Introducing AirPods Pro 3, the ultimate audio experience

September 9, 2025

PRESS RELEASE

Introducing AirPods Pro 3, the ultimate audio experience

AirPods Pro 3 feature a new design with incredible sound quality, the world’s best in-ear Active Noise Cancellation, exceptional in-ear fit and stability, heart rate sensing during workouts, and extended battery life


CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA Apple today announced AirPods Pro 3, taking the most popular headphones in the world to an entirely new level. AirPods Pro 3 deliver unbelievable sound quality and the world’s best in-ear Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) — removing up to 2x more noise than the previous-generation AirPods Pro, and 4x more than the original AirPods Pro. The updated design helps AirPods Pro 3 fit even better and provides greater in-ear stability during activities like running, HIIT, yoga, and more. For the first time, users can utilize AirPods Pro 3 to measure heart rate and track over 50 workout types with the new experience in the Fitness app on iPhone. Live Translation also comes to AirPods, making face-to-face conversations easier by helping users connect even if they don’t speak the same language.

AirPods Pro 3 can be pre-ordered today, with availability beginning Friday, September 19.

“With AirPods Pro 3, the most popular headphones take a massive leap forward, providing fantastic sound quality and the world’s best ANC of any in-ear wireless headphones,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering. “Combined with an improved fit that provides greater stability for even more people, heart rate sensing, extended battery life, and Live Translation enabled by Apple Intelligence, AirPods Pro 3 take personal audio to the next level.”

World’s Best Active Noise Cancellation

AirPods Pro 3 feature a new multiport acoustic architecture that precisely controls the airflow that carries sound into the ear, helping deliver an exceptional spatial listening experience. With next-generation Adaptive EQ, the new architecture transforms the bass response, widens the soundstage so users hear every instrument, and brings vivid vocal clarity to higher frequencies across music, shows, and calls. With a more personalized Transparency, a user’s own voice — and the people speaking to them — sounds more natural than ever, helping them stay connected to their surroundings without missing a beat.

AirPods Pro 3 also deliver the world’s best ANC of any in-ear wireless headphones.¹ This is made possible with ultra-low noise microphones and advanced computational audio combined with new foam-infused ear tips for greater passive noise isolation. AirPods Pro 3 deliver a dramatically more immersive listening experience whether users are in transit, at the office, or winding down at home, offering ANC that’s up to 2x more effective than AirPods Pro 2, with 4x more noise removed compared to the original AirPods Pro. In addition, while listening to music with ANC enabled, AirPods Pro 3 now provide up to eight hours of music playback — a 33 percent increase over the previous generation.

New In-Ear Design Fits More People than Ever

Utilizing over 10,000 ear scans with more than 100,000 hours of user research, AirPods Pro 3 are the most secure and best-fitting AirPods ever. To deliver this improved fit for even more people, the internal architecture was completely re-engineered to make each AirPod smaller, while the external geometry of the ear tip was aligned to the center of the body for increased stability — a design informed by an unparalleled dataset of more than 300 million points. And with new foam-infused ear tips that now come in five sizes — including a new XXS size — AirPods Pro 3 deliver an exceptional in-ear fit. Designed for increased durability with an IP57 sweat and water resistance, AirPods Pro 3 are built to handle tough workouts and unpredictable weather.

Workout-Ready Performance

More people exercise with AirPods Pro than any other headphones in the world, and AirPods Pro 3 take workouts to the next level with Apple’s smallest custom-built heart rate sensor and integrated workout experience. AirPods Pro 3 introduce a custom photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor that shines invisible infrared light pulsed at 256 times per second to measure light absorption in blood flow. Combined with sensor fusion from the AirPods Pro accelerometers, gyroscope, GPS, and a new on-device AI model on iPhone, users can start up to 50 different workout types, track their heart rate and calories burned, close their Move ring, and earn awards in the Fitness app. With just AirPods Pro 3 and iPhone, users will also have access to Workout Buddy, a first-of-its-kind fitness experience powered by Apple Intelligence that incorporates a user’s workout data and their fitness history to generate personalized, motivational insights during their session.²

For added motivation, Apple Fitness+ users with AirPods Pro 3 can now view real-time performance metrics directly onscreen,³ such as heart rate, calories burned, progress on their Move ring, and the Burn Bar.⁴

Live Translation Comes to AirPods 

With AirPods Pro 3, Live Translation enables in-person communication across select languages and is available in beta.⁵ This transformational, hands-free capability is powered by computational audio and Apple Intelligence to help people easily connect — whether they’re traveling to a new place, collaborating at work or school, or simply catching up with the people who matter most.⁶ When enabled, Live Translation helps users understand another language and communicate with others by speaking naturally with AirPods. To interact with someone who doesn’t have this hands-free capability, there’s an option to use iPhone as a horizontal display, showing the live transcription of what the user is saying in the other person’s preferred language. When the other person responds, their speech is translated into the user’s preferred language with AirPods.

