Samsung is Starting to Catch Up to Apple on Hearing Health

Samsung has announced that its Galaxy Buds Hearing Aid feature has received approval from the U.S. FDA, paving the way for the inclusion of hearing aid capabilities in the Galaxy Buds within the fourth quarter of 2026. This move joins Apple, which introduced such functionality to the AirPods in 2024 as an FDA-cleared hearing health feature. Samsung will join Apple in offering over-the-counter hearing aid functionality, allowing Galaxy Buds to replace a hearing aid for individuals with mild to moderate hearing loss.

Much like the AirPods, Galaxy Buds users can now take a self-administered hearing test in just five minutes, with the resulting clinical-grade audiogram used to adjust the built-in Hearing Aid feature. The Galaxy Buds amplify sounds that users struggle to hear, such as high frequencies or whispers, similar to the AirPods. Additionally, noise elimination and beamforming technologies help users by focusing on the sounds in front of them while suppressing background noise.

To develop the hearing aid feature set, Samsung collaborated with the National Acoustic Laboratories and Samsung Medical Center. The Hearing Aid feature will be available on the Galaxy Buds3 Pro and Galaxy Buds4 Pro, provided the user is running a newer Samsung Galaxy smartphone that supports One UI 8 or later. Although Apple had a two-year head start, Samsung is now beginning to catch up with a Galaxy Buds hearing health option that matches many of the features found in the AirPods.