Bose Headphones & Earbuds Light Colors Explained
What every Bose light means — QuietComfort Earbuds 2, QuietComfort 45, NC 700, Sport Earbuds. White, amber, and red lights for battery, pairing, and charging.
Solid
white
Quick info
Visual description
Bose uses a minimalist LED design — most products have just one or two LEDs. On earbuds, the LED is typically on the outer face of the earbud. On over-ear headphones, the LED is on the power button or the side of the right cup. Bose uses white, amber, and red across their lineup, with amber indicating charging and white indicating power/connection status.
What it means
Bose headphone LED quick reference:
White solid (brief at power-on): Powering on. Goes off during use on most Bose earbuds.
White blink: Bluetooth connection searching or pairing mode, depending on blink rate.
White rapid blink: Pairing mode — the headphones are in Bluetooth discovery mode.
White slow blink (every 5s): Powered on and connected (some models use this as a connected heartbeat).
Amber solid: Charging in progress (case or USB cable). Standard for all Bose earbuds.
Amber blink: Low battery during use — start looking for your charger.
Red solid: Usually charging on older Bose models (e.g., NC 700) — red changes to white or turns off at full charge.
Red blink during use: Low battery. Approximately 30 minutes remaining.
LED off during use: Normal for many Bose earbuds — LED goes off during active playback to conserve battery.
Brand & model variations
The same light pattern can mean different things across manufacturers.
| Brand / Model | What white solid means | Recommended action |
|---|---|---|
Bose QuietComfort Earbuds 2 (2022–2024) | LED on outer earbud panel. White LED blinks in pairing mode. Solid amber in case = charging. Amber blink out of case = low battery. No LED during normal use = expected. | Bose Music app shows exact battery percentage for both earbuds and case. |
Bose QuietComfort 45 (over-ear) | LED on right cup. Solid amber = charging via USB-C. White blink = pairing mode triggered by holding Bluetooth button. No LED during use = battery OK and connected. | Hold Bluetooth button on QC45 for 3 seconds to enter pairing mode (white blink). |
Bose Bose NC 700 (over-ear) | LED on right cup near volume up button. Solid red = charging. White flash = powered on. White rapid blink = pairing mode. White triple blink at power-on = high battery. Red triple blink at power-on = low battery. | NC 700 power-on LED color tells you battery state: white triple blink = good. Red triple blink = charge soon. |
Bose Bose Sport Earbuds / Ultra Open Earbuds | Sport Earbuds have amber LED for charging, white for pairing mode. Ultra Open Earbuds (2024) use the same pattern with a brighter LED visible from outside the ear. | Bose Sport Earbuds: factory reset = hold earbud button for 30 seconds while outside the case. |
Diagnose your issue
Answer a few questions to narrow down the cause.
What does the Bose LED show?
Safe next steps
Ordered from least to most involved. Check each step as you go.
Download the Bose Music app for the best battery status and firmware update experience.
Bose LED goes off during normal playback — this is intentional, not a fault.
Rapid white blink = pairing mode. Connect from Bluetooth settings.
Amber = charging. Red triple blink at startup = low battery. Both are informational, not errors.
Factory reset (earbuds): place in case, hold earbud button 30 seconds — all pairings cleared.
When to escalate
Stop troubleshooting and contact your ISP or manufacturer if:
- Amber LED never goes off after 4+ hours of charging — charging circuit or battery issue.
- One Bose earbud charges (amber) but the other never shows any LED — battery or contact failure.