The Best Portable Speakers, According to the Reviews

Update, 8 October 2026. We re-read all nine scores on the outlets’ own pages, and two were wrong here. Tom’s Guide gives the JBL Flip 7 4.5 out of 5, not 4, so its average is 9.7 rather than 9.3 and it now sits ahead of the Charge 6 instead of level with it. TechRadar gives the Sonos Roam 2 4.5, not 4, which lifts its average from 7.3 to 7.7 and widens the gap between its reviewers. We had also called the Flip roughly half the Charge’s size and price: JBL lists them at $149.95 and $199.95, three-quarters, and we had no source for the size, so both claims are gone. Two speakers are new, the JBL Go 5 and Xtreme 5.

Going by the reviews, the best portable speakers are three JBLs with identical scores — the Go 5, Flip 7 and Xtreme 5, each five out of five at TechRadar and What Hi-Fi? and 4.5 at Tom’s Guide, an average of 9.7 out of 10. For most people the pick among them is the $149.95 Flip 7, which What Hi-Fi? names its best portable Bluetooth speaker.

The shortlist, at a glance

Speaker	Best for	Outlet average	Spread	Rated battery	US list price
JBL Flip 7	Most people	9.7 / 10	1.0	14h, 16h with Boost	$149.95
JBL Go 5	A small budget	9.7 / 10	1.0	8h, 10h with Boost	$54.95
JBL Xtreme 5	Parties	9.7 / 10	1.0	24h, 28h with Boost	$399.95
JBL Charge 6	Charging your phone	9.3 / 10	2.0	24h, 28h with Boost	$199.95
Sonos Roam 2	Existing Sonos owners	7.7 / 10	3.0	10h	$179

Each average is three published scores converted to ten; the spread is the gap between the highest and lowest of them. Battery figures are the makers’ ratings and prices are list prices on JBL’s and Sonos’s US stores, both read on 8 October 2026. The “best for” column is ours, read off what the reviewers found.

Three speakers, one score

The Go 5, Flip 7 and Xtreme 5 drew exactly the same marks from the same three outlets, so the average cannot choose between them. What separates them is size, battery and a list price that runs from $54.95 to $399.95; how JBL’s five lines differ on paper sets those out model by model.

The reviewers’ complaints follow the same line. Tom’s Guide’s one listed con on the Go 5 is that rivals last longer, and JBL rates it at 8 hours. The Xtreme 5’s are about bulk and money: What Hi-Fi? lists a bulky design and no aptX, and Tom’s Guide a $20 rise over the Xtreme 4. A codec name on a spec sheet is a ceiling rather than a promise, as our explainer on Bluetooth codecs sets out, so weigh the missing aptX by what your phone supports.

Why the Charge 6 slipped

The Charge 6 is What Hi-Fi?’s best Bluetooth speaker overall, and it has five out of five there and at TechRadar. Tom’s Guide’s 4 out of 5 is the one score that separates it from the Flip 7, and it is specific: no speakerphone, voice assistant or USB-C cable, an app that needs more features, and a battery-saving mode that dulls the sound.

What it has that the Flip does not is endurance. JBL rates it at 24 hours plus 4 with Playtime Boost, the same as the Xtreme 5 at half the Xtreme’s list price, and builds in a power bank to top up your phone. If the speaker spends whole days outdoors with you, that is worth more than four-tenths of a point.

The disagreement: Sonos Roam 2

TechRadar gave the Roam 2 4.5 out of 5, Tom’s Guide 4 and What Hi-Fi? 3, describing its sound as unexceptional and its price as a hike. A spread of 3.0 on the ten-point scale is the widest on this page.

Read together, the reviews weigh different things. The Roam 2 joins a Sonos system over Wi-Fi at home and switches to Bluetooth away from it, which matters if you own Sonos and not otherwise (how the Roam 2 differs from Sonos’s other speakers is set out separately); judged on its sound for the money, it averages lowest here. That is why it carries a condition rather than a rank. If the speaker is really for the TV room, our soundbar shortlist is the better place to look; there the budget Sony HT-S2000 averages the same 9.3 as the Sonos Arc Ultra.

