4 Best White Noise Machines, Tested and Reviewed
Five of Consumer Reports’ lightest sleepers tried popular sleep machines to see if they’re worth it
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Light sleepers understand how noises—the din of a city street, the hum of a radiator, or simply the sound of another human existing next to you—can get in the way of high-quality sleep. That’s where white noise machines can help. They serve the same core function of emitting constant, brain-pleasing sounds to help you fall asleep, but they can range widely in cost, from less than $20 to more than $130.
Size: 2⅞ inches high, 2⅝ inches wide, and 2⅝ inches deep
Number of sounds: 20
This small plug-and-play sound machine is sized just right—like a deck of cards if cards were square, or like a hockey puck . . . if pucks were square. It delivered good sound quality and variety, packing in 20 sounds, including “color” noises, various fans, nature sounds, and even a freight train (which triggered Mike a little bit).
“I enjoyed the water-based sounds most,” Ginger said. “The thunderstorm, waves crashing, the babbling brook, and light rain noises all sound soothing and are immediately perceptible.”
“The brown noise masks sounds and reminds me of the comforting and calming hum of a jet engine from inside the plane,” Kevin said. “My partner and I found it to be very effective at masking outside noises and think it helped us sleep better. As someone who didn’t think I could sleep without earplugs, I was surprised to find that the noise machine enabled me to sleep soundly without needing earplugs for the first time in decades.”
The controls are intuitive to use—just five simple buttons—although one evaluator thought they were quite small and a bit difficult to see in low light. There’s no app to download (you’ll read more about that below), and it has a timer in case you don’t want it playing all night.
A couple of us used the Magicteam while working from home, too. It helped Kevin minimize aural distractions and stay focused. It helped me drown out the sound of my upstairs neighbor blasting Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line” on repeat, all day, every day.
Finally, this light and compact model packs nicely for travel, a must for people who are dependent on white noise to sleep well.
Size: 3¾ inches high, 5⅝ inches wide, and 5⅝ inches deep
Number of sounds: 1
It’s refreshing these days to use a device that’s tactile and mechanical. The no-frills Dohm Uno is just that—a white noise machine in its simplest form, although its bulky design might not be for everyone. It’s a physical fan in a dome-shaped case with vent holes that you twist to adjust the volume. There’s only one sound, a pure white noise whooshing that comes from the fan’s hum, and one switch to turn it on and off.
Getting this one is a slight gamble if that one sound isn’t your cup of tea, but most of our evaluators liked it. “Soundwise, I like the Dohm the best,” Tanya said. “It reminds me of being in the air among the clouds. It is a very calming sound, but maybe too calming for use during work, as I kept thinking about sleep.” The good part, though, is that it seemed to help Tanya’s dog stay asleep as she worked, which, in a roundabout way, meant she could focus and get more done.
Kevin preferred it above all the others for working. “I found the sound gentler than that created by the other machines,” he said. It worked to mask noises during sleep, too, but only when it was placed on his side of the bed and not his partner’s.
Because the Dohm Uno is a physical fan, it can cause the surface it’s sitting on to vibrate, which two evaluators experienced. But that’s easy to remedy by placing the machine on a book.
Size: 2¾ inches high, 6½ inches wide, and 2¾ inches deep
Number of sounds: 28
“The sleek Loftie is so good-looking that it’s sold in the MoMA Design Store,” Kevin said. In addition to a slate of noises, including nature sounds, the WiFi-connected clock features a nightlight, an alarm, and other aural experiences, like story time and guided meditations. But none of the evaluators thought the wind-down routines or two-phase wake-up function were enough to justify the price.
And while the Loftie is designed to look like a retro, simple alarm clock, this beauty is a pain to set up and use. We’re a fairly tech-savvy bunch, but getting this thing started up was frustrating and not at all intuitive. You need to download an app, create an account, and then let the app update the clock’s software, which can take 30 to 60 minutes. And then you still need to learn how to use it. Whatever you do, don’t unbox it right before bedtime.
After getting the clock set up and consulting the app and website to figure out what the buttons do (one button can have multiple functions depending on which menu you’re in), we found that navigating through the clock’s menus was such a slog that it was a deal breaker for some evaluators. “When it comes to a nighttime routine, I prefer devices that don’t involve me having to fumble around with them too much,” Tanya said.
