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How to connect Bose headphones to laptop

How to connect Bose headphones to laptop Windows 11 / 10

Picture of Bose QC35 headphones from how to connect bose headphones to laptop post

If like me you have purchased a pair of Bose QC35 noise cancelling headphones want to find out how to connect bose headphones to laptop and are finding your Bose headphones won’t connect with the Bose Connect Windows app or pairing them with a Windows 10 laptop, and you have already tried the advice from Bose of updating the firmware on the headphones and updating your Bluetooth drivers and still no joy, this is what worked for me.

Bose Headphones not connecting to laptop

Advice from Bose

Right-click on the Bluetooth menu and select Go to Settings. Click the Add Bluetooth or other device, and select Bluetooth. Add a new Bluetooth device. Turn on your Bose wireless headphones and move the power switch to the far-right position

This is the advice from Bose, but if you find this does not work for you keep reading.

Bose Headphone Bluetooth Pairing

A lot of people are having trouble with Bose Q35 pairing to Windows laptops. I am running a Lenovo T450s with Windows 10 and had updated the firmware on the headphones, and updated the Bluetooth and wireless drivers on my laptop but was still struggling with how to pair Bose QC35 with my laptop.

Thinking I had to download special Bose drivers for windows 10, I could not get them to connect. I was going to give up. So I took to Google.

“How to connect Bose headphones to laptop?” There had to be a solution for such an expensive pair of headphones, right?

So after many hours of trying, I finally discovered how to do it!
It was not straightforward but I got them working.

The steps I used are detailed below – I hope it helps you!

How to connect Bose QC35 headphones to laptop or PC?

  1. On the QC35, push the button on the right earpiece all the way to the Bluetooth sign and hold it there for at least 10 seconds. Do this with the headset on your head, so you can hear the commands: “all paired devices cleared” and “ready to pair.” (These may not be the exact phrases you hear, but close.)
  2. When the QC35 has spoken, lift your finger off the button, and the QC35 will return the button to the “on” position. Leave it there and put the QC35 somewhat close to your PC (3-6 feet).
  3. On the PC, right-click the start button and click Control Panel.
  4. Click on “Device Manager.” Then click on the > next to “Bluetooth.”  If you see “Bose QC35” in that list, right click it and delete it.
  5. Close “Device Manager” and click on “Devices and Printers.” If you see any “Bose QC35” in the list of devices, right-click it and remove it.
  6. Close Control Panel and locate the Bluetooth icon on the right side of the task bar (if yours is located at the bottom of the screen). Click on it and then click on “Add a Bluetooth device.”
  7. Because your QC35 is still in “Pairing” mode, you will see one or more buttons on that screen that say “Bose QC35 Ready to Pair.”
  8. Click on the depiction that shows QC35 with a headset icon (not a phone and screen icon) and the pairing will start. Be patient, as software has to be reloaded to the Device Manager.
  9. After that process is complete, go back to “Control Panel” and click on “Sound.” Find “Headphones, Bose QC35 Stereo and make that the Default. Get out of Control Panel.
  10. Go to the Speaker icon on the taskbar and make sure it is set to 100%.
  11. Now put your QC35 on your head and play some music on your computer. You should hear the sound through the QC35. If you do not, it might be that the volume has been decreased to zero on the QC35, so push the Volume (+) button on the QC35 repeatedly until you hear the music.
  12. Enjoy your music!

Another option for connecting Bose Headphones

Bose connect app windows 10

I found it much easier to not use the Bose connect app and just use standard Bluetooth pairing. Once you have cleared the devices from the headphones and your laptop the pairing process was very simple

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Hi, I’m Roger I am a Network Automation Engineer based in the UK and when I am not automating networks, I enjoy Close up Magic and work as a London Magician

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Looking for more Bose products?

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I personally use my Bose Noise Cancelling headphones for studying – what do you use yours for?

Frequently asked questions

How do I connect QC35 to Windows 10?

Once your headphones are in pairing mode search for new bluetooth devices on your Windows 10 device. If you cannot connect or have problems click the post above for some troubleshooting steps that worked for me.

How to connect Bose headphones to laptop?

On your headphones put them into pairing mode and search for new bluetooth devices on your laptop. If this does not work please click the post above for some troubleshooting steps.

Is there a Bose Connect app for Windows 10?

No there is no app you just connect your devices via Bluetooth, if you are experiencing issues make sure both your windows device is up to date with drivers and you have updated the software on your headphones.

How do I connect my Bose QuietComfort 35 to Windows 10?

