Quality and Durability

I’ve always found Oticon products to be well built and durable. They offer up to a three-year warranty, and, in my clinical experience, they have always gone the extra mile to resolve any repair issues promptly. As with other top companies in the industry, including Phonak and ReSound, the warranty is international, and they have an extensive network of independent providers and company-owned HearingLife locations.

Oticon Hearing Aid Prices

Like most premium hearing aid brands, Oticon does not list its prices online. You must visit a hearing clinic in person to get accurate pricing information. From my years of fitting Oticon devices, I’d estimate that you’ll pay anywhere from $1,000 to $3,500 per device. It is similar to other comparable hearing aids, including Phonak’s prices and Signia’s costs.

If these estimates are outside your budget, don’t worry! There are plenty of affordable over-the-counter hearing aids for mild to moderate hearing loss on the market. For comparison, MDHearing’s prices start at just a few hundred dollars, while Eargo’s prices start at around $1,650 per pair.

A Bit of History on Oticon

Oticon is one of the oldest hearing aid companies in the world. In 1904, Hans Demant became the Danish distributor of Acousticon, which later became Oticon.1

In 1992, Oticon released MultiFocus, their first non-linear, programmable, automatic hearing aid. This new approach to amplification has become the standard. At that time, only Oticon and ReSound hearing aids had this technology. Patients reported significant improvements in hearing and quality of life. The success of the MultiFocus was followed by their first digital instrument, DigiFocus, in 1996.

Since MultiFocus, Oticon’s philosophy of hearing aids has revolved around designing hearing aids that restore normal loudness perception through compression. Their approach differed slightly from other providers I’ve reviewed, like ReSound, because Oticon used less compression in the higher frequencies to allow critical speech sounds to remain audible in background noise. In combination with directional microphones, this has worked well for many of my patients.

Current Product Lineup

The current iteration of Oticon’s technology is called BrainHearing, first introduced in the Opn product line in 2016. BrainHearing technology is incorporated into every new hearing-aid model Oticon sells.

Oticon’s current flagship hearing aid is Oticon Intent, which was released in early 2024. It is unique in that it contains 4D sensors that intuit the wearer’s listening intention and preferences. Using insights acquired from BrainHearing, Oticon engineered Intent hearing aids to respond to the wearer’s head and body movements, along with conversational activity and the surrounding environment. That provides a highly personalized approach to generating sound input. Intent hearing aids are a good choice for my patients who are active and highly social, as well as for those who wish to be.

Another current offering is Oticon’s Real line of mini RITE and mini BTE hearing aids. Real hearing aids are powered through Oticon’s new Polaris R platform, which uses ultrafast sound detectors to process and reduce disruptive sounds. When coupled with BrainHearing technology, it enables the wearer to have easier conversations with less straining. Real hearing aids are engineered to reduce wind and handling noise.

Oticon also offers an essential line of hearing aids called Zircon (mini BTE and mini RITE devices). They’re high-quality products that are available at two performance levels. Zircon hearing aids use BrainHearing technology, but they’re available at a lower price point than Intent and Real hearing aids. They’re compatible with Oticon CROS, and come in lots of colors.

Oticon hearing aids support two-way hands-free phone and video calls for most iPhones and iPads. You can also use them for direct streaming from some Android devices, and connect with family and friends remotely using FaceTime or Zoom.

Accessories and Apps

The Oticon Companion app provides basic remote control of the devices and cool features such as Find My Hearing Aid and the ability to manually adjust the mix of accessories and ambient sounds. That’s great for TV listening (keeping the noise from the kitchen down) or when using a remote microphone. Unlike Oticon’s earlier ON app, the Companion app lets your hearing-care professional provide remote support. That’s very useful for people who don’t want to visit a store in person whenever they need an adjustment.

ConnectClip Microphone

The ConnectClip is a nice multifunction device. First, as the name suggests, it is a directional remote microphone. This allows you to control the negative impact of distance, reverberation, and background noise by picking up speech very close to the person talking and then wirelessly streaming that “clean” speech to your hearing aids up to about 60 feet away.

Secondly, it acts as a simple remote control for volume and program change. It’s ideal for users with dexterity difficulties and those with memory problems who may need a family member or caregiver to assist them with their hearing aids.

Finally, Android users can use the Connect Clip as a Bluetooth “re-broadcaster” to stream phone calls and music from the phone.

TV Adapter 3.0

This small device connects to your TV or cable box using either an analog or digital connection. Once paired with the hearing aids, it will stream the TV audio up to 45 feet. This is separate from the TV speaker, so your listening partners have separate volume control. As noted above, the mix of TV sounds with environmental sounds can be adjusted using the ON app.

Phone Adapter

This small box connects to your landline phone and pairs to the ConnectClip, which then streams to your hearing aids. This essentially turns your landline phone into a cordless phone.

The Bottom Line on Oticon

While I think Oticon does a solid job of trying to offer a wide range of price points, the reality is that many people still cannot afford hearing aids. For people with mild to moderate hearing loss, OTC hearing aids may be an option, but it won’t give you the opportunity to meet face to face with an audiologist.

Unfortunately, the most seemingly obvious solution, Medicare, doesn’t provide any coverage for hearing aids. There is legislation in the works, but that’s a non-starter for now. Some private insurance plans cover some of the costs. If you are of limited means, your state Medicaid program may be able to help. If you’re still working, as many seniors find themselves needing to do, check with your state Vocational Rehabilitation office. If you are a veteran and eligible for general VA health care, hearing aids, including premium devices, are fully covered, as are accessories. For more information, head to our guide on how to find free or reduced-cost hearing aids.

If Oticon hearing aids are in your price range, I have a high degree of confidence that you will hear better and have a wonderful user experience – from fit to service to reliability. For more details, watch my interview on Medicare and hearing aids with SeniorLiving.org Editor-in-Chief Jeff Hoyt below.