4 Bose Speakers With Top Scores From Consumer Reports

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Sound quality matters a lot when looking for your next audio gear. However, it's easy to end up with a dud, especially when you're on a tight budget looking to score a cheap yet high-quality Bluetooth speaker or pair of headphones. One audio brand that prioritizes sound quality across the board — be it a sub-$100 speaker the size of your phone or a premium home theater soundbar — is Bose. Consumer Reports (CR) has put several of the company's speakers through numerous tests to help you home in on the best of the best.

At first glance, it might appear that CR isn't very fond of Bose audio, because most of the Bose speakers the publication tested and ranked have relatively low scores. But upon further investigation, we discovered that even the top CR-recommended Bluetooth speakers didn't score much higher than most Bose speakers. To that end, we wanted to help our own readers get educated on which CR-tested Bose speakers are worth investing in.

We went ahead and took a close look at CR's Bose speaker ratings to assemble this list, but we also leaned on user feedback and professional reviews to help guide our product selections and write-ups.

We weren't shocked to learn that Consumer Reports favored the Bose SoundLink Max more than any other Bose speaker. The Max is portable enough to take just about anywhere, and also gets loud enough to be the life of every party. Better yet, there's a good balance of highs, mids, and lows, as well as minimal compression at even the highest volume levels. Considering this isn't just a front-facing speaker, with radiators on the sides as well, the SoundLink Max should cover the room more evenly.

When TechGearLab tested the Max, the speaker earned a near-perfect score and was called a "mini-boombox with powerful yet elegant sound that's perfect for parties." On Amazon, the Max has a 4.4-star score, which is based on more than 2,400 user ratings. Many customers praised the speaker's sound quality and overall volume; one user even echoed the excellent volume leveling that TechGearLab touched on.

One drawback we can agree with is that the SoundLink Max is expensive, priced at $310, and also can't be linked with other non-SoundLink speakers. But that's one of the only repeated complaints we unearthed; otherwise, the Bose SoundLink Max is well worth your consideration. Plus, it can be customized using the free Bose app, which gives you access to a graphic EQ and various audio presets.

The Bose SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen) is far easier on our funds than the SoundLink Max. Where the latter costs over $300, the latest Flex is priced at $129 and has several of the same audio characteristics as the larger Max. Mids and highs are nicely balanced by default, so vocals and main instruments sound clear and detailed. This small Bluetooth speaker puts out a decent amount of bass, too, even if it struggles to land the lowest of lows when there's an 808 drop.

Fortunately, this is another speaker that's supported by the Bose app, and a few quick EQ adjustments can improve your Flex's overall performance. The SoundLink Flex is extremely portable and boasts an IP67 rating; if you accidentally drop it in a lake or swimming pool, it should still keep working! You should also get up to 12 hours of battery life on a full charge, which is plenty of power for a full day at the beach.

The SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen) is very popular on Amazon, where it is rated by more than 12,500 shoppers and took home a 4.7-star score. One downside worth mentioning is that folks seem to dislike the speaker's overly aggressive startup and shutdown alert tones that can't be turned off or lowered, not even in the Bose app.

Next up is the Bose SoundLink Revolve+ II, a Bluetooth speaker that's been around for quite some time (since 2021). Designed to deliver 360-degree sound, there isn't a bad place to sit or stand when the Revolve+ II is blasting tunes. Out of the box, the speaker's sound profile does a solid job of pushing highs and mids, so vocals and instruments are emphasized in most mixes. The speaker manages to dish out a bit of low end too, making it versatile enough for most music genres.

The Revolve+ II is also very portable, especially with the integrated carrying handle that makes it easy to take the speaker wherever you go. According to Bose, you'll also get up to 17 hours of playback on a full charge. Unfortunately, you'll be stuck with Micro USB for a charging port, which takes about 4 hours to refuel a zeroed battery. The Revolve+ II can also be used to take calls as the speaker has a built-in mic. You can also use it to summon Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, etc.

While Amazon sells it for $329, you can find it for cheap on Best Buy at $265. Adorama also sells the Revolve+ II for around $270, where the speaker managed a 4.5-star score with close to 300 ratings.

Last but not least, we have the Bose SoundLink Plus, another CR favorite that punches above its weight class. Size-wise, the SoundLink Plus sits right between the SoundLink Max and Flex (2nd Gen), and that's about how things shake out for sound quality, too. While it looks small, the Plus is able to put out some pretty big sound, especially for indoor listening. But just like the Flex (2nd Gen), the Plus is not a stereo speaker; unless it's wirelessly paired to another SoundLink Plus speaker, your audio will always be down-mixed to mono.

That's not the biggest deal, though, because the speaker does a nice job at projecting audio. If you end up raising the volume high, don't be alarmed by the compression: it's a known drawback with this speaker. Fortunately, Bose makes up for that with a strong IP67 rating, a long 20-hour battery life, and USB-C connectivity. The SoundLink Plus can be controlled and customized using the Bose app, too.

You'll be able to score the Bose Plus at most retailers, including Amazon, where the speaker took home a 4.7-star score, which is based on over 1,150 user ratings. Here's a final takeaway that multiple shoppers commented on: the speaker is a lot heavier than it looks. You probably don't need to do arm exercises to prepare yourself, but it may add more weight to a backpack or handbag than you'd expect.