Why Bose is not here

A speaker needs scores from all three outlets to be listed, and two well-reviewed Boses fall one short. How Bose’s own speakers differ on its spec sheets is set out separately, and so is how Marshall’s portable and home speakers differ.

The SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen) has 4 out of 5 from both TechRadar and Tom’s Guide. What Hi-Fi?’s own search on 8 October returned its 2022 review of the first-generation Flex and deal stories about the second, but no review of it. Two scores of 4 would average 8.0, below every JBL here, so the gap does not hide a better speaker on these numbers.

The SoundLink Max has five out of five at What Hi-Fi? and 4.5 at TechRadar, but Tom’s Guide’s search turned up no review of it. It would compete with the Xtreme 5, and we will add it if a third score appears.

What to actually do

• Start with the Flip 7. It shares the top score, What Hi-Fi? names it its best portable, and it costs $250 less than the Xtreme 5 at list.
• Go down to the Go 5 if it will live in a bag or the budget is tight, and accept a shorter battery.
• Go up to the Xtreme 5 for a garden or a party, or to the Charge 6 if a long day away from a socket matters more than the last four-tenths of a point.
• Buy the Roam 2 if you already run Sonos; as a plain Bluetooth speaker, What Hi-Fi? called its sound unexceptional and gave it three stars.
• Judge a sale by what the speaker has recently sold for, not by the percentage off. On 8 October JBL’s own store had the Go 5 at $39.95, the Flip 7 at $109.95 and the Charge 6 at $149.95. How to tell a real tech deal from a fake one covers the other checks before you buy.

Questions people ask

What is the best portable speaker?

Going by the reviews, the JBL Flip 7 for most people. It averages 9.7 out of 10 from TechRadar, What Hi-Fi? and Tom’s Guide, and What Hi-Fi? names it its best portable Bluetooth speaker. The Go 5 and Xtreme 5 have identical scores, so pick by size and price. We have not tested any of them.

Which portable speaker has the best reviews?

Three tie: the JBL Go 5, Flip 7 and Xtreme 5 each have five out of five from TechRadar and What Hi-Fi? and 4.5 from Tom’s Guide, an average of 9.7. The JBL Charge 6 is next at 9.3, and the Sonos Roam 2 averages 7.7.

What is the best cheap portable speaker?

The JBL Go 5, at a $54.95 list price on JBL’s US store on 8 October 2026. It drew the same scores as the Flip 7, and What Hi-Fi? names it its best budget Bluetooth speaker. The trade is battery: JBL rates it at 8 hours, 10 with Playtime Boost.

What is the best portable speaker for parties?

On these scores, the JBL Xtreme 5: 9.7 out of 10, with What Hi-Fi? praising its sense of scale. It lists at $399.95, twice the Charge 6, and What Hi-Fi? counts its bulk and lack of aptX against it.

Is the JBL Charge 6 better than the Flip 7?

Not on review scores. The Flip 7 averages 9.7 and the Charge 6 9.3, because Tom’s Guide gave the Charge 4 out of 5 and the Flip 4.5. The Charge has the longer rated battery, 24 hours against 14, and can charge your phone. It lists at $199.95 against $149.95.

Is the Bose SoundLink Flex one of the best portable speakers?

It is not on this list because What Hi-Fi? has not reviewed the second-generation model, and a pick here needs scores from all three outlets. TechRadar and Tom’s Guide each gave it 4 out of 5, which would average 8.0, below every JBL here.

How are these portable speakers ranked?

By the average of published review scores from TechRadar, What Hi-Fi? and Tom’s Guide, each converted to ten and read from the review page itself. Every score is linked on the page. We have not tested these speakers and give no score of our own.