But the real rage erupted (at least for a few of us) when it came time to preview all the sounds. You have to navigate to the Sound menu using a button, select that twice, then select Sounds via another button, then scroll to select a sound. Once it plays and you want to hear the next one, you need to repeat the process all over. Imagine how much button pressing was needed to listen to 28 sounds. “It’s like shopping for something on a phone, and each time you click a product and go back, the site takes you to the top of the page instead of where you left off,” Ginger said.
“Trying to adjust the volume, sound, or alarm before bed actually got me so frustrated and wound up that it made it more difficult to sleep, not less,” Kevin said.
One bright spot: Once you have the Loftie running, the sounds are quite nice. Evaluators reported some sounds being calming, relaxing, and tranquilizing. “The cicada sound actually made me sleepy, so I had to stop it while working,” Kevin said.
Size: 5¾ inches high, 7½ inches wide, and 2¾ inches deep
Number of sounds: 9 included (more available for a fee)
Similar to the Loftie above but easier to use, the Hatch requires users to download an app and create an account. If you want to access a larger library of sounds than the nine that are included, you have to upgrade the app for a subscription that costs $50 annually or $5 a month. “It’s pricey for something that I feel is so ubiquitous,” Ginger said. (Mind you, the device alone already costs $130.)
This model is very app-intensive in that you can’t program the noise or sunrise alarm settings on the device itself. There’s a button on the top that allows you to start and stop the program once you set it up on the app, and there are volume and brightness buttons on the sides. The benefit is that you can program different sounds and lights to wind down to, sleep to, and wake up to. Figuring out how to set up that cycle in the app is not as straightforward as we would have liked.
“I’d rather not have to deal with an app at bedtime,” Tanya said. “I’m really trying to divorce myself from having the phone in the bedroom, but the Hatch doesn’t allow for that. Plus, the other models we used in this evaluation prove that bells and whistles aren’t necessary to create a calm and peaceful atmosphere.”
Again, if you don’t want a colorful light to wake up to, a longer menu of sound options, an app that tracks your sleep habits, and other wind-down features, such as guided meditations, this sleep machine isn’t for you. The noise functions worked as well as the others, but this device is pricey, with the option of being even pricier; it requires a WiFi connection; and its futuristic design might not vibe with everyone’s bedroom aesthetic.
How CR Evaluated White Noise Machines
We purchased four popular noise machine models, and five of us (all self-described light sleepers) assessed them for sound quality, ease of use, and functionality. Those who normally use earplugs to sleep set them aside for this evaluation.
We adjusted the sound volume output to somewhere between 40 and 50 decibels using a decibel level meter app held 12 inches away from the machine. The right level varied between users, but we used about the same level for each machine. We followed manual instructions for placement but tried to keep the units in the same spot each time.
Evaluators used each machine at bedtime for three nights, and some of us used them at our desks while working from home to see if they helped with focus and concentration.
How White Noise Works
White noise has all frequencies across the spectrum of audible sound. It can sound like radio static, a whirring fan, wind, or heavy rain. Variations, such as pink noise and brown noise, give off different energy frequencies. Nature sounds, such as ocean waves or chirping crickets, are another category of noise that is less consistent and has more variability in decibel levels.
Hylton Molzof, PhD, a clinical assistant professor and psychologist at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center, says there are two ways white noise may help people sleep.
Wall of noise: Noise machines or other soothing sounds can provide a consistent, less intrusive background noise that can help mask more abrupt noises in the environment, making them less likely to awaken people or contribute to arousal.
Pavlovian conditioning: If a certain sound (in this case, white noise) is consistently associated with the experience of feeling relaxed and successfully falling asleep, then that sound itself can also become a cue for sleep.
How Abrupt Noises Affect the Brain
When we sleep, the auditory system continues to evaluate sounds in the environment, so ambient sound or external noise can have a negative impact on a person’s sleep, says Luis Fernando Buenaver, PhD, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and director of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Behavioral Sleep Medicine Program. Whether things that go bump in the night actually disturb your sleep depends on the stage of sleep you’re in, the background sound level, and individual factors such as hearing ability.
“Maybe you’re startled out of sleep, depending on the noise, or your brain is thinking, where is that coming from? What direction? What is that noise?” Buenaver says. “And it may not result in a frank awakening the way you and I are now, but if you have enough of those throughout the night and you aggregate those disruptions, that could be substantive and impact someone the next day.” Daytime symptoms, such as sleepiness, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating, are affected by your sleep quality.
