quiet room, the microphone picks your voice clearly. It eliminates the need for a dedicated USB microphone.
Alongside, the cat ears also don't come attached to the headband. The cat ears are included inside the box, and you can stick them onto the headband because the cat ears have a layer of adhesive at its bottom. The entire headset has a pink color with grey-colored padding on the earcups and lower part of the headband.
In terms of built quality, the headset looks very sturdy but not as much as the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset mentioned above. The difference in built quality is easily noticeable, but that doesn't mean the Edifier HECATE G2 II is poorly built.
The headset has thick foam padding on the earcups. The thick padding ensures a comfortable fit, and the over-ear design ensures the full sound effect. The lower part of the headband also has thick padding and longer adjustment sides to fit heads of every size.
You can notice an inline control panel containing the microphone and other goodies. With the control panel, you can turn ON/OFF the RGB lights on the headphone, increase/decrease volume and mute the microphone. The control panel also consists of a sound card inside that helps translate the digital signals from the headset's USB connector to analog signals.
The headphone comes with 50mm drivers that produce deep bass with balanced mids and highs. The larger drivers provide a better soundstage, and the THX 7.1 surround sound capabilities further improve it. The THX 7.1 spatial sound helps in gaming and can help pinpoint enemy's footsteps or gunfire.
Pros
- Superb microphone quality
- Large 50mm drivers
- Excellent sound quality
- THX 7.1 surround sound support
- Affordable price
Cons
- No RGB lighting on the cat ears
- Thick earcups padding makes it slightly uncomfortable for long hours of usage
- Extremely long wire
Bottom Line
“The Edifier HECATE G2 II is already a reputed gaming headset. Couple it with cat ear design, and you have yourself the best cat ear headphones under $50.”
3. Sades MPower Angel Edition– Best Design
The Sades MPower Angel Edition is basically a cute version of the brand's MPower gaming headphones. The headphone has a pink and white exterior and is targeted primarily towards feminine users due to its design.
While you may notice that this headphone doesn't have cat ears, however, you can attach aftermarket cat ears onto this headphone and turn it into the best cat ear headphones under $40.
At first glance, it's hard to ignore the HyperX Cloud II design language on the Sades MPower. It has the same headband style with metal parts and external wires connecting the earcups and the headband.
Unlike other gaming headsets mentioned above, the Sades MPower comes with a 3.5mm connector jack, making it compatible with a plethora of other gaming devices like Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, smartphone, tablet, MacBook, and more. An inline control panel also contains a toggle switch to mute/unmute the microphone and volume adjustments.
The Sades MPower comes with a retractable boom microphone. The microphone retains the similar color combination of the headset and looks very much in place. The boom mic stretches out pretty far, but the performance is average at best. The headphone box also comes with a conversion cable that contains two 3.5mm jacks for audio and mic ports.
The Sades MPower looks very sturdy and will last a long time if used carefully. There aren't any squeaks and squeals, and the headband adjustment is pretty straightforward too. Although, the lower part of the headband has a skinny padding layer, which can cause slight ergonomic usage issues.
On the other hand, the ear cushions are soft, which reduces the full effect of the headband's clamping force. However, to get full comfort, I recommend replacing the current earpads with aftermarket earcup cushions for longer hours of comfort.
Pros
- 50mm drivers
- 3.5mm jack offers support with multiple devices
- Sturdy design
- Plenty of adjustments
- Retractable boom microphone
Cons
- The white exterior will start to get dirty very quickly
- Needs aftermarket cat ears
- Less padding on the headband
Bottom Line
“If you want the best quality cute looking headphone without spending lots of money, then the Sades MPower is an ideal pick. Sure, it doesn't come with cat ears, but you can get them aftermarket and attach them to the headphones. The only big downside is the headphone's predominantly white exterior. It will start getting dirty as you use it regularly and will get yellowish with time.”
4. Razer Kraken BT– Best Bluetooth Cat Ear Headphones
At first glance, the Razer Kraken BT might seem like a wireless version of the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset mentioned above. However, that's not the case. Being a wireless headset, the Razer Kraken BT is cheaper than the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset.
While the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset is a PC-only compatible headset; however, you can use the Razer Kraken BT with a plethora of devices, including Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch.
The headphone comes with Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity options that consume less battery and offer longer coverage. On average, the Razer Kraken BT can last up to a whopping 50 hours on a full charge with the RGB lighting off. If you want to use the RGB lighting for the entire time, the battery life drops considerably to 20 hours. Hence, a mixed usage is recommended.
