Does the Sony WH-1000XM5 support Auracast? No, and here is what does

No. The Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones do not support Auracast, cannot join a broadcast at a venue or from a TV transmitter, and have not been given the feature by any firmware update so far.

What the XM5 does have

Sony's specification sheet lists Bluetooth 5.2 with the SBC, AAC and LDAC codecs and the classic A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP profiles. There is no LC3, the codec every Auracast broadcast uses, and no LE Audio. The XM5 also pairs with two devices at once and has a 3.5 mm input for the supplied cable.

The latest firmware, version 2.5.1 from 18 December 2025, added Apple Music and YouTube Music to Quick Access and strengthened security. Its notes, which also summarise earlier updates, mention Auto Switch, LDAC during multipoint, head tracking and better noise cancelling. Nothing about Auracast, LE Audio or broadcast. Avantree's Sony compatibility guide puts it plainly: the XM5 "does not support LE Audio or Auracast".

Why people think it does

On 2 October 2025 Sony pushed an Auracast update to two products: the WH-1000XM6 headphones (firmware 3.0.0) and the WF-1000XM5 earbuds (firmware 6.0.0). The earbuds share the XM5 name with the headphones, one letter apart, and a lot of the coverage that week was read as "the XM5 got Auracast". It was the earbuds.

Which Sony models do support it

| Model | Type | Status | | --- | --- | --- | | WH-1000XM6 | Over-ear | Works, from firmware 3.0.0. Android only; Sony's Sound Connect app scans for streams | | WF-1000XM6 | Earbuds | Works out of the box; SoundGuys confirmed it in testing | | WF-1000XM5 | Earbuds | Works, from firmware 6.0.0 (October 2025) | | WH-1000XM5 | Over-ear | Not supported |

Sony's Xperia 1 IV and newer phones can also send and join broadcasts. The phone guide has the detail.

Could Sony add it to the XM5 later? Nothing Sony has published says it will. The October 2025 update named only the two newer products, and the XM5 is not on the Bluetooth SIG's Auracast listing.

What an XM5 owner can do instead

There is no app or firmware trick that makes the XM5 join a broadcast over Bluetooth. The one real option uses the cable: a small Auracast receiver with a 3.5 mm output joins the broadcast, and the XM5 plugs into it as wired headphones. It works, but it is an extra box and a cord, not the wireless experience you bought the headphones for.

Avantree's guide also suggests a classic Bluetooth transmitter for the XM5. That is fine for listening to your own TV, but it is ordinary Bluetooth, not Auracast, and will not help at a venue.

Headphones at a similar price that do work

If you are buying over-ears with Auracast in mind, these are in the same bracket as the XM5.

The direct successor, and the simplest answer if you like the XM5.

Sold with the Smart Tx dongle, which also broadcasts from any USB-C or 3.5 mm source.

Launched in September 2026. The Bluetooth SIG lists it as a receiver, but launch reviews did not test a broadcast, so treat that listing as the evidence for now.

Bose's QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) have Auracast in beta on Android and Windows. Our news story covers it. Every headphone we track is on the headphones page.

How we checked

We read Sony's WH-1000XM5 firmware notes up to version 2.5.1 and its specification sheet, Sony's October 2025 update as reported by SoundGuys, Avantree's Sony compatibility guide and the Bluetooth SIG product listing.