MaxHear
Built for finding out before you book a consultation call
Horizon (hear.com) Reviews & Alternative: The Real Cost
hear.com is not a hearing aid manufacturer. It's a referral and case-management service, owned by WS Audiology, that connects you to over 2,000 partner clinics and sells its own house brand, Horizon — which is Signia's technology platform, rebranded.
That's a legitimate service and its BBB reviews back it up. It also means the fitting process starts with a sales call, not an appointment. MaxHear is a sound amplifier app for iPhone and Android that answers whether amplification helps you at all, for free, using headphones you already own, before any call happens.
Free to try with no account, no email and no card. Headphones required.
"I'm careful with money. Always have been. So when I saw what some hearing aids cost, I put the whole thing off. MaxHear was inexpensive enough that I finally decided to quit waiting and try something. For me, that was the big selling point."
Richard S., 62 — Sacramento, CA · MaxHear userWhat hear.com customers actually say
hear.com's Better Business Bureau profile is A+, accredited, with 4.44 out of 5 from 345 reviews. Its Horizon companion app holds 4.3 out of 5 from over 2,400 App Store ratings. We read the 10 most recent BBB reviews and 4 App Store reviews with full text.
The BBB reviews are genuinely strong, and they're mostly reviewing the same thing: the white-glove sales and fitting experience, not any specific device.
"Old school real customer service… shockingly good honest people."
Donald L., BBB — 5 stars, 18 July 2026"I did not have to leave the house. They sent me a tablet all programed to connect with them, all I had to do was turn it on and connect it to my wifi… They made the whole process simple. And let me tell you, when something was not just right, they went above and beyond to solve the problem."
Tom C., BBB — 5 stars, 26 July 2026"This company may serve a community of folks who are slightly hearing impaired, but not the older hard of hearing! Technology is great, but you still need real people to communicate to older folks patiently to understand their issues!"
Lourdes B., BBB — 2 stars, 6 August 2026The Horizon app's own reviews surface a different, more technical complaint: settings not persisting between uses. One reviewer described the volume resetting to a default every power cycle, and said as much shouldn't happen from "a company selling a $5k pair of hearing aids" (Ed_G2, App Store, September 2025). A separate reviewer reported the app raising the iPhone's system volume during calls and failing to restore it afterward (txplorer, App Store, July 2026).
The finding worth knowing before you book a call: you're not buying a brand, you're buying a broker
hear.com is owned by WS Audiology, which also owns Signia. Its in-house "Horizon" line runs on Signia's Integrated Xperience platform, customized with extra listening modes — at least one audiologist has described it as effectively the same hardware as Signia's own IX line under a different name. hear.com also brokers Phonak, Oticon, Starkey, Widex, ReSound, Rexton and Unitron devices through its partner network, and offers OTC options starting at $99 through its SoundBright arm. A commonly reported complaint pattern, across several independent review summaries rather than a single source we verified ourselves: sales follow-up calls that feel persistent during the 45-day trial, and responsiveness that drops noticeably once that window closes.
What it costs, and what you get for it
hear.com prices vary by which brand and tier you're routed to.
| What | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Horizon line, per pair | $1,975–$4,950 | HearingTracker |
| Third-party brands via hear.com | up to $6,500 | HearingTracker |
| OTC options (SoundBright) | from $99 | hear.com |
| Financing | from ~$88/month | HearingTracker |
| Trial | 45 days, money-back | hear.com policy |
| Warranty | 3 years, incl. 3–5 free follow-up visits | hear.com policy |
| MaxHear | free to find out, then the plan is shown in the app | — |
Original Medicare covers neither hearing aids nor the exams used to fit them, regardless of which broker or brand you go through. Reviewers note that hear.com's prices aren't always the lowest available for the exact same hardware bought directly from a local provider — the premium buys the concierge process, not necessarily the device.
hear.com vs MaxHear
One arranges a fitted device through a network. The other answers whether you need one at all.
| What matters | MaxHear Sound amplifier app | hear.com Referral service + Horizon devices |
|---|---|---|
| First step | Open the app No form, no phone call | Online form, then a sales call Before any fitting is scheduled |
| Try before you own anything | Yes — free mode, permanently No account, no email, no card | 45-day trial After purchase, with reported sales follow-up during it |
| Who you're really buying from | MaxHear Clear, direct | A broker Horizon = rebranded Signia; other brands via partner clinics |
| Adjustable by you | Yes, live Four-band equalizer, changes as you listen | Via app, with reported quirks Settings not always persisting between uses |
| Best for | Situational checks and specific moments TV, cafés, phone calls, lectures | Diagnosed loss, wants a guided, full-service path 2,000+ partner clinics, 3-year warranty |
| Cost | 3 days free to try, then the plan is shown in the app Nothing to buy to find out | $1,975–$6,500 a pair Medicare pays nothing |
If you want someone else to manage the whole process — provider, paperwork, follow-ups — hear.com's own reviews say it does that well. If you first want to know whether amplification helps at all, that's a different, cheaper question, and it's the one MaxHear answers.