In terms of built quality, the Razer Kraken BT is built entirely out of plastic, yet it feels incredibly sturdy and premium. It doesn't give off cheap vibes that are noticeable on most plastic-built headphones. This headphone follows the same color combination as the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset. It has a pink colored body, while the earcups are grey in color.
Although, the earcups on the Razer Kraken BT do not come infused with cooling gel. You get regular earcups that are soft and do their job well. However, only a small portion of the headband has padding to reduce head strain.
On the performance front, Razer clearly mentions the latency specification on its product page. It is an excellent step towards transparency, and the user knows what to expect. This headset has a low latency of 40ms, which is hardly noticeable and works well for all types of usage.
The headset has 40mm custom-tuned drivers that offer better sound quality for listening to music and online videos than the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset. You can also set the audio output as per your liking by tinkering with the equalizer settings in the Razer Audio app. This headset has clear trebles and doesn't get muddied. The midrange performance is on-point coupled with deeper bass for an extensive audio listening experience.
The Razer Kraken BT comes with two built-in microphones, which Razer has christened as beamforming mics. The mics do their job well by suppressing surrounding noise and making your voice clear. Although, the microphone performance is a slight hit and miss.
Pros
- Looks cute
- 50 hours battery life
- Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity
- Superior sound quality with deep bass
- Customizable RGB lighting
Cons
- No ANC feature
- RGB lighting reduces battery life by a significant margin
- No play/pause button
Bottom Line
“The Razer Kraken BT is an excellent alternative to the original Razer Kraken Kitty Edition headset. This Bluetooth version is geared towards casual users who want to get onto the cat ear headphones bandwagon without losing functionality. For the price, the Razer Kraken BT does its job well, and there's hardly any compromise in any department.”
5. YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones– DJ-style Cat Ear Headphones
If you're looking for DJ-style cat ear headphones with RGB lighting, then the YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones should be the poison of your choice.
Available in pink and black colors, these headphones have massive cat ears on the headband. The foldable design closely matches many popular DJ headphones. You can effortlessly collapse this headphone and store into the provided carrying case.
It is a wireless headphone that comes equipped with Bluetooth 5.0 technology. It supports AptX low latency encoding, ensuring you get high-quality audio output and extremely low delay.
In terms of sound quality, the sound is immaculate. You get a good amount of thumping bass and great emphasis on the midrange sound, and the high-pitched audio sounds pleasant.
The YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones come with 7.1 channel surround sound support to further improve sound quality. Thus, you get exceptional soundstage performance without having to invest in pricier headphones.
This headphone comes in an excellent and compact carrying case. The case has proper cutouts to accommodate the cat ears properly. Hence, the headphone stays in place and doesn't move around. The case also includes a USB-C cable and a small wall charger.
With the provided USB-C cable, you can listen to audio from your MacBook, laptop, or smartphone. Using the wall adapter, you can fully charge these headphones in under 90 minutes. On a full charge, the YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones can last up to 48 hours, while the charging drops drastically if you use the headphone with RGB lighting turned ON all the time.
Being an RGB headphone, you can control the RGB lighting either from a smartphone app or desktop software. With the smartphone app, you can control multiple aspects of the RGB lighting and change between multiple colors. You can also set lighting modes, lighting speed, and brightness.
Pros
- It comes in a durable travel case
- Superb built quality
- Foldable design
- Long battery life
- Multiple lighting modes
Cons
- Poor mic quality
- No 3.5mm audio jack
- Slightly overpriced
Bottom Line
“If you're a DJ and want an additional headphone in your kitty, then the YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones should be an ideal pick. It has all the ergonomics of a DJ-style headphone, plus the wireless connectivity improves its usability.”
6. Mokata H02– Best For Gifting
Suppose you just want to jump onto the cat ears headphone bandwagon without spending too much money. In that case, the Mokate H02 should be your headphone of choice.
While the Mokate H02 is marketed as an over-ear headphone; however, it's a small size headphone. Hence, if you have small ears, you can use the Mokate H02 as an over-ear headphone. Whereas for people with big heads and ears, it will be hard to cover the entire ear.
Since it’s priced under $20, you'll be glad this headphone features RGB lighting on the cat ears and outside part of the earcups. However, the backlighting isn't as sophisticated as the headphones mentioned above.
If you're planning to gift these headphones to teenagers or kids, they'll love headphones and their RGB lighting. Moreover, the RGB lighting isn't extensively customizable, which is a crucial point to note.
Talking about built quality, the Mokate H02 has outstanding quality considering its price. It has a foldable design; thus, you can easily store it without any issues. An omnidirectional boom mic is present, but the quality is relatively average, and it's expected from a gaming headphone that costs just under $20.
