They might be but they aren’t active noise cancelling which is a feature some people need if they travel a lot, commute by train or bus, or work in a noisy environment. These are extremely good at noise isolation because they are closed back and create a good seal, but they can’t actively cancel out outside. Also these are wired only head phones with a removable cable and the WH1000XM3 are Bluetooth wireless, but can be used wired as well. The WH1000XM3 are also Hi-Res audio headphones when wired So for people that need the active noise cancellation they may be a better deal overall. I haven’t had the pleasure of listening to a set of WH1000XM3 yet, but I’m guessing wired to the same amplifier they may be a much closer match than you would expect because they are rated for the same frequency response according to Sony.