Though they are double the price you mentioned as a limit, I want to recommend the ones I'm using for other people in need of really good NC headphones coming to this thread.

I got myself refurbished Bose Quiet Comfort 45 and in my opinion they are perfect. I use them to blend out noise in public transport, museums, shopping malls, the office and so on. I can wear them for hours without my ears hurting or the battery running out. They really improved my quality of life.

Have you tried earplugs? They’re cheap and pretty effective, I use them a bunch. Mack’s is my favorite brand

Good noise canceling + no ringing for under 100 is a really tough category, but I think Anker makes some ok ones with hybrid active noise cancellation (generally less ringing) right at $100: Soundcore Life Q20.

One thing I can’t recommend is a used pair of Sony XM3s, because they caused incredible pressure in my ears when the noise cancellation came on. They worked phenomenally well at blocking noise, but they effing hurt.

I don't know if this is an option, I didn't see you explicitly mention that it wasn't so I thought I would mention something a little different that I have personally done when I wanted what you are talking about on the cheap.

Have you considered combining over the ear hearing protection ear muffs with a pair of standard (non-ANC) ear buds? A pair of earmuffs with a noise reduction of 30dB (which I believe is better than ANC can achieve can generally be had for $25-$35 leaving you with $70 to spend on a pair of ear buds where the only consideration is audio quality and fit at that price point.

Having sensory issues myself I think it's worth noting that these types of ear muffs are designed to apply more pressure around your ears than standard head phones. It's usually not an issue for me, but there are those who do not like it for long periods of time.

So, just to ignore your budget, I have the Sony XM4 headphones (over ear), and... they are okay. In the heat, they get very sweaty, and there are annoying sounds you can't turn off (on/off beep, and a voice which tells you when it has connected). The noise cancellation is good for constant noises but not sudden ones. Overall, I wouldn't recommend/buy them again, as they are just fine.

I have tried some in ear ones from Xiaomi (not sure which exactly) which I bought for my partner, and they are, in my limited experience, just fine too, especially for the price (<$50). I don't know about any long-term idiosyncrasies though, so take that with a pinch of salt. These ones look a bit better: Redmi Buds 5 Pro. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Xiaomi-Redmi-Buds-Black-BHR7660GL/dp/B0CQKHK626/

If you're comfortable consider looking into second-hand pairs as well.

My Sony WH-1000XM4 (catchy name there, Sony) are treating me pretty well. They're not perfect, not by any stretch, but they do help a lot esp when you put music on em.

Absolutely indispensable at conventions. Too many people talking at once, no escape, autistic shutdown hits, I become unresponsive and start to lash out at anyone trying to talk to me, 10 minutes walking around wearing those and listening to lofi and suddenly I feel like a human again

I got the sennheiser momentum 4s and love them, but sadly outside of the budget. :(

Using the CMF Buds Pro. I don't think you need the app, only to change tap controls.

Nothing Ear A $99 - Nothing Ear (a) Wireless Earbuds with ChatGPT Integration, 45dB Hybrid Noise Cancelling Earbuds, Hi-Res Audio, Advanced Equaliser, Dual Connect, 6 Mics, 42.5H Playtime Earbuds Wireless Bluetooth Black https://a.co/d/ddd3elu

CMF Buds $29 - CMF Buds Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds, 42dB Noise Cancelling Earbuds, Dirac HD Audio, 35.5H Playtime, BT5.3, IP54 Waterproof, 4HD Mics Wireless Headphones for iPhone & Android (Dark Grey) https://a.co/d/6oTiP5q

Both work with any device on any platform that can use Bluetooth audio ( I've used them on Mac, PC, Linux, and multiple game consoles) and they don't explicitly need an app to function (just for firmware updates and customization but that's like any Bluetooth headphones) but they do both have Android and iOS apps if you so choose (and I do recommend at the very least for firmware updates)

Get the Ear A if you can afford them, they are the better of the two both in noise cancelling and audio quality (and transparency mode) but the CMF Buds are still fantastic and punch way above their price class.

@thezeesystem I feel you, these are the best I've gotten. They also have in-ear which I've used and are equally good.

App isn't required, but very recommended (firmware updates, calibrating the audio and noise cancelling to your hearing, managing multipoint ie. switching connections between devices)

Also has incredible pass through mode (allowing you to optionally hear people without taking them off, almost as good as without wearing them at all imo).

Plus insane battery life, advertised as 40 hours... enough that by the time I get the low battery warning I've completely forgetten when I charged them last.

us.soundcore.com/products/spac…

I don't know how the prices are over there, but used wh-1000xm3 over-ear headphones could be an option. They have basically the same anc than the newer models (interestingly rtings rates tde xm3 better than xm4 and xm5), and even more importantly the voice prompts can be completely disabled apart from power-on and power-off sounds, unlike in the newer models.

OP, did you settle on any specific headphones you would recommend?

https://www.scarbir.com/

Hi, I would recommend the Sony WH-CH720N as punching way above their weight for a $100 pair.

I am someone who didn't like noise canceling headphones which I tried before, since older models all seemed to cause a sensation of "pressure" on my eardrums which felt like having dead meat behind saran wrap smushed up against them. The Sony WH-CH720N have about 98% removed that sensation, which means I can actually wear them for more than 10 minutes.

The noise canceling feature isn't perfect - you can of course still hear some noise - but it's about as good as the Bose Quiet Comfort 3 pair which cost a LOT more than the Sony.