Best Mini Bluetooth Speakers

Best Mini Bluetooth Speakers

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Casey Thaler, NASM-CPT, FNS
Latest posts by Casey Thaler, NASM-CPT, FNS (see all)

These days, everyone takes their music everywhere – so we ranked and reviewed the best mini Bluetooth speakers on the market. It was so much fun to test these speakers, as no one loves music more than we do.

Since there are so many mini Bluetooth speakers on the market, we aggregated millions of actual customer reviews, and did our own testing on the top models. Here are our choices for the best options – let the auditory delight begin.

Our Top Pick

Bose SoundLink Flex Bluetooth Portable Speaker

With thousands of five star reviews, incredible sound quality, and great portability, this is our top pick for the best mini Bluetooth speaker. Bose is known for their great audio devices, and this speaker is no exception.

While you can certainly spend less and go with a budget option, if you care about sound quality, you will definitely hear the difference. Bose devices always sound amazing, and this speaker is no different. Our top choice.

Other Great Picks

EWA A106 Pro Portable Bluetooth Speaker

For barely more than the price of a Big Mac, you can get this fantastic portable Bluetooth speaker. While the sound quality will not rival our Bose pick, this speaker makes up for it with a very good price point.

We do have to admit that we were pleasantly surprised at just how good a budget level speaker could sound – it kind of blew our minds, to tell the truth. Perfect for travel, and no big deal if you lose one – this is the best choice for those who don’t want to spend a lot on a mini Bluetooth portable speaker.

Sony SRS-XB13 Extra Bass Wireless Portable Compact Speaker

Extra bass from a portable, tiny speaker!? Yep, Sony achieved it with this little device.

While it’s not going to sound like a $1,000+ subwoofer, it will give your tracks that extra ‘oomph’ you’ve been looking for when traveling. If you want portability, but you’re a total basshead – look no further. Highly recommended.

JBL Clip 4

With amazing sound quality, and thousands of five star reviews, this is another stellar choice. JBL is known for making great quality audio devices, and this portable version lives up to all their well-deserved hype.

With lots of different colors to choose from, our only critique of this speaker is that there’s no way to tell how much battery life is left. We were actually pleasantly surprised at how much the sound quality has improved since the first iteration of this product, so your ears will love this one as well.

LFS Portable Bluetooth Speaker With Lights

This speaker is most notable for the lights, which we instantly fell in love with. It’s perfect for your shower, in the hot tub, at outdoor parties, or anywhere where you want to bring the energy.

With thousands of awesome reviews, and a very affordable price, this speaker is truly a party in a (very small) box. While it doesn’t offer the absolute best sound quality, the lights more than make up for it. Definitely recommended.

Anker Soundcore Mini

With thousands of great five star reviews, and amazing sound quality, this is one of our favorite Bluetooth speakers. It also has over 60 feet of range, which allows it to sound great even far away.

Anker is known for their headphones, but this Bluetooth speaker is equally impressive. There is also a passive subwoofer, providing some much needed low end. Two thumbs (way) up.

The Mandalorian Child’s Bluetooth Speaker

There is hardly anything cooler than Baby Yoda’s head as a speaker, and this child’s toy also doubles as a good sounding audio device. With thousands of great reviews, and an excellent price point, it’s hard to beat this one.

While you can certainly spend more, this is a great budget choice. Even adults may buy this one – it’s definitely not just for kids.

XLeader SoundAngel A8

This very affordable Bluetooth speaker has thousands of stellar reviews, and worked great during all of our tests. With over 5 different colors to choose from, there are also a wide variety of options to go with.

The only negatives we experienced were slight lag from some audio sources, which only happened on very rare occasions. If you want a great mini Bluetooth speaker for just a fraction of the price of other speakers – this is definitely the one for you.

JBL Go 3

JBL is well known for their high quality audio devices, and this speaker is no different. With thousands of five star reviews, there are very few speakers that have a better quality, especially at this price point.

There are also more than 5 different colors to choose from, which means no matter what you want, there will be a great option for you. JBL stands behind all their products, and they have a long history of great service and products. Definitely recommended.

Bose SoundLink Micro

Bose has a number of different wireless products, but this might be the best of all. It’s very light and easy to carry around, and it also has tremendous sound quality. There are tons of great, five star reviews, and our testing was absolutely flawless with this unit.

We always love Bose products, and this little speaker is absolutely no different. No matter what you are looking for, this is a perfect choice for anyone who wants one of the best portable Bluetooth speakers. Highly recommended.

What Is A Bluetooth Speaker?

Bluetooth speakers went from a total obscurity to ubiquitous, in just a few short years. With the advent of smartphones (and specifically the iPhone), these portable speakers quickly became all the rage.

Inside each Bluetooth speaker is an amplifier and loudspeaker, which connects via the Bluetooth wireless protocol. It should be stated upfront that usually you will not get the absolute best audio quality from these speakers, unless you are willing to pay an absolutely absurd amount of money.

The Bluetooth protocol is noted for its convenience – not overall sound quality. That being said, Bluetooth is absurdly convenient, which explains why nearly everyone on the planet uses it.

