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JBL
If you’re looking for the best speaker for hosting or taking to a party, you need something a little different from one for your living space or even a standard option from our look at the best Bluetooth speakers. A party speaker needs to command the room sounding powerful, often bassy, and truly captivate your audience. Often, it’s helpful if the speaker is portable and a light show at the same time is a sweet bonus too. Throw in waterproofing and you’re all set for a pool party or the risk of someone splashing beer around.
That’s why we’ve specifically laid out the best party speakers below, focusing on such features. You’ll find different price ranges and needs catered for here but if you’re still not entirely confident, you can also scroll on down to check out how we chose such party speakers. That will help you come to the right decision for your situation. After all, not everyone needs or wants the biggest of party speakers so it’s good to cover all your bases with different requirements. Here’s what we consider to be the best party speakers right now.
The best party speakers in 2024
Buy the for the best overall party speaker
Buy the for the best portable party speaker
Buy the for the best budget party speaker
Buy the for the best battery life
Buy the for the best bass
Buy the for all your karaoke party speaker needs
JBL PartyBox 310
Best overall party speaker
JBL
Pros
Cons
Powerful sound
Not entirely portable
Great light show
Only splash proof
The JBL PartyBox 310 is the ultimate party speaker if you don’t mind dragging it around. It’s pretty heavy at 38 pounds but the idea is that you pull it around with the telescopic handle and the wheels on its base. This isn’t a speaker for tossing into the pool. It’s one for sitting to the side for whichever venue you’re heading to.
It’s certainly powerful once set up thanks to it offering 240 watts of sound. JBL speakers are generally pretty good for booming bass and that’s the case here. Throughout your experience, it can offer up a dazzling light show which reacts and dances to the beat accordingly. It has subtle pulsing and powerful strobing effects so whether you want a chilled night in or you’re looking for an enthusiastic party, the JBL PartyBox 310 is all set to help.
Up to 18 hours of battery life is pretty great while there’s a USB port if you want to connect your phone or tablet to recharge. Audio is impressively loud at max volume and you can always use the app to adjust things to your liking thanks to the equalizer and the DJ controls.
Most people won’t need to crank up the volume to max, such is the JBL PartyBox 310’s power, but it’s nice to have such flexibility here. The JBL PartyBox 310 needs a little planning but it’s worth it if you want a party speaker that can also follow you around easily enough.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 18 hours
Features
Synced light show, telescopic handle, USB port
Speaker wattage
240W
JBL PartyBox 100
Best portable party speaker
JBL PartyBox 100
Pros
Cons
Easy portability
Battery life could be better
Great sound
For something more portable from JBL, check out the JBL PartyBox 100. It’s a good size for pumping out its 160W of power but it also fits perfectly on your campsite or on a surface at a party. By doing so, you don’t just get powerful bass and audio, you also get a sweet light show. It’s possible to choose from several RGB LED light patterns or you can simply leave the speaker to figure out what’s best based on what you’re listening to.
The JBL PartyBox 100 predominantly works via Bluetooth but you can also hook up a mic or guitar for further functionality. Through Bluetooth, you can also connect two compatible speakers together for True Wireless Stereo. It’s ideal if you need to expand the vast expanse of sound you’re already getting from just one speaker. It’s even possible to mount your speaker on a pole if you prefer.
Battery life could be a little better given you get about 12 hours at most but on the other hand, that should suffice for most needs. It’s only really camping that you might be disappointed but for general parties, you should be all good for a sufficient amount of time. It’s also always possible to connect it to a permanent power source if you’d prefer.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 12 hours
Features
mic and guitar input, RGB light show
Speaker wattage
160W
Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3
Best budget party speaker
Ultimate Ears
Pros
Cons
Very portable
Not room filling
Dustproof and floatable
Not everyone wants a huge party speaker. Sometimes, it’s more useful to have a tiny party atmosphere which is where the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 comes in. It’s a speaker you can toss in a bag and easily hang up while camping or place next to the pool. Don’t worry about just placing it by the pool either as the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 has a floatable design so it’ll happily bob around the water without any issue thanks to its IP67 rating. That makes the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 fairly robust and also a lot of fun too. It won’t pack the punch of something like the JBL PartyBox but it’s perfect if you don’t want to make a huge commitment to lugging around a large speaker around.
The Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 has 360-degree sound due to its design with outdoor boost encouraging you to use the speaker while camping or participating in sports. On the other hand, it’s small enough to place on a table or somewhere in your rowing boat or similar. If you want more from it, you can always pair up two of the speakers for louder and more stereo sound.
Up to 14 hours of battery life is pretty good for this size of speaker so it should keep you happy for plenty of time. The Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 3 also has a wireless range of 131 feet so it’s perfect for your campsite or pool party. It also has a USB charging port and a convenient loop for attaching it to things.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 14 hours
Features
Floatable design
Speaker wattage
40mm
Soundcore Boom 2
Best battery life
Soundcore
Pros
Cons
Waterproof
Sound could be stronger
Plenty of features
Packed with features while still offering exceptional battery life, the Soundcore Boom 2 only really lacks in terms of powerful bass. That might be a dealbreaker for some people but for many others, it’s just great to see this party speaker offering so many awesome features rolled into one.
That includes the fact it has IP7 waterproofing and it’s floatable so you can literally throw it in the pool and the Soundcore Boom 2 will keep playing and be just fine in the water. Alternatively, if your camping trip has changed to some pretty vicious rainfall, the Soundcore Boom 2 will be fine to handle that too. It has a great app with a customizable equalizer but it also uses PartyCast 2.0 which means you can connect over 100 compatible speakers together. Sure, you’re probably not actually going to buy 100 speakers but it’s nice to be able to connect a few together.
The only true downside to the Soundcore Boom 2 is its bass. It has 80W of power but that’s fairly weak compared to other speakers listed here. It’s also dependent on you enabling BassUp 2.0 which can affect battery life otherwise you’re left with 60W. Whatever you opt for, at least the Soundcore Boom 2 has dynamic 2.1 channel audio so you get clear highs and plenty of clarity.
Elsewhere, the Soundcore Boom 2 is also practical thanks to its built-in power bank functionality so you can charge your other devices like your phone. That’s particularly useful when camping. And of course, there’s always a light show here with beat-synced lights and seven unique light effects to pick from. The Soundcore Boom 2 is certainly tons of fun.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 24 hours
Features
Floatable, IPX7 waterproof, RGB lights, custom EQ
Speaker wattage
80W
Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3
Best portable bass
Ultimate Ears
Pros
Cons
Great bass for the size
Not very exciting looking
Strong battery life
Small enough to hold in your hand but offering some potent power, the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 is going to suit pretty much all your needs. It has 360-degree sound which feels immersive while offering deep thundering bass. Its 300W of power is pretty impressive in a build that can be held in your hands. It provides a balanced sound while there’s always the option to focus on the bass instead.
Even better, the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 can be thrown in the water and bounce back up thanks to its floatable build. It’s waterproof so it’s fun to take it with you in the pool. It’s also covered in a two-tone fabric mixture which is tough yet attractive looking. There’s no RGB show here so the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 can look a little plain compared to other party speakers but it makes up for that with pure power.
Continuing the practical side of things, the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 also has a Magic button. This button essentially lets you play, pause, or skip tracks so it’s not as exciting as Magic suggests but it certainly works well. Put through dozens of rigorous durability tests including thousands of button presses and tumbles, the Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3 is built to last. As with other speakers, you can even pair it together with up to 150 speakers although 2-3 is much more likely. Rounding things off well, the 20 hour battery life should suit most situations.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 20 hours
Features
Waterproof, optional wireless charging, floatable
Speaker wattage
300W
Sony SRS-XP500
Best karaoke speaker
Sony
Pros
Cons
Gorgeous design
Only splash resistant
Perfect karaoke inputs
For any kind of audio/visual equipment, Sony is a name worth buying for. That’s the case with the Sony SRS-XP500 which is aimed specifically at providing a great portable karaoke experience if you so wish. It uses Sony’s Mega Bass to ensure powerful sound at all times with SBC, AAC, and LDAC codecs all supported for the audiophile in your life. It has two front tweeters to ensure crisp highs while the dual X-balanced speakers provide deep and punchy Mega Bass.
