Bone conduction headphones take advantage of the fact that sound is simply vibrations, directing them into the bones in your head. · These headphones use plates that sit against the cheekbones to deliver sound vibrations through the jaw and skull bone directly into the cochlea. They leave the ear canal open, which allows outside sound to still get in. · Unlike traditional headphones, bone conduction headphones allow the user to hear what’s happening in their surroundings. This makes this style of headphones a great choice for outside activities where hearing oncoming vehicles or bikes can save

Most of the time, bone conduction headphones have IP ratings that can withstand, at minimum, the sweat that you develop during workouts.

Also, if you like to run at night or generally just be aware of your surroundings, bone conduction headphones keep your ears free to hear the world around you while you jam out to your playlist.

Some bone conduction headphones are fully waterproof. On this list, models such as the Shokz OpenSwim orTRI Pro 2 Multi-Sport with PLAYLIST+ are designed to work in wet environments — and you can absolutely swim (or snorkel!) while wearing them.