It’s even more useful for longer conversations when both users are wearing their own AirPods with Live Translation enabled from their iPhone. ANC on AirPods lowers the volume of the other person speaking so that it’s easier to focus on the translation while staying connected in the interaction.

Live Translation on AirPods is available in English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish, and will be coming to four more languages by the end of the year: Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese (simplified).

Improved Hearing Health Experience with Extended Battery Life

Continuing Apple’s dedication to hearing health, AirPods Pro 3 expand on the world’s first end-to-end hearing health experience introduced last fall. With AirPods Pro, users benefit by minimizing exposure to loud environmental noise. To help even more people, Hearing Protection comes to EU and UK users, following certification for those regions.

The Hearing Test has already helped millions of people learn about their hearing with scientifically validated results from the comfort of their home.⁷ With next-level ANC removing even more background noise, it is easier than ever for users to take a Hearing Test and receive personalized assistance with AirPods Pro 3. To help Hearing Aid users in louder environments like restaurants, Conversation Boost is now automatic, adding powerful amplification with background noise reduction. AirPods Pro 3 also increase battery life in Transparency mode by 67 percent over the previous generation with up to 10 hours with a single charge.

AirPods Pro 3 and the Environment

Apple 2030 is the company’s ambitious plan to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by the end of this decade by reducing product emissions from their three biggest sources: materials, electricity, and transportation. AirPods Pro 3 are made with 40 percent recycled content, including 100 percent recycled cobalt in the battery and 65 percent recycled plastic in the case. They are manufactured with 40 percent renewable electricity, like wind and solar, across the supply chain. AirPods Pro 3 are designed to last, while meeting Apple’s high standards for energy efficiency and safe chemistry. The paper packaging is 100 percent fiber-based and can be easily recycled.

Pricing and Availability

• Customers in the U.S. and more than 50 other countries and regions can pre-order AirPods Pro 3 today, with availability in stores beginning Friday, September 19.

• AirPods Pro 3 start at $249 (U.S.).

• For full feature functionality, use AirPods Pro 3 paired with an Apple device running the latest operating system software.

• New subscribers may get Apple Music and Apple Fitness+ free for three months with the purchase of AirPods Pro 3. See apple.com/promo for details.

• AppleCare delivers exceptional service and support, with flexible options for Apple users. Customers can choose AppleCare+ to cover their new headphones, or in the U.S., AppleCare One to protect multiple products in one simple plan. Both plans include coverage for accidents like drops and spills, theft and loss protection on eligible products, battery replacement service, and 24/7 support from Apple Experts. For more information, visit apple.com/applecare.

• Live Translation may not be available in all regions or languages. For feature and language availability and system requirements, visit support.apple.com/en-us/121115.

About Apple
Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, AirPods, Apple Watch, and Apple Vision Pro. Apple’s six software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, visionOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, iCloud, and Apple TV+. Apple’s more than 150,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth and to leaving the world better than we found it.

1. Testing conducted by Apple in July 2025 using AirPods Pro 3 paired with iPhone 16 with prerelease AirPods firmware and iOS 26. Noise reduction was tested in accordance with IEC 60268-24. Comparison made against the best-selling wireless in-ear headphones commercially available at the time of testing. Performance depends on device settings, environment, and many other factors.
2. Requires an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone nearby and Bluetooth headphones with device and Siri language set to English. Apple Intelligence is available in beta. Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. For feature and language availability and system requirements, see support.apple.com/en-us/121115.
3. Heart rate sensing with AirPods Pro 3 and Powerbeats Pro 2 during workouts is available in the Fitness app on iPhone with iOS 26, iPad with iPadOS 26, and Apple TV with tvOS 26 when also paired with iPhone or Apple Watch. Apple Fitness+ requires a subscription.
4. The Burn Bar is available on Fitness+ HIIT, Cycling, Kickboxing, Treadmill, and Rowing workouts.
5. Live Translation with AirPods works on AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation and AirPods Pro 2 and later with the latest firmware when paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone running iOS 26 and later. Supports English (UK, U.S.), French (France), German, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish (Spain). Later this year, Live Translation on AirPods and in Phone and FaceTime will add language support for Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese (simplified). Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. For more information, see Feature Availability.
6. Apple Intelligence is available in beta with support for these languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish, and Chinese (simplified). Some features may not be available in all regions or languages. For feature and language availability and system requirements, see support.apple.com/en-us/121115.
7. The Hearing Test and Hearing Aid features are supported on AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3, with the latest firmware paired with a compatible iPhone or iPad with iOS 26 or iPadOS 26 and later. The Hearing Aid feature is also supported on a compatible Mac with macOS Tahoe. Hearing Test is intended for use by individuals 18 years old or older, and the Hearing Aid is intended to amplify sound for individuals 18 years old or older with perceived mild to moderate hearing impairment. The Hearing Test feature is not a substitute for seeking medical advice from a healthcare practitioner if you have any concerns about your hearing health. Hearing Health features are subject to change and some features may not be available in all regions or all languages.

Press Contacts

Emily Ewing

Apple

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Zachary Kizer

Apple

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Apple Media Helpline

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