Customer reviews from jbl.com
JBL - Go 5 - Ultra-portable waterproof and drop-proof speaker - 2026 - Squad
Average customer rating
4.7
(36 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 36 reviews
5 Stars
26
4 Stars
8
3 Stars
2
2 Stars
0
1 Star
0
Customer Reviews for JBL - Go 5 - Ultra-portable waterproof and drop-proof speaker - 2026 - Squad
Customer Rating
5
JBL Go 5 is a portable powerhouse!
on May 1, 2026
Posted by: StevenS
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] The JBL Go 5 continues JBL’s heritage by evolving this palm sized powerhouse and adding smarter pairing, bigger sound and deeper bass.
I own several of the previous Go models and love the rugged portability coupled with great sound. I listened to several genres so far on this speaker including rap, techno, ambient, pop and jazz while both indoor and outdoor. Indoor listening was as perfect as you would expect but outdoors is where the surprise factor came in. The power and range this speaker can deliver was outstanding considering you can fit it in your pocket! The highs and mids were definitely powerful enough while remaining clear and crisp while the bass delivery left me totally thrilled.
Fans can now pair with another JBL Go 5 by simply bumping the speakers together for what JBL calls Air Touch stereo pairing. There is also Auracast which allows this speaker to pair with other JBL Auracast speaker models. This absolutely opens the door to multi-speaker setups beyond the Go 5’s size class. Other additions include ambient lights. You can change light patterns in the JBL portable app. The lighting also serves as visual cues for volume adjustment, low battery and pairing status to name a few. The app has preset and customizable EQ settings as well as Playtime Boost to help extend battery life which is rated at 8 hours plus two additional hours with Playtime Boost. Lossless connectivity is supported through USB-C cable and a lossless source. The Go 5 is dust and drop proof with a ip68 water proof rating which gave me peace of mind while hiking on the trails.
The JBL Go 5 is truly one of the most rugged and versatile ultra-portable speakers on the market. It stretches far above its size with its sound and feature-rich capabilities. I can’t recommend this speaker enough for those wanting portability, compact footprint and customizable sound with easy connectivity.
I own several of the previous Go models and love the rugged portability coupled with great sound. I listened to several genres so far on this speaker including rap, techno, ambient, pop and jazz while both indoor and outdoor. Indoor listening was as perfect as you would expect but outdoors is where the surprise factor came in. The power and range this speaker can deliver was outstanding considering you can fit it in your pocket! The highs and mids were definitely powerful enough while remaining clear and crisp while the bass delivery left me totally thrilled.
Fans can now pair with another JBL Go 5 by simply bumping the speakers together for what JBL calls Air Touch stereo pairing. There is also Auracast which allows this speaker to pair with other JBL Auracast speaker models. This absolutely opens the door to multi-speaker setups beyond the Go 5’s size class. Other additions include ambient lights. You can change light patterns in the JBL portable app. The lighting also serves as visual cues for volume adjustment, low battery and pairing status to name a few. The app has preset and customizable EQ settings as well as Playtime Boost to help extend battery life which is rated at 8 hours plus two additional hours with Playtime Boost. Lossless connectivity is supported through USB-C cable and a lossless source. The Go 5 is dust and drop proof with a ip68 water proof rating which gave me peace of mind while hiking on the trails.
The JBL Go 5 is truly one of the most rugged and versatile ultra-portable speakers on the market. It stretches far above its size with its sound and feature-rich capabilities. I can’t recommend this speaker enough for those wanting portability, compact footprint and customizable sound with easy connectivity.
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
4
JBL does not miss!
on May 3, 2026
Posted by: JonathonF
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] JBL really packed everything they could into this Go 5! This speaker can actually fill a room with its sound with no distortion with some presence of mids and lows even with this tiny set up. Perfect for outdoor sporting events, clipping on a backpck for hiking, to keeping it bedside or at the office, this JBL Go 5 can handle it all thanks to its sleek and mordern design while also being very rugged handling decent drops and being IP68. Buttons as very clicky and would easily be able to use with gloves. With the JBL portable app, you can control the mini light show, the EQ, connect two of these together, get software updates, and use the playtime boost feature that adds 2 hours on top of the 8 hours this Go 5 already has normally! Essentially it adjusts lows and enhances mids and highs and has a little bit of a louder output. One thing to note, probably a one off but my packaging said I had a black JBL Go 5 but did receive a yellow one upon opening it up, which is not disappointing! JBL has always put out some great products and if you need a super portable speaker that still sounds and looks great this is the one for you!
