Best Wireless Bluetooth Boom Boxes for 2024

The Soundcore by Anker Rave Party 2 can be stood up vertically or laid down horizontally and features a built-in light show and handle. Like other larger speakers that boast higher power ratings (in this case, 120 watts), this speaker needs to be charged with its own AC adapter rather than a USB-cable and has a USB-A out port on the back for charging your smartphone or any other devices that need some juice. 

Though it costs more than Tribit's Stormbox Blast, the 11.7-pound Rave Party 2 is a more attractively designed speaker and arguably sounds slightly better. Its two 4-inch woofers and two 2-inch tweeters deliver aggressive, punchy sound with enough volume to fill larger rooms (the Tribit's bass goes a little deeper, but I was pretty satisfied with this speaker's low-end capabilities). For even bigger sound, you can wirelessly link multiple Rave Party 2 and other Soundcore speakers that support the company's PartyCast 2.0 feature. 

While this speaker isn't fully waterproof and can't float like some speakers can, it's splash-proof, with an IPX4 rating, and has a microphone input with discrete gain and reverb controls (no microphone is included). In the companion app for iOS and Android, you can customize the sound profile and light show. Battery life is rated at up to 16 hours, but that number will drop if you crank the volume.

I did think the sound held together pretty well at higher volumes -- it mostly avoided distorting -- and the speaker is designed to play loudly outdoors. That said, indoors the speaker sounds best below 75 percent volume, unless you're having a party, in which case all critical listening goes out the door. 

JBL's third-generation Boombox 3 features some design changes from its predecessor's, including a new swankier handle and a new three-way driver system that delivers clearer more detailed sound and similar impressive bass performance, creating bigger, richer sound overall. I could easily hear the difference when comparing this model to the Boombox 2. 

While the battery life rating remains the same (up to 24 hours at moderate volume levels), this Gen 3 model includes Bluetooth 5.3 instead of Bluetooth 5.1. Also, the speaker weighs about 1.7 pounds more (14.7 pounds or 6.7 kg) and just feels that much more substantial. 

Like the UE Hyperboom (see below), this has a USB-out port that allows you to charge external devices like your phone, and there's also an analog audio input if you want to go wired and connect a device without using Bluetooth connectivity (the Hyperboom adds an optical digital input).

For outdoor use, I like the design of the Boombox 3 better than UE Hyperboom. The portable Bluetooth speaker is easier to carry around and just looks more like an outdoor speaker. It's also fully waterproof and dustproof with an IPX67 rating (the previous model was waterproof but didn't have a dustproof rating).

With the JBL Boombox 2, I felt that the speaker, while well-designed, didn't quite live up to its expensive price tag from a sound quality standpoint. The Boombox 3 is still pricey, but its sound now has a more premium quality to it -- for portable boomboxes anyway. And if you have really deep pockets, you can link two together to create a stereo pair (or link several together to cover a wider area with sound). 

The JBL Partybox Encore Essential is the company's smallest PartyBox speaker to date but it's still got some heft to it, weighing in at 13 pounds (5.9 kg). It's a 11.54 by 10.87 by 12.87-inch cube that has a ring of light over the driver that pulsates and syncs to the beat of your music as it changes colors. The Essential is IPX4 splash-proof and has an integrated handle for easy toting. 

Rated for 100 watts of power (we always take power ratings with a grain of salt), the speaker doesn't have quite the volume or sound quality of the step-up PartyBox 110 (see below). But it has a 5.25-inch woofer and two 1.75-inch tweeters and has plenty of kick to it, and it's easier to carry around. In that sense, it offers a nice balance between size and power. 

Battery life is rated at 6 hours at moderate volume levels, and this speaker charges with an included AC adapter. It also has a charge-out port on the back along with a microphone port if you want to talk or sing to a crowd (microphone not included). 

To be clear, this is a mono speaker that's designed to put out a lot of sound (there's a bass boost mode) from a reasonably sized design. You can wirelessly pair two of these speakers and get significantly better sound (in stereo). But that would get a little pricey.

The PartyBox 110 packs some serious punch and delivers bigger sound than some of the portable boombox speakers on this list, including JBL's own Boombox 2 (see below). There's an integrated handle for toting the speaker, but the PartyBox 110 is pretty hefty, weighing in at 23 pounds and measuring slightly more than 22 inches tall. You can put this bluetooth boom box up vertically as shown in the picture above or place it horizontally, as it has rubber feet on both sides of the speaker.

It's rated for up to 12 hours of playback time at moderate volume levels and has a redesigned light show that syncs to the beat of your music (you can customize the light show from the speaker itself or use the JBL PartyBox companion app). 

The speaker has Bluetooth or a wired USB connection and there are guitar and mic inputs. It's also worth noting that the speaker is IPX4 splash-proof and you can wirelessly link two PartyBox 110 speakers together for stereo sound. I didn't test the stereo mode, but I was impressed with the sound of a single PartyBox 110 -- this bluetooth device puts out lots of well-defined bass with good overall clarity in the highs and mids -- and I suspect that pairing two of these together would be pretty awesome. 