Are White Noise Machines Healthy for Sleep?
According to a December 2023 Consumer Reports nationally representative survey (PDF) of 2,027 adults in the U.S., 57 percent reported their quality of sleep as being fair, poor, or very poor in the previous year. Fifteen percent said that sound levels were the most important aspect of the sleep environment—that is, the physical and sensory conditions where a person sleeps—for helping them get a good night’s sleep. In another nationally representative survey of 2,084 U.S. adults from October 2022, 9 percent said they had tried a white noise machine in the previous year, and most reported that it was at least somewhat effective at helping them get some rest.
“The research into sound machines is quite mixed,” Molzof says. “The majority of studies have found that there are potentially mild benefits, but the quality of that available research evidence is very low. And there are some studies showing the opposite, that the use of sound machines might actually be disruptive to sleep. I like to educate patients that both of those are possibilities and that it probably comes down to personal experience and personal preference.”
Buenaver agrees that there’s no strong evidence that white noise improves sleep. He says that more research is needed but that there’s no harm in trying it out because none of the studies have reported any negative effects from short-term use of white noise during sleep.
Who Should Try White Noise Machines?
We consulted experts to develop a profile of sleepers who might benefit from white noise machines. Most people should give it an honest, especially considering most return policies give enough room to try products for at least a week before the return period closes. Here are more clues to help you figure out whether a sleep machine is worth trying.
You’ve tried everything else.
Your sleep hygiene is buttoned up—avoiding caffeine in the afternoon, installing blackout curtains, and banning phones, tablets, and devices from the bedroom—but there’s still something keeping you up.
The first course of action is to deal with noise disturbances at the source, Molzof says. For instance, get a snoring bed partner evaluated for obstructive sleep apnea or other conditions, or reprogram the lawn sprinkler or air conditioner so they don’t go off while you’re asleep. If that doesn’t work, then you can give white noise or earplugs a try.
“What can be most helpful is to do what you and your team did, trying these things for a week or more,” Molzof says. “Then make an informed decision whether it’s helpful for you or not and if there’s any relative difference in terms of the quality of the noise vs. earplugs.”
Buenaver says it can take anywhere from three to four nights to up to a week to get acclimated to white noise, but if you don’t become used to it after that time, it probably isn’t for you.
You use other sources of noise to fall asleep.
If you’re someone who has difficulty falling asleep in silence, white noise might also be helpful, says Brant Hasler, PhD, an associate professor of psychiatry, psychology, and clinical and translational science at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and director of the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Training Program.
“I see a lot of people with insomnia, and their minds tend to be pretty busy when they’re trying to go to sleep at night,” Hasler says. “Giving them some other sort of stimulus that’s just enough for their brain to do something without being too stimulating seems to be helpful.”
Many people end up trying to fall asleep listening to TV or podcasts, which Hasler discourages because of variations in noise. “A big increase in the volume and changes in sound seem to be more disruptive to sleep than a constant-level noise,” he says. “Constant white noise can also mask variations in other noises, thus protecting sleep.”
Who Shouldn’t Use a White Noise Machine?
Our experts say that white noise might not work for people who have a snoring bed partner, because the machine is often placed on a nightstand and the snoring is coming from your other side. Buenaver says you could try placing it on a shelf above the headboard. But earplugs will probably be the better option.
Finally, there are situations where any noise-masking device has disadvantages. “There might be important reasons that someone needs to be attentive to their environment, for example, parents with young children and caregivers across the board, whether they’re caring for an older parent or a spouse,” Molzof says.
People with hearing difficulties, hearing loss, or tinnitus should also consult a sleep expert or doctor before trying white noise, Molzof says, adding that she would learn about their experiences with these difficulties and explore what kinds of sounds are helpful or disruptive to them.
Bottom Line: Are White Noise Machines Worth It?
All our experts say you don’t need to shell out for a white noise machine. There are free apps available that work just as well as devices. “Even a fan can serve the same purpose,” Hasler says.
Some of the fancier machines we bought that cost more than $100 have added features, such as guided meditations and story time, which Buenaver says are designed to help place you in a state of quiet wakefulness or relaxation that’s more conducive to falling asleep. “There are different ways to achieve that that don’t require you to spend that kind of money,” he says. “You can use a free meditation app or play a sleep meditation on YouTube. If you’re looking for a white noise machine without bells and whistles, go with the most economical option.”
