Can You Use Sonos Speakers in the Bathroom? (Which speakers are the best?)

Listening to great audio while I’m lying in the bathtub with a fancy drink in my hand has never been an easy task. Showers and a small bathroom make it even trickier. However, I was surprised to find out that Sonos has a solution with their lineup of waterproof speakers. 

Sonos has a few speakers that have been rigorously tested and have the appropriate International Protection Marking (IP rating) so that you can use them in the bathroom or outdoors. 

Before we delve into the speakers, check out this spec sheet:

Speakers	Sonos Roam	Sonos One	Sonos Move
Price	Check price on Amazon	Check price on Amazon	Check price on Amazon
Weight	7 ounces	4.1 pounds	6.61 pounds
Weatherproof rating	IP67	No IP rating, but steam and moisture resistant.	IP56
Battery Life	10 hours	No in-built battery, it needs to be plugged in.	11 hours
Microphones	Three mics	6-microphone array	6-microphone array

Sonos Roam (Best Budget) 

The Sonos Roam is undoubtedly one of the best portable speakers you can buy. Released in early 2021, it is one of the most compact portable speakers from Sonos. It is small enough to fit in your backpack and rugged enough to handle a few bumps. It is also designed to be a budget Sonos speaker to take on other quality portable speakers in the market. 

Sonos has also added features to make this speaker very easy to transition from the indoors to the outdoors. One of these features is seamless switching between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. When I’m at home my Sonos Roam is connected to the home Wi-Fi and streams music through my phone that’s connected to the same network. However, when I go out the Sonos automatically switches to Bluetooth to connect to my phone and continue streaming. 

https://youtu.be/BVdZMQAXzyw

There’s also the Sonos Swap feature that lets me switch to the nearest Sonos speaker by holding down the play button. This comes in handy when I want to switch to a more powerful speaker.  

It also has excellent sound quality with prominent bass and clear vocals. Apart from niche audiophiles, everyone will like its Sonis performance. However, its best feature is its IP rating. It is dust and waterproof with an IP67 rating. That makes it perfect for the bathroom. 

There’s something very pleasing about listening to good-quality audio while I’m in the shower. Moreover, the long 10-hour battery life lets me indulge in cocktails and endlessly scroll through my social media feed.   

Sonos One (Best Modular)

While the Sonos Roam is a nice speaker, it isn’t as loud as you may want it to be. That’s where the Sonos One comes in. It has much better audio performance without a significantly higher price. Yes, it’s bulkier than the Sonos Roam, but that’s a practical sacrifice given its advanced features, build, and sonic excellence. 

One of its greatest highlights is that it’s a smart speaker and a powerful one. While the Roam has 3 microphones for accessing the smart assistants, the Sonos One has a 6 microphone array that makes my experience much smoother. Moreover, the speaker’s exceptional performance allows me to use it as the main speaker in a room. Unlike the Google Nest speakers, Amazon Echos, and Homepods, I don’t need to sacrifice sound quality for smart features.  

https://youtu.be/b_VsExV3iAA

The microphones allow me to access Sonos’ renowned TruePlay feature even without an iPhone. The speaker uses its integrated mic to listen to the audio reflected from the walls and acoustically tunes the speakers to deliver the best experience. The build quality matches the sound quality. It’s finished and machined to perfection and feels quite solid to the touch.  

While this speaker doesn’t have an official IP rating, Sonos claims it’s steam, moisture, and humidity resistant. That makes it perfect for the bathroom. While it isn’t portable, I don’t need to worry about steamy showers. 

Sonos Move (Best Overall)

The Sonos Move solves the flaws of the Sonos One and goes way beyond that. However, it also has a higher price and is even bulkier. It is one of the first Sonos speakers with multi-room audio support that also has a built-in battery. It is larger and heavier than the Sonos One and that completely eliminates any notion of portability even with the capable built-in battery. 

However, it is understandable why Sonos did this. Making a very powerful and sonically accurate yet compact speaker isn’t easy. Moreover, the battery is for bathroom use to eliminate risks of short-circuiting or electrical fires. While I can’t put this speaker in a backpack, it can certainly be brought out to the backyard or sit in my car to the camping spot. With an IP56 rating, it can play uncompromising audio in rain, dust, or even under the harsh UV rays of the sun.   

I wasn’t disappointed while using it indoors, even out of the bathroom. It has a far-field microphone array that can easily pick up voice commands from any corner of the room. This makes the Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant experience extremely smooth and satisfying. I don’t have to shout commands to change the song or lower the volume. 

https://youtu.be/jhSAl9GXXLU

With the Class-D amplifier and powerful tweeters, I thought the battery life would be disappointing at best. To my surprise, the speakers were able to last as long as 10 hours at 60 percent volume on a single charge. Moreover, one hour of charge restores 50 percent of the battery. 

While the battery is durable and will perform reliably for a long time, Sonos has made this speaker with a replaceable battery pack. All I had to do was pull out the bottom silicone strip and remove a few screws to access the battery. This is a great move since it reduces e-waste and allows me to use the speaker for years without an issue. 

Conclusion

While there are quite a few portable and permanent large speakers that can be used in the bathroom. They work well and get the job done. However, if you prefer a cleaner setup and don’t want to get the speaker in and out of the bathroom several times a week, you may install Sonos In-ceiling speakers in the bathroom.  

You can power them with the Sonos Amp that can support as many as 6 in-ceiling speakers. While this kind of setup isn’t remotely budget-friendly, it provides a much superior audio quality. Highs and lows will be more pronounced and positioning would be more accurate as well. I hope I was able to help you through this article.