Five parent companies manufacture more than 90% of the world’s hearing aids: Sonova, Demant, GN, WS Audiology, and Starkey. Each one owns multiple brand names you’ll see in audiologist offices and retail stores, which is why the hearing aid market can look more diverse than it actually is. A growing number of consumer electronics companies, including Apple and Sony, have also entered the space since the FDA created the over-the-counter hearing aid category in 2022.
The Five Companies Behind Most Hearing Aids
The global hearing aid industry is remarkably consolidated. Five corporate groups control the vast majority of devices sold worldwide, but they market them under dozens of different brand names. If you’ve been comparing hearing aids and noticed the options seem endless, many of those brands trace back to the same parent company and share core technology.
Sonova is headquartered in Switzerland and is the largest hearing aid company in the world. Its brands include Phonak, Unitron, Sonic, and the invisible Lyric device. Sonova also owns Sennheiser’s hearing products and Audicus, an online-focused brand. On the retail side, Sonova operates Connect Hearing and HearingPlanet.
Demant is a Danish company whose flagship brand is Oticon, one of the most widely fitted names in audiology clinics. Demant also manufactures Bernafon and licenses the Philips hearing aid brand. It operates HearingLife retail clinics and supplies Costco’s hearing aid centers.
GN Group, also based in Denmark, makes ReSound and Beltone hearing aids along with the budget-oriented Interton line. GN also owns Jabra, which straddles the line between consumer earbuds and hearing devices. Its retail arm, Audigy, supports independent audiology practices.
WS Audiology was formed through the merger of Sivantos and Widex, combining German and Danish engineering. It sells hearing aids under the Signia, Widex, Rexton, and Audio Service brands. WS Audiology also partners with Sony on hearing devices and runs several retail networks including HearUSA, Hear.com, and HearCanada.
Starkey is the only major manufacturer headquartered in the United States, with its manufacturing facility in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Starkey also markets devices under the Audibel, NuEar, and Microtech names, though all come from the same R&D pipeline. Starkey has historically positioned itself as a premium, American-made option.
Why So Many Brand Names?
The gap between the number of brands and the number of actual manufacturers exists for a reason. Different brands let each parent company target different price points, distribution channels, and customer relationships. Beltone, for instance, is sold primarily through a franchise network of independent offices, while its sibling brand ReSound is fitted by independent audiologists. Both are made by GN.
White-label manufacturing adds another layer. Costco’s popular Kirkland Signature hearing aids have been produced by several different major manufacturers over the years. GN ReSound made early Kirkland models (KS5 and KS6), then Rexton (part of WS Audiology) took over for the KS7 and KS8, and Sonova supplied the KS9. The only way to know who actually built a Kirkland hearing aid is to check the fine print in the owner’s manual.
Consumer Electronics Companies Entering the Market
The FDA’s 2022 decision to allow over-the-counter hearing aids opened the door to companies outside the traditional hearing industry. The most notable newcomer is Apple. In 2024, the FDA authorized Apple’s Hearing Aid Feature, a software application that turns compatible AirPods Pro into a self-fitting OTC hearing aid for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss. The feature uses a hearing test built into the iPhone to customize amplification, and users can adjust volume, tone, and balance without visiting a professional. It was the first OTC hearing aid software authorized by the FDA.
Sony has entered through a partnership with WS Audiology, combining Sony’s audio engineering with WS Audiology’s hearing science expertise. Other consumer brands now selling OTC devices include HP and Lexie, which offers a product powered by Bose technology. Eargo, a startup that went public in 2020, designs its own rechargeable devices sold directly to consumers. Smaller companies like MD Hearing, Audien, and Go Hearing compete at lower price points, primarily online.
What Separates the Major Manufacturers
Each of the big five invests heavily in proprietary sound processing, and the chip inside a hearing aid is often the single biggest differentiator between brands. Sonova’s latest Phonak devices use a dual-chip system: the ERA chip handles general sound processing, connectivity, and power management, while a second chip called DEEPSONIC runs a deep neural network in real time. Sonova claims DEEPSONIC has 53 times more processing power than previous hearing aid chips, and in clinical studies, users more than doubled their ability to understand speech in noisy environments compared to earlier products.
Oticon (Demant) has similarly invested in on-board neural networks designed to mimic how the brain naturally processes sound, while Starkey has focused on integrating health sensors like fall detection and heart rate monitoring into its devices. These proprietary platforms are why hearing aids from different manufacturers can sound noticeably different from one another, even at similar price points.
How Price Varies Across Manufacturers
Hearing aid pricing depends on the technology tier, the style of the device, and whether you’re buying through a private practice, retail chain, or insurance program. Within each manufacturer’s lineup, there’s typically a wide spread. Contract pricing from a state Medicaid program offers a useful window into relative costs: Beltone’s entry-level devices start around $350 per pair, while its premium models reach $880. Oticon ranges from $350 to $848, and ReSound from $350 to $880. Phonak’s range runs $570 to $900, and Starkey’s starts higher at $658, topping out around $886.
These are wholesale contract figures, not what you’d pay out of pocket at a private audiologist, where a pair of premium hearing aids commonly runs $4,000 to $7,000 including fitting and follow-up services. OTC devices from consumer electronics companies occupy a different tier entirely, with prices generally ranging from $200 to $1,000 per pair. The Apple option is unique in that anyone who already owns AirPods Pro 2 only needs to install a free software update.
Regulation All Manufacturers Must Follow
Every company selling hearing aids in the United States, whether a global corporation or a startup, must comply with FDA manufacturing requirements. As of February 2026, manufacturers follow the Quality Management System Regulation, which aligns U.S. standards with the international ISO 13485 framework for medical devices. This applies to all finished hearing devices and their accessories, covering everything from design and production to testing and labeling. OTC hearing aids are regulated as medical devices just like prescription models, though through a different classification pathway. Apple’s Hearing Aid Feature, for example, went through the FDA’s De Novo review process, a pathway designed for novel low-to-moderate-risk devices that don’t fit into an existing product category.