Can you use apple earbuds with an android phone

You can find many amazing wireless earbuds like the Google Pixel Buds Pro and the Sony WF-1000XM4 on the market, but none are as popular as Apple's AirPods. Despite the latter not being officially compatible with Android, they are extremely popular, with Apple shipping a few million units every quarter.

If you recently got a pair of AirPods or were gifted one, don't throw them away thinking they won't work with your Android phone. You can pair and use AirPods with Android, albeit with a few compromises. Follow this guide to learn how.

Can you use AirPods or AirPods Pro with Android?

Yes and no. Since AirPods and AirPods Pro are Bluetooth earbuds, you can pair and use them with any Android phone or any Bluetooth device for that matter. Technically, this means you can pair your AirPods with the best Android watches and the top Android tablets as well. This way, you won't have to carry your phone when out running.

The catch is that since Apple's earbuds do not officially support Android, you cannot check their battery level or control advanced features like ANC and Transparency mode. And because there's no Siri for Android, you cannot trigger the voice assistant or switch to Google Assistant. Thankfully, there are workarounds to some of these issues to deliver a relatively better user experience.

The following AirPods models will work with Android:

1. AirPods 1
2. AirPods 2
3. AirPods 3
4. AirPods Pro
5. AirPods Pro (2nd gen.)
6. AirPods Max

How to connect AirPods to an Android phone

The steps below work for pairing the AirPods, AirPods Pro, or even the $549 AirPods Max.

1. On your Android device, open the Settings menu.
2. Navigate to the Bluetooth settings page.
3. Make sure Bluetooth is on and that your device is discoverable.

4. Open the charging case of your AirPods or AirPods Pro and press the white button on the back of the carrying case. If you are trying to pair the AirPods Max, just take them out of their case.
5. Your AirPods should appear under the Available devices section of your phone's Bluetooth menu.
6. Tap its name. Confirm the pairing process by tapping Pair from the dialog box that pops up.

And that's it. You have successfully managed to pair the AirPods with your Android phone. Apple uses the AAC codec to stream audio over Bluetooth to the AirPods. Android phones also support AAC, but there could be a difference in audio quality because of how the codec is implemented by your device manufacturer. And unlike the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, you cannot stream 24-bit audio on the AirPods, even when they are paired with an iPhone.

How to use AirPods with your Android phone

You can control music playback and switch between ANC and Transparency mode using the force sensor of the AirPods (3rd gen) or AirPods Pro. Press the sensor to play or pause music playback. A double press jumps to the next song, while a triple press of the force sensor plays the previous song. The actions remain the same irrespective of which earbuds' force sensor you use. This behavior is not customizable as well.

To switch between ANC and Transparency mode, long press the force sensor. You'll hear a chime when the mode switch happens. You cannot customize or control any of these aspects of the AirPods from your Android phone. This makes things difficult, as you have no way of telling whether noise cancelation is enabled or not directly from your phone.

There's no way to control the volume level directly using the earbuds. On iPhones, this is possible by calling Siri, but since the voice assistant is not available on Android, you'll control the volume level using your phone.

You also miss out on other AirPods features like Spatial Audio and automatic device switching on Android. These are only available on the AirPods when you pair and use them with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Another key AirPods feature not available on Android is Find My integration. The feature allows you to track the location of your AirPods if it is ever misplaced or stolen. But since there's no Find My support for Google's operating system, there's no way to track the earbuds from your Android device.

Lastly, you cannot reverse wireless charge the AirPods using your Android phone due to the difference in the charging standards used.

Check the battery level of your AirPods from your Android phone

The lack of official Android support means you cannot check the battery level of your AirPods. At least officially. On the iPhone, you can check the AirPods battery level through the Battery Widget or by asking Siri. On Android, a third-party app called CAPod (via XDA) fixes this issue to a certain extent. Once you grant the app the necessary permissions, it shows the battery level of each AirPod along with the charging case and the connection strength.

That's not it, though. If your AirPods do not automatically connect to your Android phone, you can jump into the app settings and enable the Auto connect option. There's also an option to automatically resume music playback every time your AirPods connect to your Android phone.

Can you trigger Google Assistant using AirPods on Android?

No. On iPhones, AirPods support always-on "Hey Siri," but that's not possible on Android. There's no official companion app for AirPods on Android that you can use to customize its setting or switch to another voice assistant. A workaround here is to use the Assistant Trigger Android app. It allows you to trigger Google Assistant by squeezing or double-tapping Apple's wireless buds. The app works with all AirPods models and even the Powerbeats Pro.

Maybe just skip the AirPods and buy something easier?

Overall, while you can get the AirPods to work with Android, the user experience leaves a lot to be desired. So, if you haven't already, avoid buying AirPods.

Plenty of other wireless earbuds provide more value for money and features than Apple's offering. If you're on a tight budget, consider buying one of the best cheap wireless earbuds on the market. They pack more features and provide a better experience on Android devices.