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
5
The Great sound and easy to attach to a hiking bac
on May 4, 2026
Posted by: DarrenA
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Love this little speaker. Has big sound and bass in a little size. The volume actually gets pretty loud for how small it is. The buttons are nice and tactful makes it easy to control either from the speaker or from the phone. The size is perfect it fits in my hand and I can control the buttons while holding it in just one hand. It connects very fast to the phone without any issues. This is a great speaker to take on hikes.
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
4
Great sound, blah bluetooth
on May 7, 2026
Posted by: HikenBear
from Sierra Neveda
Wanted a small portable speaker and chose this over the GO4 due to the better Bluetooth. While the sound is excellent, the BT is disappointing. It still won't show the battery level with an iphone 17 pro outside of the JBL sound app, which BT ver 6.0 should easily do.
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
5
Small and mighty!!
on May 9, 2026
Posted by: ScottS
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This fun little JBL is just what I needed for my vacation to the beach. With its little slim body and the ability to connect to other JBL speakers I get asked where I picked this up all the time. It has a more durable feel with the woven speaker surrounding and feels a bit more solid then the Go4.
The Bass is WAY better and provides clear and powerful Boise to my music.. I love the light display of the face of the speaker (shown in the video) it offers a nice ambience while listening to your favorite tunes.
The setup was super easy like all JBL products are. Just pushed the Bluetooth button on the side of the speaker and look for it on your phone.
The responsiveness to my music was next level and doesn’t miss a beat! See what o did there 😉
The Bass is WAY better and provides clear and powerful Boise to my music.. I love the light display of the face of the speaker (shown in the video) it offers a nice ambience while listening to your favorite tunes.
The setup was super easy like all JBL products are. Just pushed the Bluetooth button on the side of the speaker and look for it on your phone.
The responsiveness to my music was next level and doesn’t miss a beat! See what o did there 😉
Thanks to taking the time to read this review and it’s a perfect speaker for your desk at work, the beach, the pool with out bothering others.. unless you want to. Another smart product from the masters at JBL!
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
5
it’s a great little speaker with performance that
on May 9, 2026
Posted by: RebeccaM
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] The updated design of the speaker is even better than past models, while still maintaining the same small convenient form factor and carry loop. The sound quality, as usual, is fantastic for the size. This model has an LED bar that has some different effects you can choose from in the app. To be honest, they are kind of pointless - would be much cooler if there was a music sync mode. There is also a software feature that makes the speakers perceived loudness increase and battery consumption decrease. This is done by mostly cutting base frequencies and boosting the highs, but it works well and makes for a great background music speaker that would stay on for a long time. This version also has Auracast, which works great with other JBL Auracast devices. With two of these, you could even make them into a stereo pair. It feels solid and durable like you wouldn’t be worried about it falling off a table, in the dirt, getting wet, etc. It’s a great little speaker that packs a punch.
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
3
Waterproof speaker
on May 9, 2026
Posted by: DavidM
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Very portable speaker. The sound is good for a very small speaker. The speaker doesn't have a lot of bass, but the clarity is good until you hit higher volumes. The speaker feels rugged and like it is waterproof. The battery life after a full charge is exceptional. Just remember to listen at lower volumes to have the battery life last. The speaker fits comfortably inside a front pocket when on the go. I recommend this speaker for a group of 4 to 5 people. The light show on speaker is cool too. Another exceptional product from JBL
Response from influenster.comBy Customer Support, May 12, 2026
We really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts! It’s awesome to hear that you're loving the portability and how rugged it feels. Thanks for the heads-up on the sound balance and the battery tip—that’s super helpful for others looking into it. Glad to hear it's keeping the party going for your group!
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com
Customer Rating
5
Quality sound in a small, reliable, and well built
on May 10, 2026
Posted by: LeasaW
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Small but big, portable sound. This will be a great Bluetooth speaker for on the go needs such as the beach, in a kayak, at a park, or any mobile speaker needs. Will last you 10 hours of listening for your daily needs before needing to recharge the rechargeable built in battery. Easy to connect to your Bluetooth devices. Quality sound and lots of volume packed into this waterproof speaker.
Written by a customer while visiting influenster.com