The 5 Best AirPod Accessories That Protect Against Damage

Apple AirPods are expensive. It follows, therefore, that you’ll want to do everything you can to protect them from getting damaged.

Luckily, you can buy lots of great AirPod accessories for precisely that purpose. Here are our top five best Apple AirPods accessories to help keep them in perfect condition.

1. Best AirPod Case:
CaseSack Travel Protection and Storage Case

CaseSack Travel Protection and Storage Case CaseSack Travel Protection and Storage Case Buy Now On Amazon $14.88

If left unprotected, your AirPods are arguably most vulnerable to damage when you’re traveling. There’s a temptation to sling them into your bag, especially if you’re simultaneously wrestling with passports, security checks, and the other realities of moving around the world.

The CaseSack Travel Protection and Storage Case could be the AirPod accessory you need. Not only does it provide protection for the earbuds themselves, but there’s also space to keep your wall charger and cables nice and snug as well. The pouch is matte black and is finished with a silicone overlay.

Better yet, it’s not an AirPod-specific accessory. You can also use the case to carry other headphone brands such as Powerbeats, BeatsX, VAVA MOOV, and JayBird Freedom F5s.

2. Best AirPods Skins:
AirPod Skins Protective Wraps

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We all know that owning an AirPod case is only half the battle. We’re lazy; there will inevitably still be times when you throw your earbuds onto a tabletop or into a bag without a second thought—even if your fancy protective case is within reaching distance.

As such, another of the must-have Apple AirPod accessories for keeping the buds damage-free is a protective skin. You apply the skins directly onto the earbuds themselves; they will help to keep them clear of scratches, stains, and other blemishes.

Some of the best AirPod skins are the AirPod Skins Protective Wraps. They only cost a few bucks—a fraction of what you paid for your AirPods in the first place. There are 17 different colors so you can personalize your look too. They don’t interfere with charging or other AirPod accessories like ear hooks, straps, and ear tips either.

You get two pairs in the box in case you have trouble on your first attempt applying them.

3. Best AirPod Ear Hooks:
EarBuddyz Ear Hooks

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The nature of AirPods means they are liable to become dislodged from your ears occasionally, especially during sport or other vigorous activities. It goes without saying that dislodged AirPods are a recipe for disaster. If they fall to the floor, they risk being scratched or trodden on. They might even stop working due to the impact.

Ear hooks are the solution. They connect to your pods and loop over the top of your ears, preventing your headphones from working loose and falling out. There is no shortage of products available, but the EarBuddyz Ear Hooks are probably the best AirPod ear hooks. They strike a good balance between price and functionality.

The hooks themselves are made out of silicone. They’re easy to install, comfortable to wear, and the manufacturer even claims that they can help to improve ambient noise isolation. The only significant downside is that they will not fit in your Apple-supplied AirPods case. They will, however, fit in the CaseSack Travel Protection and Storage Case that we discussed earlier.

4. Best AirPods Ear Tips:
AhaStyle AirPods Ear Tips

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Although AirPod ear hooks are effective, it is also fair to say that they’re not the slickest AirPod accessories from an aesthetic standpoint. They go against the AirPods’ minimalist design.

Thankfully, there are few AirPod accessories you could consider that achieve the same outcome; keeping your AirPods safely lodged in your ears, so they don’t fall out and get damaged. One alternative you could consider is a set of ear tips. These are like the tips you’d find on a regular set of earphones.

Some of the best AirPod ear tips are the AhaStyle AirPods Ear Tips. They’re made of silicone and attach to the audio-output part of your AirPods. Connecting them is easy, just slide them over the top of the part that goes in your ear. They are available in black and white and in either a small or large size.

Once again, however, there’s a downside; you can’t charge your AirPods while the ear tips are connected. And like the EarBuddyz Ear Hooks, they also won’t fit in Apple’s AirPods case.

5. Best AirPod Straps:
iAbler AirPods Magnetic Strap

AhaStyle AirPods Ear Tips AhaStyle AirPods Ear Tips Buy Now On Amazon $7.88

The last of our must-have AirPod accessories to prevent damage is the iAbler AirPods Magnetic Strap. Like the AhaStyle AirPods Ear Tips and the EarBuddyz Ear Hooks, the iAbler product aims to prevent damage by stopping your AirPods from falling out of your ears while you’re on-the-go. It achieves this by utilizes a behind-the-neck strap. If you’re familiar with headphones like the Sennheiser HD1 and BeatsX, you’ll know what to expect.

The neck strap is flexible and made out of silicone. At each end of the strap, there’s a small hole into which you need to slot your AirPods. And you don’t need to worry about the buds working loose from their holder, the inside of each slot is magnetic and will hold each individual AirPod firmly in place.

There’s a significant benefit of a neck strap compared to AirPod ear hooks or ear tips. That is, you can remove the buds from your ear and keep them close to hand when not in use. Without a strap, you’d need to place them on a surface or in a bag where they become more prone to damage or loss.

The counterargument for using a neck strap is that it kills the wireless aesthetics. If you want a neck strap, you’d arguably be better off buying a model that has a strap built into the design.

The Best AirPod Accessories for You

Yes, there are lots of AirPod accessories on the market that will help prevent them from getting damaged, but there’s always a trade-off from a usability or a design standpoint. Nonetheless, if you’re keen to protect your $150 earphones, it’s easy to argue that you should at least consider buying a couple of the products we’ve discussed.

While Apple’s AirPods are some of the best headphones for iPhone users, you may be interested in the best AirPods alternatives.

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