(Image credit: Future)
We’ve been fans of JLab’s original JBuds Mini since their launch – the teeny tiny buds featured high in our list of the best budget earbuds for quite a while. Now the company has announced the new version, the JLab JBuds Mini ANC, and after testing them, I think they might be the cheap earbuds to beat in 2026.
Like their predecessors, the JLab JBuds Mini ANC will still cost just $39.99 full price when they release in March 2026 (global pricing TBC, but expect around £39 / AU$80 based on the previous model), and JLab says they’re the "world’s smallest" noise-cancelling earbuds. I certainly can’t think of anything to compete with their 19x21x14mm dimensions.
As before, the case comes with a clip attached so you can pop these on a keyring or on your bag, so they can go everywhere with you – and when they’re this small, this cheap, and this good, I think just about anyone would benefit from having them around.
Look at them compared to AirPods Pro 3 – which are already among the more svelte premium earbuds… (Image credit: Future)
The 2026 budget buds to beat? When they’re this small, this cheap and this good…
I’ve been trying them out, and honestly I’m blown away by how good they sound for the price. Which I probably shouldn’t be, because that’s basically JLab’s raison d’être, but I think these might be the most impressive earbuds I’ve heard from the company yet when it comes to bang for buck.
First, a quick note on the tiny size and the fit. They feel incredibly slight going into the ear – not just because they’re small, but because the ear tip material is very flexible, and I’m used to the particularly robust tip of the AirPods Pro 3 now.
But the fit seems to be totally stable despite that – they haven’t dislodged after walking, going to the gym, or a good vigorous shake of the head.
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The only potential issue with the fit is that when changing my head angle a lot (particularly leaning back) the seal of the left ear tip was disrupted, and some outside sound came in. This is probably partly to do with my ear shape, but I’m certain it’s because the ear tip material is so flexible.
But I never felt there was any change in the stability – they never felt looser or anything like that.
That being said, you can only just feel that they’re in your ears at all, which is maybe no surprise given they weigh practically nothing – but it’s still possible for companies to get the fit wrong. I think it’s really good here.