🦻Best over-the-counter hearing aids for you

Nearly one in six U.S. adults has trouble hearing, but only about a fifth of people who could benefit from a hearing aid actually use one, largely due to factors such as high costs, stigma and other barriers to access.

Last October, after a sustained bipartisan effort intended to ease some of these roadblocks, over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids became available for the first time. These hearing aids are meant for people with mild to moderate hearing loss. Now, Consumer Reports has tested OTC hearing aids in our labs. These lab-based evaluations of specific products supplement our existing ratings of prescription hearing aid brands and retailers, which are based on surveys of users.

A few key takeaways from our testing of OTC hearing aids:

• There are two main types: preset, which come with built-in configurations you choose from or, in some cases, only volume control; and self-fitting, which are more customizable and may provide better results in a variety of settings, but tend to cost more and may be more complicated to use.

• Whether you prioritize simplicity or versatility in an OTC hearing aid, we found good choices that will likely meet your needs, at reasonable prices.

• Within each type, there is a lot of variation in sound quality, ease of adjustment, price, and accessories, so careful shopping is warranted.

Among the makers of OTC hearing aids are companies like Sony and Jabra, with a long history of making headphones and speakers as well as newer, hearing-aid-focused companies such as Eargo and Lexie Hearing. The devices are sold online and in stores, from retailers like Best Buy and Walgreens. Many are less expensive than prescription hearing aids which, in our 2021 member survey, typically cost consumers about $2,680 out of pocket per pair. Unlike those hearing aids, they’re also easy to buy without a visit to a doctor or audiologist.

Still, so far, only a tiny fraction of adults over 40 with hearing difficulties have purchased an OTC hearing aid, according to a July 2023 survey by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. A major barrier is likely still cost, says Lindsay Creed, AuD, associate director of audiology practices at ASHA.

Adults in the survey who intended to buy OTC hearing aids said they were willing to pay around $200 on average for an over-the-counter hearing aid, but many of these devices cost several times that. Some cheaper OTCs are available, but they tend to offer less customization.

Another barrier? Many respondents said they did not feel confident they could actually choose the right device on their own.

To help, we brought 10 OTC hearing aids into our labs to see how easy they are to set up and use. And we conducted a series of audiological tests, using professional equipment, to see how they performed compared to some of the standards the Food and Drug Administration has outlined for OTC hearing aids.

We evaluated the Audien Atom, the Eargo 7, the Go Hearing Go Lite, the Jabra Enhance Plus, the Lexie B2 Powered by Bose, the Lexie Lumen, the Lucid Engage, the Lucid Enlite, the Sony CRE-C10, and the Sony CRE-E10. These ranged in price from $99 to $2,950.

Because hearing loss can vary so much among individuals, it’s hard to say which will be best for you. So we haven’t ranked OTC hearing aids, but instead identified the pros and cons of each device, so you can make an informed decision.

Hearing Aids Buying Advice

OTC hearing aids are meant for people with self-perceived mild to moderate hearing loss. Read more about how to figure out if that’s you. Here are four key questions to answer when shopping for an OTC hearing aid.

1. What Level of Customization Do You Want?

OTC hearing aids come in two main types.

Self-fitting hearing aids are devices that you can customize to your particular hearing needs, often based on a self-test you take when you first set them up. These are always paired with an app that you use to program them. Manufacturers of these devices must submit data to the FDA demonstrating that their aids can address a user’s hearing loss as well as prescription aids do. That’s a big advantage of self-fitting hearing aids: You have some assurance they’ve been shown to work. According to Nicholas Reed, AuD, an assistant professor of audiology with the Johns Hopkins Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health, who has consulted with CR regarding our OTC hearing aid testing, you may get better results with a self-fitting hearing aid because it can be more finely tuned to your particular hearing needs.

Preset hearing aids come with a few built-in audio configurations that you can choose from. They are generally cheaper and simpler to use; some are so simple that they offer volume control only. But they’re not as customizable as self-fitting aids, and manufacturers don’t have to clear them with the FDA. Still, some research has shown that the preset approach can work for many users. One 2021 study in the American Journal of Audiology found that four well-chosen preset audio configurations could—at least in theory—adequately address hearing loss for close to 70 percent of older adults with hearing loss. While many preset OTC hearing aids in our testing came with volume control only, we found at least one device that came with four configurations.

2. What Shape Is Best for You?

Hearing aids come in two basic configurations: behind the ear, and in the ear. You’ll want to go with whichever configuration you think you’ll be most likely to wear consistently.

Behind-the-ear (BTE) aids consist of a case that contains the device’s hardware and sits behind the ear, and a component that sits inside the ear canal. The two pieces are connected by a thin wire or tube. In some BTE aids, the component inside the ear canal is just an ear mold or soft ear dome. In others—sometimes referred to as mini behind-the-ear aids or as receiver-in-canal aids—the component inside the ear canal contains the receiver or speaker. With receiver-in-canal aids, the component that sits behind the ear tends to be smaller, since it doesn’t house the aid’s speaker.

In-the-ear (ITE) aids consist of one small component that sometimes resembles an earbud. Sometimes they’re small enough that they fit completely inside the ear canal—these are referred to as in-the-canal aids.

3. What Customer Support Is Available?

One big benefit of prescription hearing aids is you get a lot of help from a trained audiologist or another hearing care provider as you choose and set up your device. With an OTC hearing aid, you’re more on your own, as you would be when buying reading glasses. Still, some OTC hearing aids come with more substantial customer service than others. For details, See our guide to hearing aid brands, which includes information about the customer support and setup assistance offered by different brands.

4. What Is the Return Policy?

Most OTC hearing aids we’ve seen, and all of those we tested, have at least a 45-day return policy or trial period. Consider that a minimum. It can take a while to adjust to a hearing aid, so you’ll want to try it out for at least a few weeks to figure out whether you like it.

OTC Hearing Aids Put to the Test

Coming in at $99, the Audien Hearing Atom, was the most affordable preset hearing aid Consumer Reports evaluated. But it’s only customization option is volume control and you have to use a tiny screwdriver to adjust it. Consumer Reports also found that it created a considerable amount of noisy distortion in louder environments.

For about $450 more, Consumer Reports found the Lucid Engage a lot more versatile than the other presets that were tested, offering four distinct audio configurations.

The Lexie Lumen’s were one of the most affordable self-fitting hearing aids that Consumer Reports looked at. Before using them, you’ll need to set them up by taking a short hearing test. Consumer Reports found very little distortion in quiet or louder environments.

A pricier but still good option might be the Sony CRE-E10 at $1,300.