Jabra Elite 10 vs Jabra Elite 7 Pro

The Jabra Elite 10 surpasses the Jabra Elite 7 Pro as the new top-of-the-line earbuds in Jabra’s lineup. Read on to see our full breakdown of the Jabra Elite 10 vs Jabra Elite 7 Pro, and find out which set of earbuds is really the better buy.

Editor’s note: this article was published on October 27, 2023, and is the first version of the article. Updates will follow as the market changes.

When using the Jabra Elite 10 and Elite 7 Pro, the first noticeable difference is in the shape of the earbuds. The Elite 10 have a unique nozzle shape with slanted ear tips that fit nicely inside our reviewer’s ears. Ears come in all shapes and sizes, but we found the Jabra Elite 10 has some of the best comfort of any earbuds on the market. On the other hand, the Jabra Elite 7 Pro earbuds and ear tips are a standard circular shape that requires deep insertion into the ear canal, which can breed some comfort issues.

If sweat and water resistance are important to you, you’ll be happy to know that both the Jabra Elite 10 and Elite 7 Pro earbuds are IP57 dust and water-resistant. The Elite 10 takes it a step further though with IP54 protection for the charging case. On the other hand, you’ll need to be careful not to get the Jabra Elite 7 Pro charging case wet.

How do you control the Jabra Elite 10 and Jabra Elite 7 Pro?

Buttons on the outside of the earbuds control both the Jabra Elite 10 and Jabra Elite 7 Pro. You can fully customize the controls for either set of earbuds within the Jabra Sound+ companion app, but we’ve outlined the default controls below.

The Sound+ app is an essential part of the experience for both the Elite 10 and Elite 7 Pro. At the sacrifice of some personal privacy and data, you get access to an equalizer to adjust the sound of the earbuds, control customization, firmware updates, and more. There are no major differences in the app experience for the Elite 10 compared to the Elite 7 Pro.

Both sets of earbuds will connect to your devices over Bluetooth, and you can connect either earbuds to two devices at the same time via Bluetooth multipoint. The Elite 10 has a slight edge in this category though, as it has Bluetooth 5.3 which brings support for LE Audio and LC3. However, right now, that technology is mostly just future-proofing, and as of today, you won’t notice much difference between Bluetooth 5.3 and the Bluetooth 5.2 in the Jabra Elite 7 Pro.

The Elite 7 Pro has slightly better battery life than the Elite 10. In our test of continuous playback with ANC turned on, the Jabra Elite 7 Pro lasted 8 hours and 48 minutes, whereas the Jabra Elite 10 only lasted 6 hours and 28 minutes.

When you place either set of earbuds in their respective charging case, fast charging will provide one hour of playback time from only five minutes of charging. The charging cases provide a couple of additional rounds of charge to the earbuds, and you can power these charging cases with either USB-C or Qi wireless charging.

How much external noise your earbuds block out is extremely dependent on the fit of the earbuds and whether or not you can achieve a good seal. In that regard, the unique shape of the Jabra Elite 10 ear tips excels at blocking out noise on our testing head. Most high-frequency noise is rendered mute with these earbuds on, and a decent amount of low-frequency noise is blocked out when you turn on active noise canceling.

In regards to both passive isolation and active noise canceling, the Jabra Elite 7 Pro is not as good at blocking out external noise. The round ear tips do not attain as tight of a seal to block our high frequencies, and the ANC is not as powerful at canceling low-frequency noise. If you frequently find yourself listening to earbuds in noisy environments such as on transit, you will likely prefer the Jabra Elite 10.

Most people will prefer the default sound of the Jabra Elite 7 Pro to that of the Jabra Elite 10. As you can see in the frequency response charts above, the Jabra Elite 10 significantly under-represents frequencies from 100Hz-600Hz in comparison to both the Elite 7 Pro and our headphone preference curve. In practice, this means you get loud bass and high-frequency content, without much detail from vocals and instruments in the mid-range.

In comparison, the Jabra Elite 7 Pro has a more neutral default sound, something that is more in line with other premium earbuds. That being said, you can equalize both earbuds to your liking within the companion apps. The final feature to not in regards to the sound of these two earbuds is that only the Jabra Elite 10 has Dolby Atmos spatial audio and head tracking support. If you like the feeling of your music sounding like it’s coming from all around you or pinned to a location in space, you will appreciate this native support.

Do the Jabra Elite 10 or Jabra Elite 7 Pro have a better microphone?

The Jabra Elite 10 and Jabra Elite 7 Pro both use a six-microphone array. With the same technology powering the earbuds, there is little to seperate the microphone performance. Listen to the demonstrations below and let us know what you think.

Jabra Elite 10 microphone demo (Ideal conditions):

The Jabra Elite 10 has a starting retail price of $249.99, while the Elite 7 Pro has a starting retail price of $199.99. However, the Jabra Elite 10 was released more recently than the Jabra Elite 7 Pro. You can now frequently find the Jabra Elite 7 Pro on sale for as much as 50% off.

Should you get the Jabra Elite 10 or Jabra Elite 7 Pro?

If you can find the Jabra Elite 7 Pro on sale for less than half the price of the Elite 10, you should probably go with Elite 7 Pro. You get most of the same features of the Elite 10, and you even get better sound quality out of the box. At its current going rate, the Elite 7 Pro is one of the best bang-for-your-buck earbuds on the market.

That said, there is definitely a crowd of people out there who will want to splurge on the Elite 10. You get more comfortable earbuds, a water-resistant charging case, Dolby Atmos support, and better noise canceling. If you have the extra money to spend, and don’t mind equalizing the strange default sound of the Elite 10, the earbuds may be worth it to you. If you’re still not sure, make sure to check out some alternatives on our list of the best wireless earbuds.