The Mokate H02 has a long 3-foot wire, and towards the end, the headphone has a 3.5mm audio jack and USB connector. Plus, the box comes with a converter cable that contains two 3.5mm jacks for audio and microphone.
Along the wire, there's also a control panel that contains a sound card inside. The control panel has buttons for volume up, volume down, and microphone mute/unmute button.
Pros
- It comes with both a 3.5mm and USB connector
- Lightweight body
- Available in multiple colors
- Foldable design
Cons
- Average built quality
- Poor microphone performance
- Long 3-foot wire
Bottom Line
“The Mokate H02 is an entry-level cat ear headphone that's only ideal if you want to get in on the trend. You get all the necessary features and functions for the price, with slight compromise on the built quality and microphone department. However, if you plan on gifting it to your kid or a teenager, then they'll surely love it.”
7. Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones
Finding headphones for kids is complicated, and getting one that they'll like and use for a long time is even harder. This is where Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones come into existence, which can be an ideal pick as the best cat ear headphones for kids and a great gifting option.
Priced under $40, the Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones are Bluetooth-powered. Still, you can use it with a 3.5mm audio jack if you don't want your kids to tussle with Bluetooth connectivity.
It has a foldable design with LED lighting on the earcup's outside and within the cat ears. You can toggle between 7 different LED lights and cycle through 4 types of LED settings, viz. all on, all flashing, just cups, and just ears. Hence, your kid can choose the best lighting method. Still, the LED lighting can also affect the headphone's battery life by a considerable margin.
The Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones have a 900mah built-in battery, which the brand claims can offer up to 70 hours of music playback. However, take this number with a pinch of salt. The battery life can vary depending on how you or your kid uses the headphone. As mentioned above, keeping all the LEDs turned ON can reduce battery life to an enormous extent.
Since this headphone is marketed towards kids, the sound quality is average at best. Hence, if sound quality is a concern, then the Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones can be skipped.
Pros
- Lightweight body
- Supports wireless and wired connection
- Ample adjustments in the lighting colors and modes
- It comes with Bluetooth 5.0 technology
Cons
- Poor microphone performance
- Average built quality
- Battery life is affected by a big margin with LED lights turned on
Bottom Line
“Fancy headphones are good at capturing kids' attention and make sure they use them for a long time. The Mindkoo Cat Ear Headphones does just that, and your kid will love this headphone as a birthday gift.”
8. SOMIC G951s– Best Studio-style Cat Ear Headphones
The SOMIC G951s has a studio headphone-like design, mostly seen in AKG headphones with two headbands. Such design type offers extra clamping force, which can cause a hindrance when using this headphone for a longer time.
The SOMIC G951s is available in three colors: Black, Pink, and Purple, and all of them look very pretty and go well with the cat ears headphone craze. It consists of detachable cat ears, which can be attached to the upper headband. You can adjust the placement as per your liking.
The cat ears don't look flattering in terms of design because they attach to the outer headband and it seems like the ears are floating over your head rather than connected to your head. This one thing can be a deal-breaker if you're looking for the best cat ears headphones; however, for casual usage, you won't have any issues with it.
While it's an over-ear headphone, the earcup cushions are thin. They don't offer the comfort expected from over-ear headphones. If you get these headphones, I recommend replacing the current earpads with aftermarket ones for additional comfort. The headband also has thin padding, which means you can feel the insides of the headband while using it.
It comes with a 3.5mm connector. The package also includes a conversion cable for dual 3.5mm jacks for audio output and microphone input. The right earcup has a boom microphone that doesn't retract but can be rolled into the right cup. Thus, you can hide the boom mic when not required. It is an Omni-directional microphone and will pick most of the ambient noise.
Pros
- Looks cute
- Sturdy design
- Respectable sound quality
- Compatible with most devices
Cons
- The microphone is very sensitive
- Clamping force can be too much for some people
- The ear cushions aren't super soft
Bottom Line
“The SOMIC G951s are a budget gamer's delight. It offers respectable sound quality for the price and is a good choice for budget gamers. Even though the cat ear scene isn't up to the mark, you can use this headphone for casual usage.”
9. Censi Cat Ear Headphones– Best Looking
Censi is a Chinese brand that has built its entire range of audio products, making them look cute and geared more towards feminine users. Thus, the Censi Cat Ear Headphones is no exception and capitalizes on the cat ear headphones trend.
Unlike other headphones mentioned above, the Censi Cat Ear Headphones have rectangular earcups compared to most headphones' round or oval earcups.
It is a Bluetooth headphone that costs over $100; however, I do feel it is overpriced and has no features that justify its high price tag. For over $100, you get an older Bluetooth 4.0 technology, which consumes slightly more power than the current generation Bluetooth 5.0 technology.
