AGX Hearing Aids by Audigy - Who Makes Them?

AGX^® Hearing is a hearing aid brand created in 2004 by members of Audigy Group, a membership organization of hearing healthcare providers. The AGX brand—a collection of hand-picked advanced products made by the world's largest manufacturers—is thought to make up only about 1% of the U.S. hearing aid retail market, while the Audigy Group may account for as much as 3-5%.

Although the Audigy Group is owned by GN, the large Denmark-based manufacturer of ReSound, Beltone, and Jabra-branded hearing aids, its members have exceptional autonomy and may offer hearing aids from any of the global hearing aid companies.

In this article, we’ll explain everything you need to know about AGX hearing aids and the Audigy Group, including the models offered, the advantages and benefits of working with an Audigy provider, and pricing so you can make an informed decision when purchasing hearing aids.

Who is Audigy and Why Did They Create AGX?

You’ll find AGX-branded hearing aids are exclusively sold at Audigy member clinics, and Audigy has supply agreements with multiple manufacturers, including Signia, Widex, Starkey, Oticon, and, obviously, GN's ReSound. In fact, the only global hearing aid manufacturer missing from the AGX product line is Sonova, the maker of Phonak, Unitron, and Sennheiser hearing aids. (This could be related to Sonova's recent decision to reserve the Phonak brand for certain distribution channels.)

Despite being owned by GN Hearing, Audigy members can sell any hearing aids that they wish, including Sonova products. According to Audigy, AGX was primarily created to take the emphasis off hearing aid brands and instead place professional hearing care services at the forefront. The company notes that it “curates a selection of technology that represents the newest, most effective options for patients, allowing patients to have the best option for their hearing needs, lifestyle, and goals without focusing on the brand name of the device.”

Audigy, headquartered in Vancouver, Wash, is partly a practice management consultancy and partly a buying group. Members include audiologists, hearing aid specialists, Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) physicians, neurotologists, and university systems in North America. The group was formed to assist smaller clinics with day-to-day business challenges, such as marketing, personnel training, and clinical operations. Beyond these services, Audigy brings clinics together to increase their overall buying power.

The concept has worked well. In July 2016, GN Hearing acquired Audigy for around $150 million. At the time of the acquisition, approximately 250 clinics were part of the Audigy group, allowing GN to have a new and extensive sales channel for their hearing aids while allowing the clinics to continue operating independently. Today, the company reports that 300+ businesses are part of the group. While this is a sizeable number of clinics belonging to Audigy, according to HearingTracker’s hearing aid price survey, AGX-branded sales only represent approximately 1% of the U.S. hearing aid market (i.e., we think it's possible that as many as 3-4 times that many are sold by Audigy members outside the AGX brand).

Products Offered in the AGX Brand

If you visit an Audigy member clinic for your hearing healthcare needs, you may be offered an AGX-branded hearing aid. Your hearing provider may choose to offer one of several options to suit your needs best. AGX hearing aids include the latest and most sophisticated products offered by the participating manufacturers. However, Audigy offices are independent, and you may also be offered a “name-brand” hearing aid from any of the major hearing aid manufacturers, including those made by Phonak or another company not included within the AGX brand.

Currently, an “AGX-branded” hearing aid could be from any one of the five largest hearing aid companies in the world. Audigy’s naming convention is fairly transparent, with the last letter(s) that follow “AGX” indicating the actual manufacturer:

• AGXR Series = GN ReSound hearing aids, including Nexia™ and OMNIA™ hearing aids
• AGXO Series = Oticon hearing aids, including the Intent™, Real™, More™, Own™ and Opn™ hearing aids
• AGXS = Starkey hearing aids, including Edge AI, Genesis AI, and Evolv AI hearing aids
• AGXSi = Signia hearing aids, including the Signia IX™ platform and AX™ platform hearing aids
• AGXW = Widex hearing aids, including Widex Moment™

If you want to learn more about the different brands and hearing aid platforms, click the links above. You’ll note that, in these reviews, the AGX-branded hearing aids are not tested but rather their name-brand counterparts. However, we're confident the AGX-branded hearing aids will perform the same.

Also, be sure to check out these products' HearAdvisor and HearingTracker scores, which indicate the acoustic performance of the hearing aids and their overall physical performance and features, respectively. For example, the HearAdvisor score can tell you how well the hearing aids perform in quiet and noisy situations, as well as the quality of their streamed audio signal, while the HearingTracker score takes into account factors like wearing comfort, battery life, build quality and resistance to moisture, etc.

