White noise apps: 6 of the best to help with sleep

Using white noise apps is a

popular

and inexpensive way to produce ambient sounds to help people with their sleep.

There are now a wide selection of white noise apps available. This article looks at six of the best to help a person sleep.

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How do white noise apps work? 

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White noise is a type of sound masking that uses a fixed frequency and tone equally distributed over the whole hearing range. White noise apps work by covering up annoying noises with a constant peaceful sound.

Around the world, insomnia symptoms affect

around 35%

of the population.

Research suggests

that using filtered white noise may improve a person’s sleep quality by raising the hearing threshold. This means that a person is less likely to hear background sounds over the sound of the white noise.

Background sounds that may disturb a person’s sleep include:

• slamming doors
• snoring or coughing
• animal noises
• traffic sounds and sirens
• creaking floorboards
• hotel elevator doors or ice machines
• conversations or laughter
• dripping water

Using white noise apps can shorten the time it takes a person to

fall asleep

, as well as help them stay asleep.

Also, many of these apps have various color settings, from pink to blue to brown. Each color refers to a

specific set of frequencies

.

The sections below list some of the best white noise apps to help people sleep.

myNoise 

The

myNoise

app offers both natural white noise and calibrated noises. Its unique calibration process measures and adapts a sound to a person’s hearing levels. This allows for greater sound masking efficiency at quieter levels.

People can also shape their sounds to different noise colors, including white, pink, and gray.

myNoise has over 200 background noises and interactive soundscapes available. Some of the sounds that will help with sleep include:

• rain on a tent

• natural waterfall

• distant thunder

• fireplace
• fan noise

• sleeping dragon

myNoise has a

free version

that includes white noise, rain noise, binaural beats, spring walk, temple bells, and warp speed. The app also includes a sleep timer to turn off the sound and an alarm for gradual wake-up.

It also offers in-app purchases, including an

All You Can Hear Bundle

that guarantees unlimited access to all generators, including futures ones.

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  with family sharing

• Android

• Alexa devices

• Website

• Video tutorials

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White Noise

The

White Noise app

generates sounds over a wide range of frequencies. It offers three versions that support continuous looped audio playback with no network connection required.

The extensive sound library includes:

• a variety of rain and water sounds
• home appliance sounds, such as an air conditioner, dishwasher, hairdryer, clothes dryer, fan, and vacuum cleaner
• outside sounds, including crickets, frogs, the Amazon rainforest, a campfire, a thunderstorm, and wind
• several color sound options, including white, violet, blue, pink, and brown noise
• travel sounds, including airplanes, cars, trains, and city streets
• other sounds, including a purring cat, chimes, a grandfather clock, a heartbeat, and a Tibetan singing bowl

Additional free sound downloads are also available at the

White Noise Market

.

Lite

The Lite version includes:

• background audio support, so people can use other apps while listening
• a MixPad editor, for creating new soundscapes
• a full-screen digital clock with multiple colors and brightness controls
• five slowly fading alarms and a timer system
• the ability to save sounds to a “favorites” category, for quick access
• the ability to AirPlay sounds to Bluetooth devices
• ads

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  and Apple TV

• Android

• Amazon

  (Android version)

Full

The full version includes all the White Noise Lite features with these additional ones:

• 40 full stereo playback sounds
• 20 different alarms
• buffer size tweaking for optimal playback
• adjustable sound volume, balance, and pitch
• digital LED clock
• custom alarm snooze times
• no ads

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  , including Apple Watch and Apple TV

• Android

  , including Android TV and Widget

• Amazon

  (Android version)

Pro

The Pro version includes all the features of the full app with these additional ones:

• 50 high definition sleep sounds
• professional tools for generating custom looped binaural beats, color noises, and tones
• 20 slowly fading alarm sounds

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  , including Apple Watch and Apple TV

• Android

  , including Android TV and Widget

• Amazon

  (Android version)

Relax Melodies: Sleep Sounds

Relax Melodies: Sleep Sounds has over 100 soothing sounds, music, beats, and tones designed to help people sleep. People can mix these elements together to create personalized soundscapes.

The sound library includes:

• nature sounds, including wind, rustling leaves, birds, and a crackling fire
• white noise, including hairdryer, airplane, dryer, vacuum, and fan sounds
• water sounds, including a rainstorm, the ocean, slow waves, and lapping water
• meditation music, including voices, instruments, and ambient melodies

Additional features include a bedtime reminder, a timer, and a section to house people’s favorite mixes. The app also offers meditations, sleep moves, breathing techniques, binaural beats, and bedtime stories.

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  , including Apple Watch and Apple TV

• Android

• Amazon

  (Android version)

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Atmosphere: Relaxing Sounds

This app offers more than 100 high quality nature and artificial sounds. It divides the sounds into different environments, including:

• beach
• forest
• city
• home
• underwater
• park
• countryside
• East Asia
• instrumental

People can also mix sounds between any environment and import their own ones to create their favorite combinations. The volume of each sound is also individually adjustable.

Atmosphere

works offline and includes a sleep timer. It also includes a section of binaural beats and isochronic tones.

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  with family sharing

• Android

• Amazon

  (Android version)

White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds

White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds

has over 25 customizable white noise and deep sleep sounds. This app also has sounds geared toward helping babies sleep.

Examples of the sounds available include:

• home appliances
• rain sounds
• womb sounds
• crickets and frogs
• distant thunder
• ocean waves
• winter wind
• roaring fire
• brown noise
• pink noise

There is also a premium version that includes 23 animal and nature sounds. The first eight sounds are

binaural beats

recordings, which create an enhanced 3D stereo sound.

The

free version

will play sounds for 8 hours, and the last sound the person played will start when they relaunch the app. Ads and in-app purchases feature in the free version.

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  , including Apple TV

• Android

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Rain Rain Sleep Sounds 

This app

has over 40 free high definition sounds that people can mix to create their ideal white noise sound.

Some of the sound choices include:

• various types of rainfall
• a crackling fireplace
• a purring cat
• a snoring Shih Tzu
• dishwasher, clothes washer, and dryer sounds
• travel sounds, including cars, trains, and airplanes

The

free edition

includes:

• a fade-out sleep timer that learns a person’s preferences and automatically starts the next time they use the app
• a bedtime reminder
• an oscillator that allows a person to customize sound volume and speed
• a mixer that allows a person to combine multiple sounds with individualized volumes
• a soften option, to adjust the tone of each sound
• no audio or video ads
• full support for background audio, AirPlay, and Bluetooth devices
• a “favorites” save option

This app works without a network connection. People can also preview any premium sound without subscribing.

Rain Rain Premium has more than 60 additional sounds and no ads. It has a 1-week free trial once a person subscribes.

Availability:

• iPhone/iPad

  , with Apple TV and family sharing

• Android

• Amazon

Summary

Indoor and outdoor background noises are a

common

cause of sleep problems.

White noise apps help people sleep by using continuous pleasant sounds to mask disruptive ones.

People who have trouble with sleep might want to try a white noise app to help them fall asleep and stay asleep.