On your Bose QC35 headphones push the button on the right headphone all the way to the bluetooth sign and hold it there for at least 6 seconds or until you hear all paired devices cleared.

Bose headphones won’t connect to iphone

The process to connect your Bose headphones using bluetooth should work the same to your iphone as your laptop or pc

Why won’t my Bose headphones connect to my laptop?

The most likely reason is that there are too many devices in the headphone, you just need to clear all pairings, or the Bluetooth drivers need to be updated on your laptop and or the headphones. Or they are simply not close enough to initiate pairing.

How to connect Bose headphones to PC?

The process for connecting to a PC is much the same as the process for a laptop if you are running Windows 10

Bose QC35 II

For more information on these amazing headphones please visit – https://www.bose.co.uk/

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Comments

    • Great stuff – I couldn’t believe it – spent a lot of money on a pair of Bose headphones then could not get them connect to my laptop! (phone was working fine) It took me a lot of googling to find the solution so maybe Bose need to include it in their instructions!

    • Great news!
      I was in the same boat and after spending a lot of money on a pair of bose headphones was very frustrated I could not get them to connect to my laptop

      This solution was also the only one that worked for me after updating bluetooth drivers etc etc

  5. You’re a legend! I was getting quite frustrated trying to pair my QC35’s up and you’re guide was easy and clear to follow.

    Many thanks and happy listening 🙂

    Dan

  8. After countless UNSUCCESSFUL tries following the thread in bose forum this solution worked as a charm with my qc 35 ii. thank you!!!

    • Glad it worked for you, I had previously followed many threads on the Bose Forums with no success, and after many hours of trying this method worked for me so I thought I had to share it.

      • Thank you so much Roger, tried for a few days and almost gave up until I came across your article. Now both my Bose QC 35ii and Soundlink Revolve+ are connected to my laptop and working. Awesome. Thanks again

  9. Worked with bose QC35 ii AFTER A FEW TRIALS AND DISABLING AND ENABLING THE BLUETOOTH IN THE LAPTOP. tHANK YOU

  10. This worked for me as well. I was hesitant to buy a pair of these headphones because of the all the complaints about them not working with Windows 10 but it looks like it these steps were successful. Thanks very much.

  19. 3 months ago I have managed to connect my headphones after many… ATTEMPTS to my old laptop.
    now got a new laptop and decided to google for instructions – this one worked first time! many thanks for SAVIng me lot of time and frustrations.

    • Great – glad it helped you – it frustrated me for many hours and even Bose could not fix! Then I came across the solution and decided to write it up and turns out its a very common problem

    • Not sure what else to suggest – this worked for me after many hours of struggle. Have you updated the Bose Headphone software? Just hook them up to the app on your phone and select software update

  22. Thank you so much roger – this worked for me! Just one nagging question… can you control the noise cancellation while connected to the pc via bluetooth? when i press the button on the headphones that normally allows me to adjust noise cancellation (when connected to my phone), it tells me to open google assistant on my phone. i can’t seem to figure out how to adjust it when connected to pc, not phone.

    Thanks again!

    • Jeff, that functionality is controlled by the app on your phone, you then decide what that button does. Yours is currently set to open google assistant, you can change it in the app to control noise cancellation levels.

      That’s actually what I have mine set to, even though I never change the noise cancellation level!

    • Good stuff, it had me stuck for a few hours until I worked out how to do it and thought I would share the solution as even Bose could not help and since then so many people have ended up on this page looking for the solution to connecting a very expensive pair of Bose headphones to their laptop!

  29. Hi mike,

    I just want to say thank you for this write-up. I spent hours on the phone with bose trying to get my headphones to pair. i also tried multiple different bluetooth adapters. this worked like a charm. I hope others will be able to have their issues resolved by reading this page.

    don’t know why its only letting me write in caps

    Best,

    Peter

    • Brilliant Peter, I can’t believe so many people are having the same challenges I had to just connect a pair of (very expensive) headphones to thier laptop. Glad it helped

  36. Thanks for your advice, however I am unable to select the headphones for default as its greyed out. not sure what i am doing different to others. windows 10.

    glenn

    • Great, glad it helped, can’t believe there are so many people struggling to connect a £300 pair of Bose QC35 noise cancelling headphones to a laptop.
      Come on Bose you need to fix this!

  38. Just ordered some of these off of Amazon and should get them in a couple of days. Does the microphone work with Windows 10 as well? Thank you. PS not sure why caps are on as I don’t have the caps lock on.