The best wireless speakers for home

The compact Sonos One has earned its place as a market leader. The sound it delivers is large, wide, full of bass, clear and bright. It'll go loud for parties but will also provide a clear profile for radio listeners and audiobook fans. As with all things Sonos, the One can be linked up to other Sonos devices to create surround sound or multi-room setups. The wireless connection is via Wi-Fi, so it remains stable as you move around the house with your streaming device. The One accepts all major streaming services, including Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer, and Amazon Prime Music. Alexa is built-in, so it is voice controllable too.

During our in-depth review of the Marshall Woburn III, we found that it really did deliver on its iconic reputation as the mainstay speaker brand for rock, metal and everything else for that matter. Here we have the Marshall signature sound - loud, immersive, and full of mid-range.

Its predecessor, the Woburn II, lacked the extra pair of cones that this employs to fill the tonal gap between bass and treble. The soundstage is super-wide, with room-filling volume. And when you're done shaking the floorboards to rock and roll, you could even hook the Woburn III up as a television or home cinema speaker too, thanks to the HDMI ARC input. This is a beast of a standalone wireless speaker that elevates every type of music you put through it. It’s easy to set up, more than looks the part, and the build quality is second to none.

Read our full Marshall Woburn III Bluetooth Speaker review.

If you're looking for a similar experience in a smaller package, check out our Marshall Acton II review.

The Apple HomePod is an offering for those already embedded into the Apple IOS ecosystem. Android systems are not supported at all. That aside, Apple users, you're in for some fun. The bass response offered by the HomePod is full, and the mids and highs are pleasantly balanced. You'll also be glad to know that it goes loud, too. Apple AirPlay 2 is supported, which will allow you to link to other manufacturers' speakers for multi-room playback.

The Bose Home Speaker is aptly named – it can certainly be heard around the house. This is a nice surprise as the speaker isn't a huge size, and the sound isn't just all volume. It pumps out some balanced mids and highs and a thick, punchy bass with great instrument separation. Connectivity is good, as it'll offer playback via AirPlay 2, WiFi, Bluetooth, Amazon Alexa and a 3.5mm audio-in jack. The Bose Home Speaker 300 is the smaller brother of the 500, offering the same quality audio without the playback display screen.

If you like the sound of a speaker that suits both your home and the outdoors, we think the Libratone ONE Click is perfect for you. Despite the small size, the ONE Click produces sound in 360 degrees, meaning it has no trouble covering the entire room with sound. The 12-hour battery is more than enough to last an outdoor excursion, and best of all, you don't need to panic when it suddenly starts pouring down; the IPX4 rating means this little device is splash-proof, so it can take a bit of downpour as you sprint for shelter.

Amazon's very own Echo came as a bit of a surprise to audio fans. It turned out to be more than a virtual assistant – it's a high-quality and formidable speaker which challenges other more renowned and expensive models. The bass is loud and has a pleasing punch, and despite the storage build shape, Amazon has managed to get a nice mid and high audio profile.

There is clear instrument separation and no crackle, even at high volumes, which is what you would typically expect with lower-priced solutions. Connection is over Wi-Fi, and all of the big streamers are supported.

The Echo Studio takes everything that makes the standard Echo a real pleaser and takes it up a few notches to deliver a 5.1 surround sound experience. Whereas the standard Echo runs with one 0.8-inch tweeter and one 3-inch subwoofer, the Studio boasts Dolby Atmos supported by three 2-inch midrange speakers, one 1-inch tweeter and a 5.25-inch woofer. This gives your audio much more room to breathe and shout with incredible bass, mid and high qualities.

This speaker is intended to facilitate the impeccable audio offered through Amazon's Music HD service and it'll also work to offer immersive TV sound when linked with a Fire Stick, Fire Cube or record player. All of the expected Alexa Dot and Echo capabilities are here, too, along with the big names in streaming.