Why do podcasters wear headphones? 3 reasons, and when to skip

Why do podcasters wear headphones, and do you need a pair for your first episode? It depends on how you record: yes on a remote call, often not when you record alone.

Here are the 3 reasons, plus a table that shows when you need them and the $0 fix for each setup.

Why do podcasters wear headphones? The 3 reasons

1. To keep the other voice out of your mic

On a remote call, your co-host’s voice comes out of your speakers. Zencastr’s help center says your mic can pick it up, which puts echo and bleed on your track. Bleed is someone else’s voice on a track meant only for you.

Some echo can be reduced later, Zencastr says, but “bleed between tracks can’t be fully undone.”

Here’s a made-up example. You and a co-host record 30 minutes in Zencastr, each on your own track.

Before: you use your laptop speakers. Your co-host’s voice plays out of them, and your mic records it a moment later. When you line up the 2 tracks to edit, every sentence they say has an echo.

After: you both wear wired earbuds. Their voice no longer plays into your mic, so you can cut your cough without touching their words.

Cost: $0, with earbuds you already own.

2. To stop echo and feedback

Descript’s guest guide recommends headphones “to prevent echo and audio feedback.” Echo is people on the call hearing their own voice come back late. Feedback is the howl a mic makes when it picks up its own sound from a speaker.

Echo cancellation (software that tries to remove the speaker sound from your mic) is the backup. Descript turns it on only when you say you’re on speakers. Zencastr suggests it when someone can’t wear headphones.

3. To hear your own mic live

Monitoring means listening to your mic while you record. You catch a popped P or a buzz while you can still fix it.

Some USB mics have a headphone jack for this. Samson lists the Q2U (opens in a new tab) with a 3.5 mm headphone output and a level control. Samson calls it zero-latency: you hear what you record with no delay.

Here’s a made-up example. You record a solo episode on a Samson Q2U, plugged into a laptop over USB.

Before: no headphones. You record 40 minutes, play it back, and every P pops. You record it all again.

After: you plug wired earbuds into the mic’s 3.5 mm jack and set a comfortable level. In minute 1 you hear a pop. You fit the foam windscreen that comes with the mic, which Samson says cuts pops, and keep going.

Saved: a second 40-minute take.

Do you need headphones to record a podcast?

Hearing yourself (reason 3) helps in every setup. Reasons 1 and 2 only come up when a voice plays from a speaker, and that means a remote call.

In 1 room, each mic hears the other person directly, so headphones can’t help with reason 1.

When you can skip headphones

You can skip them if you record alone, with no call and nothing playing from a speaker. Then reasons 1 and 2 don’t apply.

Reason 3 still does, and a test covers it. Record 30 seconds, play it back on earbuds, fix what you hear, then start the full take.

That’s the phone-only route too. Read how to start a podcast with just your phone.

Why guests on video podcasts wear headphones

The reason depends on where the guest sits.

• The guest is remote. Their voice has to play somewhere. Zencastr says everyone should wear headphones, because echo comes from anyone using speakers.
• The guest is in the room. Headphones let each person hear their own mic, so they notice when they drift away from it. Zoom, the recorder maker, gives its PodTrak P4next 4 headphone outputs so everyone at the table can listen.

Closed-back or open-back headphones for podcasting?

For recording, pick closed-back. Closed-back headphones have solid ear cups. Open-back ones let sound out through the back.

For use with a mic, beyerdynamic recommends closed-back, because they block more outside noise and leak less sound into the mic. It sells its open-back DT 990 PRO for editing and for hearing small flaws in a mix.

Open-backs may bleed into sensitive mics and cause feedback at high volume, beyerdynamic says.

Wired or Bluetooth?

Use wired. Zencastr says wired headphones beat Bluetooth for latency, the delay between a sound and when you hear it. Descript calls wired the best choice: little delay, and they won’t disconnect.

Descript also warns against using one Bluetooth headset as your mic and your speaker at once. It says that forces the headset into a lower-quality audio mode. If you use Bluetooth, use it only for listening, and charge it fully first.

AirPods are Bluetooth too, so the same rule applies.

What to use

Look for 2 things: closed-back, so less sound leaks into your mic, and wired, so there’s less delay. Start with what you already own.

We haven’t tested these hands-on. Our picks are based on the makers’ published specs and, for both models, the RTINGS reviews linked below.

Main pick: DT 770 PRO, 32 ohm. Best for recording on a laptop or phone. Of its 3 versions, beyerdynamic labels the 32-ohm one for mobile devices. RTINGS’s review tested the 250-ohm version and found the fit can feel tight on larger heads.

Budget pick: ATH-M40x. Best if the DT 770 PRO costs more than you want to spend. At $109, it’s about $51 less than the DT 770 PRO’s October 2026 sale price, and about $91 less than its list price. RTINGS’s ATH-M40x review, first published in 2016, lists it as closed-back and fairly comfortable, but found it doesn’t block much outside noise.

Common mistakes

• No headphones on a remote call. Your co-host’s voice lands on your track, and you can’t fully remove it later. Ask your guest to wear wired earbuds too.
• One Bluetooth headset as mic and speaker. Descript says quality drops. Record with a separate mic, and keep Bluetooth for listening.
• One pair of headphones for 2 people. If you both listen while you record, each person needs their own pair. How to use 2 USB mics at the same time covers the setup. The simplest podcast setup for 2 people prices same-room kits at 3 budgets.

What to do next

• Today: wear the wired earbuds you own on your next call or recording. If your mic has a headphone jack, plug them in there.
• Co-host in another city? Read how to record a podcast with 2 people in different locations.
• Sound distant once you hear yourself? Work through why your mic sounds far away.