HearingTracker also provides a Hearing Aid Comparison Tool that allows you to select up to three hearing aids and compare their features.

Four hearing aid technology levels

With an AGX-branded hearing aid, you not only have a choice of hearing aid manufacturers, but also technology levels. That is, four different tiers of technology (9, 7, 5, and 3) are available, allowing for different levels of sound processing sophistication according to your hearing loss, listening needs, and your budget. The highest number (9) represents the highest level of sophistication and the highest sales price. Conversely, a level 3 hearing aid represents a more essential or basic technology product but at the lowest price point.

AGX hearing aids are no longer "locked"

It should be noted that about 5 years ago, AGX-branded hearing aids were “locked,” but as of 2020 that is no longer the case. Some hearing aid network companies, like Beltone, Miracle-Ear, and Sam's Club, will “lock” their software, meaning the hearing aids cannot be programmed by anyone except a hearing provider in that network. According to Audigy, AGX-branded hearing aids are no longer locked, so you can receive care outside of the Audigy network of providers. This is a big advantage, especially if you have multiple homes or frequently travel and need audiological services in another location.

Key Benefits of AGX and Audigy

There are several advantages to selecting AGX hearing aids and working with members of the Audigy Group. Below are what we feel are two of the most significant benefits.

Audigy Certified™ and hearing care best practices

If you are working with an Audigy professional, you may find that the clinic is “Audigy Certified.” This certification means that another peer practice has nominated the clinic as one that adheres to the highest standards of care. Audigy notes that this would place these businesses in the country's top 5% of all practices in terms of care. The certification is determined by a study of the practice conducted by Audigy Group, where everything from customer service, clinical practices, hearing aid fitting practices, and follow-up care are reviewed.

Audigy notes that the point of this certification is to set a standard for all of their clinics and to help illustrate the group’s core values of excellence in patient care. This translates into providing high patient satisfaction, continuing education for providers, and an ongoing investment in processes, procedures, and technology. The group calls their set of clinical care processes “Patient for Life” where the goal is to retain patients by providing an “exceptional level of patient experience with every interaction.”

Note that even if the clinic is not “Audigy Certified,” this doesn’t mean you’ll receive substandard care. On the contrary, Audigy provides resources for all of its members and encourages excellence in care. Audigy notes that practices often “work together to share best practices and learn from each other.”

While this certification is a great step in helping to ensure you receive quality care, not all Audigy clinics will have the designation. It is also an internal review of practices and is not independently verified.

When I questioned Audigy about standardized audiology best practices and whether or not all Audigy clinics followed those guidelines, the answer was equivocal. Specifically, it was noted that Audigy clinics are independently owned and operated, and while professional best practices are encouraged, they are not required.

AGX Protection Plan

AGX hearing aids are covered by a protection plan that includes:

• A 75-day adjustment period—this is essentially your trial period for adjusting to new hearing aids.
• 3 years of service and adjustments—note that some clinics may unbundle pricing to reduce the upfront cost of the hearing aids. Be sure to understand your the terms of your benefits when purchasing.
• 3 years of complimentary annual hearing evaluations— monitoring your hearing over time and looking for changes to ensure your hearing aids are appropriate for current hearing status.
• 3-year warranty and loss damage insurance—many repairs will be covered during the period and a one-time replacement for lost or severely damaged or lost hearing aids (some minimal cost may apply).
• Battery program— if your hearing aids require disposable batteries, they will be provided at no charge for a period of 3 years if you have a 5, 7 or 9-level hearing aid and one year for level 3.

The Audigy/AGX Protection Plan does offer a nice package of products and services to help protect your investment in your hearing aids. The 75-day trial period is one of the longest provided by any brand of hearing aid or retailer. For comparison, note that Hear.com, an online retailer and competitor of Audigy, generally offers a 45-day trial period; HearUSA, a brick-and-mortar retailer owned by WS Audiology, provides a 60-day trial period. Only Costco, the membership big-box retailer, provides a longer trial period of 180 days. Trial periods are provided to help ensure that you can adjust to the hearing aids and, if needed, return the them with little or no cost to you.

How long an individual needs to adjust to hearing aids depends on several factors, including your experience with hearing aids (previous wearer), your hearing loss, the type of hearing aids you choose, and other factors. Having more than 30 days (a bare minimum in my opinion) is always preferable, and the 75-day adjustment period offered by Audigy/AGX should be ample time for most wearers to know whether the hearing aids are working well for them or not. The 3 years of service and product warranty (higher level products) is becoming more of a standard across the industry and is also a welcome feature of the AGX Protection Plan.