I also liked how the speaker has no external AC adapter brick and only requires a cord for charging (the power adapter is in the speaker). For longer parties during which you're really cranking the tunes, you'd want to plug the speaker in if possible. But it does deliver enough volume to fill a spacious living room with sound and also plays loud enough for a small pool or beach party. 

The PartyBox 710 is a massive party speaker that has integrated wheels and requires a power source to operate; it does not have an integrated rechargeable battery. This is your best bet if you want a portable speaker that can deliver big, quality sound and operates on battery power. To be clear, this offers bigger and better sound than the JBL Boombox 2 -- but it is harder to carry around.

Anker's Soundcore Motion Boom is what I'd call a mini portable boombox speaker. It's kind of a poor man's version of JBL's well-regarded Xtreme 3 speaker, which lists for $350. Equipped with a handle and weighing a little over 4 pounds, the speaker reminds me of one of those giant flashlights or "floating lanterns" that were in vogue about 30 years ago. For the record, the Motion Boom actually does float and it's got an IPX7 waterproof rating. 

Anker says the Motion Boom delivers "huge stereo sound" and, yes, this portable bluetooth speaker plays pretty loud and has a decent amount of bass with reasonable clarity -- but I wouldn't call it huge and there's not much stereo separation (I kept the bass boost on at all times because the speaker sounds better that way.) It can't compete against bigger and more expensive speakers like  and Ultimate Ears' Hyperboom, but it packs a lot more volume and punch than more compact Bluetooth speakers like JBL's Flip 5 that cost around the same. It also travels well, so it's ideal for a beach excursion or a little tailgating. It also can be used as a backup battery to charge your smartphone or other mobile device.

The newer Motion Boom Plus (see above) does offer a significant bump in sound quality for about $65 to $75 more, depending on pricing fluctuations. If you can afford it, the Motion Boom Plus is the better option. If you want to go smaller, the Anker Soundcore Motion Plus Bluetooth speaker delivers very good sound for its size. It's not a Bluetooth boombox, however, and doesn't feature an integrated handle like the Motion Boom and Motion Boom Plus.

Sony's SRS-XG500 is the most direct competitor to the JBL Boombox 2. They're similarly priced and sized, with both featuring an integrated handle. The Sony is a little larger but weighs slightly less at 12.34 pounds (5.6 kg). 

I went back and forth comparing the sound of the two speakers. While I liked the JBL's sound a bit more because it came across as sounding a little clearer with better detail, the Sony pumps out a lot of bass -- it has a warmer, boomier sound quality that some people may prefer.

It's IP66 water-resistant and dustproof, meaning it can take a sustained spray of water but it can't be fully submerged. You also get a mic/guitar rear input and dual USB-out ports for charging your devices. (The speaker has its own power adapter; you can't charge it via USB-C.) Battery life is rated at 30 hours at moderate volume levels, which is very good. Crank your tunes and that number drops substantially. 

At night, you can light up the speaker with the LED light strips that ring the inside of the bass ports and use the Fiestable app to control the LEDs. The Sony Music app allows you to tweak the sound profile. Additionally, you can link the speaker with other Sony Bluetooth speakers to augment the sound.

If you don't want to get something quite as big as the JBL Boombox 2, the Xtreme 3 weighs a good deal less but is still large by Bluetooth speaker standards and puts out a lot of sound (though not as much as the Boombox 2). Instead of a built-in handle, a detachable shoulder strap is included.

Like JBL's smaller Bluetooth speakers, the Xtreme 3 is a versatile boom box that can be stood up vertically or placed horizontally. Though a tad bigger than the Xtreme 2, at first glance it doesn't look much different from the previous model, but it does have upgraded sound with slightly better bass and clarity while actually weighing slightly less. Here are the key differences between the two speakers, according to JBL: 

• Plays slightly louder: The Xtreme 3's rated output power is 2 x 25W versus the Xtreme 2's 2 x 20W.
• The Xtreme 3 is IPX67 (waterproof/dustproof) versus the Xtreme 2's IPX7 (waterproof).
• The Xtreme 3 offers JBL PartyBoost while the Xtreme 2 has JBL Connected Plus syncing technologies.
• The Xtreme 3 improves charge time to just 2.5 hours, down from 3.5 hours for the Xtreme 2 (both have 15 hours of battery life)
• The Xtreme 3 has Bluetooth 5.1, the Xtreme 2 has Bluetooth 4.2 .
• The Xtreme 3 is slightly larger but at 4.3 pounds weighs less than the Xtreme 2, which is 5.3 pounds.

Last year I reviewed Anker's Soundcore Rave Neo party speaker and gave it high marks. The Trance Go is essentially that speaker without the integrated LEDs that allow you to create a mini light show. It costs right around $100, plays loud for its size (it's a medium-size speaker that weighs about 6 pounds) and has a built-in handle that makes it easy to tote around. The speaker is fully waterproof and can get up to 24 hours on a single charge at moderate levels. A USB port allows you to charge devices. Also worth noting: For those who want more expansive sound for streaming music, you can link multiple Trance Go speakers.