Why people check MaxHear before booking a hear.com consultation
Chosen from what actually recurs in hear.com's own reviews — not a generic list.
Skip straight to finding out
hear.com's process starts with a form and a phone consultation. MaxHear's free mode needs no account, email or card: 15 seconds of live amplification per session, three sessions a day, permanently — before you talk to anyone.
No trial to watch, because nothing was bought
Several independent summaries describe follow-up calls intensifying during the trial and support cooling once it ends. There's no window to track here — the free mode simply keeps working.
The sliders stay in your hands, every time
One Horizon app reviewer reported volume resetting after every power cycle. MaxHear's equalizer — bass, voice, clarity, treble — is set live, in the moment, with a reset button if you go too far.
Uses headphones you already have
No referral, no partner clinic, no rebranded hardware to research. MaxHear runs on the phone in your pocket and any headphones — AirPods, Bluetooth, or wired.
Which one is actually right for you
Two positions, and a step in between.
A fitted device is the right tool
Your hearing loss is severe or profound, affects one ear only, or is conductive or mixed. You need correction for 12–16 hours a day, and you want a professional taking responsibility for the result — through hear.com's network or a local provider directly.
You haven't established that yet
Your struggle is situational, or you're not ready for a sales call and a five-figure-adjacent decision. Test amplification free first; if the answer is yes, you'll book that hear.com consultation knowing more than you do now.
A ten-minute check before you book a call
Do this before filling out a form. It costs nothing and gives you a real answer.
Write down your three hardest moments
The restaurant table, the phone call, the TV at family dinners. Specific beats "I can't hear well."
Grab headphones you already own
Wired or Bluetooth, whatever you have — no new hardware needed to test the question.
Start in a quiet room, level low
The app opens quiet on purpose — you set the level, with one person talking to you.
Then test your actual worst room
The kitchen mid-cooking, or a café at lunch. That's the situation you're really solving for.
Judge it on one thing
Are you asking people to repeat themselves less? If yes, you've learned amplification helps — now a consultation call is an informed decision, not a guess.
FAQ: hear.com and Horizon reviews and alternatives
Is hear.com a hearing aid brand?
No. hear.com is a referral and case-management service owned by WS Audiology. Its own "Horizon" line runs on Signia's technology platform, and it also brokers devices from Phonak, Oticon, Starkey, Widex, ReSound, Rexton and Unitron through a network of over 2,000 partner clinics.
Is Horizon the same as Signia?
Essentially, yes at the hardware level. Horizon is built on Signia's Integrated Xperience platform with hear.com's own added listening modes; at least one audiologist has described it as functionally the same hardware as Signia's IX line under a different name.
How much does hear.com actually cost?
Horizon devices run $1,975 to $4,950 a pair; third-party brands sold through hear.com's network can run up to $6,500. There's a 45-day money-back trial and a 3-year warranty with several included follow-up visits, per HearingTracker.
Does Medicare cover hear.com or Horizon hearing aids?
No. Original Medicare has excluded hearing aids since the 1965 statute, regardless of which broker or brand sells them.
Can an app replace a hearing aid?
No, and MaxHear doesn't claim to. It's a sound amplifier app, not a medical device, and isn't authorized as a hearing aid. Its purpose is answering whether amplification helps you at all, for free, before any sales call or purchase.
Related reading
See Voice Focus, the equalizer and Ear Guard inside the app
A walk through the four screens that do the work, in the order you'll meet them.
Free to tryWhat's free forever, and what Premium adds
The exact limits of the free mode, and what unlocks with the 3-day trial.
A manufacturer, not a brokerPhonak reviews & alternative
A brand hear.com also resells — compared here on its own, direct from the source.
Compare other brands
Starkey, Oticon and ReSound sit in the same prescription price band, sold both directly and through referral services like hear.com. We're building an honest page for each.
Stop asking people to repeat themselves
Install MaxHear, connect the headphones you already own, and hear the next conversation clearly.