$198 is the current sale price of Sony's WH-1000XM5 headphones at Amazon and Best Buy, matching the Prime Day 2026 floor from late June and landing $50 below the roughly $250 the over-ear headphones typically fetch between promotions. The math reconciles: $250 typical street minus $50 equals $198. Original list was $399.99, putting the per-unit discount off retail at $201.99. No Amazon Prime subscription is required, which separates this promotion from the June event.
Sony launched the WH-1000XM5 in 2022. The 2025 successor, the WH-1000XM6, added modest gains to sound and noise cancellation and restored the folding design the XM4 and earlier models carried but the XM5 dropped. The XM5 never folded. The headphones are considered competitive against modern alternatives despite the 2022 launch date.
Sony headphone lineup
| Model | Launch year | Original list | Current price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WH-1000XM4 | 2020 | $349.99 | Rumored reintroduction; no price confirmed |
| WH-1000XM5 | 2022 | $399.99 | $198 at Amazon and Best Buy |
| WH-1000XM6 | 2025 | not disclosed | not on promotion |
The XM4 is the side story. Sony is reportedly planning a reintroduction of the 2020 model at a lower price. The XM4 launched at $349.99; whether a relaunched version undercuts the XM5's current $198 is considered unlikely.
Amazon and Best Buy carry the same $198, leaving no retailer spread. The sale runs for a week as part of Sony's Labor Day promotions.
Sony is among several consumer electronics brands running Labor Day deals. Sonos is discounting its current home theater lineup at Best Buy: the Arc Ultra at $899 (down $200), the Beam Gen 2 at $399 (down $100), the Era 300 speaker at $379 (down $100), the Sub Mini at $399.99 (down $100), and the Sub 4 at $759 (down $140). The Nintendo Switch 2 holds at $449.99 through August 31; the base model rises to $499.99 on September 1, with bundles this fall priced as high as $549.99.