By definition, Bluetooth is short range, so don’t expect it to work for miles. If you’ve ever had wireless headphones in while doing laundry in your home, and suddenly have your music cut in and out – congratulations, you’ve reached the end of your Bluetooth’s range.

How Does Bluetooth Work?

Using radio waves (not the traditional cords used by previous consumer audio devices), Bluetooth is able to make audio listening far more convenient. While most people think of Bluetooth solely as working with your cell phone, Bluetooth actually works on your computer as well (and any other device that is Bluetooth compatible).

A very small computer chip allows Bluetooth to work, and it’s this chip that makes all of the difference in convenience for consumers. You will need to pair your Bluetooth devices, which allows them to link and “talk” to each other.

Which Bluetooth Speaker Is Best?

This is objective, but we are big fans of Bose speakers, and think nearly any of their models would be a true ‘best’ speaker. Of course, if your budget is lower, you may not want to buy a Bose unit.

Ultimately, you have to find the right fit between your budget and your taste. We will add that usually a little bigger investment ends up being worth it, as is the case with nearly every audio device we’ve ever tried.

What Is The Best Bluetooth Speaker For The Money?

This is a tricky one, because this answer depends on two things. One, what is your budget? Two – how much do you care about audio quality?

If you care about audio quality, we like Bose for Bluetooth speakers. If you care less about audio quality, and more about budget – any speaker on our list at the right price point, should work for you.

What Is The Difference Between A Bluetooth Speaker And A Wireless Speaker?

Bluetooth speakers operate on the frequency range of radio waves, while wireless speakers operate over WiFi. Bluetooth is advantageous, because it doesn’t require an outlet (like most wireless speakers do), and instead usually utilize batteries.

Additionally, if there’s no WiFi – wireless speakers are not going to work. Bluetooth speakers can (and will) work in even the most dire and remote settings.

Why Is The Bose Mini Speaker So Good?

Bose makes very high quality audio devices, and their speakers are specifically designed to a whole different standard. While many Bluetooth speakers sound okay, Bose speakers always sound tremendous.

If you care about high quality audio, Bose is one of the best choices you can make. While the price is likely higher than most other speakers, it is always worth it.

Other Buying Factors

There are many different factors to consider, before buying a Bluetooth mini speaker. You should look at battery life, sound quality, Alexa compatibility, whether the speaker is water-resistant, if it’s dustproof, whether all your required functionality is present, if the midrange is clear, and even if playback can be done in remote areas (where data or WiFi may not be as good).

Since we’re going to have to buy a mini Bluetooth speaker regardless, we recommend a waterproof speaker, if you’re willing to spend a little bit more. Wireless speakers (like those made by Ultimate Ears or Apple) can be found at Best Buy, but Amazon tends to have the best prices.

Since these are Bluetooth speakers, obviously Bluetooth connectivity is a must, but you also want to look for balanced sound. Some smart speakers don’t have good sound – similar to how many people dislike the tinny quality of some earbuds.

You should also look for long battery life, along with great sound, and Android compatibility (since nearly every Bluetooth speaker has iPhone compatibility). The best portable Bluetooth speakers will have many hours of battery life, along with USB-C compatibility.

They will also work well as outdoor speakers, perfect for playtime, as well as podcasts. Since Bluetooth speakers are almost always rechargeable, a small speaker isn’t as much of an issue, since they usually take less time to fully charge.

If you’re an audiophile, you likely already know that Bluetooth speakers will not quite measure up to the technical specs of very expensive audio equipment, but they’ll be fairly strong in terms of stereo sound quality. There are also specific Bluetooth speaker models that have a strong subwoofer, but mini Bluetooth speakers generally lack the deep low end of bigger speakers.

There are also ratings and other factors to consider – like the IP67 rating. Popular speakers not on our list include the IPX7, the IPX4, the JBL Flip 5, Bang & Olufsen speakers (great in terms of audio quality), the MegaBoom, and the Tribit Stormbox Micro.

You should also look at the Bluetooth range for your speaker, as well as if there is a hands-free option, and a Google Assistant feature. Specific tech specs, like passive radiators, like mean nothing to the average consumer, however.

You may also want to look at how much life you can get out of a single charge, unless you don’t mind constantly having to plug your speaker in. Soundbars will also greatly differ from mini Bluetooth speakers, so don’t expect the sound quality to be comparable.

Some unusual features include a carabiner, stereo pairing, and speakerphone mode. Bluetooth speakers usually aren’t lacking in terms of treble, but be sure that extra bass features don’t swallow up all the high end (while still having strong woofers).

Models like the JBL Charge 5, UE WonderBoom 2, and the Sonos Roam are all very popular. Samsung makes great models, and even Walmart generally carries great Bluetooth speakers.

The Best Mini Bluetooth Speakers

There you have it – our top picks for the best mini Bluetooth speakers. Whether you want a budget pick, a waterproof option, or just the best sound quality – we’ve got you covered.

Most people probably don’t want to spend only $20 – but they also probably don’t want to spend $500, so something right in the middle of the price range should be the sweet spot. And if you loved this list, be sure to check out some of our other great product reviews.

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