Uses
Background noise for sleep
What you can play at night, how each one differs, and how to set it up so it lasts.
There is no single best noise for sleep. At night, Background Noises can play any of four noise colors, 10 steady tones, four nature sounds or a music station for hours on Premium; the Free plan plays a 60-second sample of each. All of them play on a speaker or on headphones. We do not claim any of them improves sleep: a 2021 review of 38 articles rated the evidence that continuous noise makes sleep better as very low, and cautioned that noise may also harm sleep and hearing. They are sounds you can choose, with a sleep timer that stops them when you want.
Which sound should I try first?
It depends on what you want the sound to do in the room.
- To cover household or street sounds: a steady noise. Brown is deep and low, pink is fuller, white is brightest, and grey sits evenly across the range.
- For a single quiet pitch: a low tone from Tones, such as 174 or 285 Hz, at a low volume.
- For something with more texture than noise: a nature sound such as Rain or River, or a quiet music station such as Soft Piano.
How do I set up a long session?
Tap the sound
On Premium it plays for hours. Set the sleep timer only if you want it to stop before you wake. The free plan's 60-second sample is too short for a night.
Set the volume before you lie down
Just loud enough that sounds outside the room fade into it.
Keep the phone charging and quiet
Plug it in and turn on Do Not Disturb, so an alert does not play through the speaker at 3 a.m.
Speaker or headphones at night?
For noise and tones, a speaker on the nightstand is easier: nothing to wear and less sound right at your ear. If you share a bed, a speaker plays for both of you; headphones keep it to one.
What about rain and the ocean?
Rain is one of the four nature sounds: steady rain at a comfortable distance, with no thunder and no wind. Background Noises has no ocean sound; what comes closest to the ocean names the nearest choices. If you want a steady bed with nothing in it at all, pink noise is the nearest plain sound to rain.
What will the sound not do?
It will not track your sleep, wake you up, talk to you or write to a health app. It plays until you pause it or the sleep timer ends it. If you have ongoing trouble sleeping, talk to a doctor.
Sources
Press play.
The Free plan plays a 60-second sample of everything. Premium plays the eight music and four nature stations, the noise colors and the tones for hours.