The downside here is that you’ll need to keep it away from the pool but the Sony SRS-XP500 is at least IPX4 splash resistance so it’s fine if there’s the occasional drip or splash going on. The Sony SRS-XP500 also has indirect illumination lighting which is perfect for a classy party. Even better, the Sony SRS-XP500 has two microphone and guitar inputs in the rear so you can easily do a bit more with it than just regular speaker stuff. You can even use it as a guitar amp if you choose to.
For portability’s sake, the Sony SRS-XP500 has a built-in handle so you can take it around with you. Up to 20 hours of battery life makes that easier still but the nice bonus is that 10 minutes of charging gives back up to 80 minutes of playback which is convenient if you’re in a rush. Other useful extras include USB charging and the option to plug in a USB memory stick to play music that way. It’s possible to connect up to 100 speakers if you want while the Fiestable app means you can adjust the lighting to your wishes. It’s all suitably useful with the highlight being those additional mic/guitar ports.
Specifications
battery life
Up to 20 hours
Features
LED lights, two mic/guitar rear inputs, carry handle
Speaker wattage
77W
How we chose these party speakers
When buying a party speaker, you need to think about some key things before hitting the buy button. Randomly choosing any old party speaker is unlikely to be the perfect solution for your needs. Instead, a bit of research goes a long way. We researched plenty and we also considered some pivotal things that you should think about too before you buy one. Here’s what to focus on when buying a party speaker, and exactly what we considered too.
How portable do you need it?
Why do you need a party speaker? Where are you planning on using it? Are you planning on using it at home or are you taking it camping with you? All these questions can only be answered by you. If you need a speaker to place by your home pool or in your living space for the party then portability is less vital. Alternatively, if you want to take it to the park or for your camping trip, it makes sense to opt for a size that’s more easily taken out and about with you.
So, how about that battery life?
Tied into portability, how vital is battery life for your needs? Again, if you’re at home, you can connect your party speaker to your mains electric and not worry about it. A long camping trip without any power though and you’re going to need good battery life. That goes even more so if you pick a party speaker which works as a charger as you may need to refresh your phone this way. You ideally need at least 12 hours as the volume and how you use the speaker generally reduces the battery life to lower than manufacturer estimates. Obviously, the more battery life, the better, so that’s where speakers with over 20 hours of battery life look so appealing.
Think about the features
Most of the party speakers here have lighting built-in which is a particularly nice touch for a party atmosphere. There are other features too that may be important. A customizable EQ is a game changer if you want to tweak how your music sounds. Also, physical features like a floatable design are useful. Look out for mic and guitar inputs if you plan on trying some karaoke as well.
Durability is a useful thing
Parties can get hectic. That also means you need a tough speaker. Drinks can spill, things can get thrown into pools, and items can even be kicked at times too. Buy a speaker which can handle the unexpected. Most party speakers are built for such occasions so steer clear of anything that isn’t at least splash proof. Ideally, go for the highest IP rating possible. You never know what might happen while you’re all having fun. Things like carry handles or hooks can also help you keep your speaker safe by making it easier to grip to.
Don’t forget the price
If you just want a party speaker for occasional use, probably don’t consider the speakers that cost hundreds of dollars. Sure, you may get the best quality but is it really necessary if you only need a party speaker a couple of times a year? Align your budget according to what you can afford but also if it’s even worth investing in something or not. More is more but sometimes, it’s simply not essential. A cheaper party speaker can still be good for those unusual occasions.
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