On the design front, the Censi Cat Ear Headphones look extremely decent and have a minimalist design. The rectangular earcups have a glossy finish on the outside, whereas the entire headphone has off-white colors. You can also notice a dash of peach color on the earcups and inside the cat ears.
The cat ears on these headphones are detachable, and you can adjust the spacing between them quickly. Hence, you get to decide how much closer or far apart you need to keep the cat ears. When you want to store the headphone, you can remove the cat ears. Due to the headphone's foldable design, you can easily keep it in a compact headphone case without the cat ears being a hindrance.
Luckily, the Censi Cat Ear Headphones offer IPX4 protection; thus, this headphone is safeguarded against accidental water drops and is sweatproof. Due to the IPX4 rating, you can also use these headphones during exercising or in the gym.
On the performance front, the Censi Cat Ear Headphones have a decent sound quality, and to be honest; it doesn't justify the price. You can find better sound Bluetooth headphones at almost half the price. Moreover, the smaller 320mAH battery is only able to power this headphone for less than 10 hours.
Pros
- Simple and minimalist design
- IPX4 certified
- Foldable design
- Detachable cat ears
Cons
- Overpriced
- Uses older Bluetooth 4.0 technology
- Low battery life
- Average built and sound quality
Bottom Line
“The Censi Cat Ear Headphones are the most decently designed product on our list. It has a minimalist design and doesn't overdo the cat ear headphones trend. Although for the price it’s offered at, the only saving grace is its design and hardly anything else.”
Things to Consider before buying the best cat ear headphones
Cat Ear Size and Placement:
Let's be honest, you're buying cat ear headphones just for the fanciness of cat ears on them, right? Hence, if your main purpose is to highlight the cat ears, make sure they're appropriately sized and properly placed.
On most headphones, the cat ears are placed on the headband, and for girls with big hairs, it seems the cat ears are coming out from their head. However, headphones like the Somic G951s mentioned above have cat ears on their upper headband. Hence, the design looks slightly odd and not the best example of well-crafted cat ear headphones.
The cat ears placement is also crucial. In few headphones like the Censi Cat Ear Headphones, you can adjust the cat ears placement. You can tweak the placement between cat ears and either keep them close together or far apart. However, this feature is not available in most headphones and isn't a deal-breaker too.
Headphones size:
Most cat ear headphones available in the market mainly target females and teenagers. Therefore, if you're a well-built man, then regular cat ear headphones won't fit you.
Before buying, it is essential to make sure that the headphones fit your ears properly. Assuming that you're a well-built person, you'll surely love the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset or the Sades MPower headphones.
Connectivity Options:
For cat ear headphones, they're available in 3 different types of connectivity options. You can get them in a 3.5mm connector, USB connector, and Bluetooth connectivity option. Depending on your usage, you can select the best connector for you. In case you're confused, I'd suggest going with the USB connector headphones for mainly PC gaming use.
You can get the 3.5mm connector headphone if you want maximum compatibility with most devices, including Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch gaming consoles. Whereas, if you want cat ear headphones for casual usage, then the Bluetooth connectivity option will be an optimal pick.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do cat ear headphones mean?
Cat ear headphones basically mean headphones that have cat ears over them. The headphones have two cat ears placed right onto the headband. On some headphones, the cat ears have LED backlighting. You can make the cat ears have different colors and couple it with various pulsating modes. Besides that, you can also buy cat ears aftermarket and attach it to your current headphones.
Who invented cat ear headphones?
The trend of having cat ears on your headphones started in Japan, where such headphones are also known as Neko headphones (Neko = Cat). The trend started with artists creating drawings about their favorite anime characters with cat ear headphones, which later turned into reality.
How did cat ear headphones become popular?
Most of the cat ear headphones rage can be attributed to Pewdiepie and Ariana Grande wearing headphones with cat ears on it in their respective live streams. They partnered with various headphones brands that manufactured cat ears headsets, which resulted in massive traction to this trend.
Conclusion
I hope this article helped in choosing the best cat ear headphones for yourself. If you're still confused, I'd recommend going with the #1 pick, i.e., the Razer Kraken Kitty RGB headset, because it ticks all the right boxes as a cat-themed headphone along with a powerhouse audio performance.
Nonetheless, if budget is your concern, you should consider the Edifier HECATE G2 II or Sades MPower. Both headphones offer an incredible price to performance ratio.
Although if you're looking for the best wireless cat ear headphones, there's no better option than the Razer Kraken BT because it includes all the modern tech and superb performance. Or else you can also consider the YOWU RGB Cat Ear Headphones as it has the finest audio performance and biggest cat ears in this list.
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