Cost of AGX Hearing Aids and Alternatives

According to posts on our HearingTracker.com Forum, consumers have noted AGX prices ranging from $5,000 to $7,000 a pair, which is consistent with our pricing database (though slightly higher).

When questioned for this article regarding price points for the different series and technology levels, Audigy declined to provide a cost range. However, they did note that because Audigy clinics work independently, they set their own pricing, which may be “bundled” or “unbundled.”

Bundled means that the cost of the hearing aid(s) is combined with the cost of professional services, giving you one price that includes fitting, programming, and follow-up appointments. As you can guess, unbundled means you will pay for your services and the hearing aids separately. Audigy also noted that pricing can vary significantly from practice to practice and by region, but the company does provide a Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) as a guide for the clinics.

It's true that lower-cost hearing solutions are available, though you may not receive the same level of service. For example, Costco, which currently dispenses approximately 15% of all hearing aids sold in the U.S., offers high-end hearing aids at a much lower cost (starting at around $1,500). However, in that case, you are buying from a big-box retailer, and not all locations/providers will be trained to the same level or be able to devote as much time to your unique needs as Audigy hearing professionals.

Additionally, you should be aware that some good over-the-counter (OTC) options exist if you have mild to moderate hearing loss.

What Do Consumers Say about AGX Hearing Aids?

In general, hearing aid consumers seem confused about AGX-branded hearing aids. Online posts mainly question which manufacturer makes a particular AGX hearing aid and what product they are getting (which I've covered above). Audigy did not intend for this consumer confusion when introducing the AGX brand! In fact, part of the purpose of AGX was to remove the "brand" from the decision-making process; Audigy's point is that audiological care and service are far more important than the product.

Confusion may be further amplified by the use of accessories and smartphone applications to be used with AGX-branded hearing aids. For example, someone with an AGXR (ReSound) hearing aid can use the BeMore app to control their hearing aids, which is produced by ReSound and looks nearly identical to the ReSound Smart 3D app. However, if you have an AGXS (Starkey) hearing aid, you will likely be using the MyStarkey smartphone app.

When researching this article, I called a few Audigy practices to see if they were dispensing the AGX hearing aids. Obviously, this was a very small sample, but it gave me some insights into how some network professionals view the brand. People in these practices said they do not typically fit the AGX brand and instead go with the hearing aid manufacturer they think will work best for the given patient. In short, these hearing care providers felt there wasn't much benefit in using AGX-branded hearing aids over the manufacturer-branded ones.

Since the clinics work independently from Audigy or any manufacturer (which is a great thing), they can recommend any hearing aid brand. One clinic even noted that AGX is confusing for the professional as well: if the owner of AGX hearing aids comes into their clinic for service and didn’t buy the hearing aids from them, the professional has to figure out which manufacturer actually produced the hearing aid for them to service it. To them, this was “an unneeded extra step.”

Unequivocally, the individuals I interacted with at these clinics were exceptionally kind, professional, and helpful. This suggests that the Audigy training and the "Patient for Life” philosophy may have merit. Additionally, it's worth noting that several prominent hearing care providers—including leaders from state and national professional organizations—are part of the Audigy Group.

At this writing, it appears that AGX and Audigy do not have listings or ratings in Consumer Reports, ConsumerAffairs, TrustPilot, or other review websites. HearingTracker's Hearing Aid Forum has older comments about Audigy and AGX, but as noted, most pertain to questions about who manufactures a particular AGX model.

Final Verdict

AGX-branded hearing aids are made by several different hearing aid manufacturers and represent the latest in hearing aid technology. AGX hearing aids are only sold via Audigy member practices and are privately labeled for those providers. Audigy members benefit from the Audigy Group training and expertise to help foster a patient-centric environment, which many people may prefer over other hearing aid retailers. Though Audigy is owned by GN, the parent company of ReSound, the clinics operate autonomously and do not seem to be overtly influenced by ReSound to prefer one brand over another.

Numerous AGX-branded options are available, but the branding appears confusing to consumers and professionals. This may help to explain why it represents only 1% of the U.S. hearing aid market, according to HearingTracker estimates. If an AGX hearing aid is recommended to you by an Audigy professional, be sure to ask what benefits it may provide. If you do not receive a clear answer, it may be best to ask for the manufacturer’s equal product.