Last updated: September 26, 2026

If you're choosing between brown, pink and white noise for sleep, pick the one you find easiest to listen to, keep it quiet, and don't count on it to deepen your sleep. There is very little good evidence that any of them improves sleep, and a 2026 study from the University of Pennsylvania found that pink noise played all night reduced REM sleep.

We make StillTune, a sleep and focus app that offers all three noise colors as optional layers, so we'd be happy if the answer were "use more noise." It isn't. Below is how we see each one, plus the few places where research gives a clear signal.

What brown, pink and white noise sound like

White noise is the bright one. It contains every audible frequency at equal intensity, which gives it the steady hiss people compare to radio static or a fan on high (Northwestern Medicine). To our ears it's the harshest of the three at bedtime.

Pink noise tilts the balance toward the low end. It sounds softer, more like steady rain or wind moving through leaves.

Brown noise tilts even further down. It's a deep rumble, closer to a heavy waterfall or distant thunder. If high-pitched sounds bother you, it's often the easiest of the three to live with. Nationwide Children's Hospital makes the same point about children who are sensitive to high sounds.

Why people use noise at night

The idea is masking. A steady sound raises the background level of the room, so a door closing or a car passing stands out less and is less likely to wake you. That's the reason white noise machines exist. It makes sense on paper. The trouble is that the evidence behind it is weak.

Does white noise help you sleep?

Maybe a little, for some people, but nobody has shown it convincingly. A 2021 systematic review looked at 38 studies of continuous white or similar noise and rated the evidence that it improves sleep as very low quality. Some studies found better sleep, some found worse, and the authors warned that constant noise could also affect sleep and hearing.

On the positive side, a small 2026 trial with 60 older adults in Iran found that people who listened to 30 minutes of nature sounds each night for a month reported sleeping better and falling asleep about 10 minutes faster. The catch is that sleep was self-reported and there was no placebo sound, so part of that improvement may be expectation.

Is pink noise good for sleep?

Pink noise has the best reputation of the three, and the most recent evidence goes against it.

Its reputation comes mostly from studies where a computer played very short bursts of pink noise timed to a sleeper's brain waves (for example, this 2017 Northwestern study). That's a lab technique. A speaker playing pink noise for eight hours is something else, and even the memory benefits from timed bursts have been shrinking in newer studies, according to a 2023 meta-analysis.

In early 2026, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania tested steady pink noise directly. Twenty-five healthy adults spent seven nights in a sleep lab with their sleep measured by polysomnography (Basner et al., 2026). Compared with a quiet room, pink noise at 50 dB on its own cut REM sleep by about 19 minutes a night. With recorded aircraft noise playing, adding pink noise on top didn't help, and REM sleep fell by another 14 to 22 minutes. Earplugs did much better: with aircraft noise and earplugs, people got about 21 more minutes of deep and REM sleep than with aircraft noise alone.

It's one study, in young healthy adults, over one week, so it doesn't settle the question. Still, it's the most carefully measured test of bedtime pink noise we could find, and it points the wrong way for anyone hoping pink noise is a free upgrade to their sleep. The lead researcher, Mathias Basner, has said the REM result is a particular concern for young children (Penn Medicine).

What about brown noise?

Brown noise got popular on social media, but it has barely been studied for sleep. We couldn't find a controlled sleep study on brown noise alone. It's broadband noise like pink noise, just weighted lower, so we'd assume the same caution applies until someone tests it.

Brown vs pink vs white noise: which should you use?

If you like having sound on at night, this is how we'd approach it:

  • Pick by comfort. If white noise feels harsh, try pink or brown. None has been shown to beat the others for sleep.

  • Keep it quiet. Northwestern sleep physician Roneil Malkani suggests just loud enough to hear, and no louder.

  • Use a timer. The Penn study tested noise that ran all night. Letting the sound fade after you fall asleep seems a sensible middle ground, although nobody has tested that directly.

  • Keep the speaker away from your head. For children, Nationwide Children's suggests placing it away from the crib and keeping the volume low.

  • If the real problem is loud, unpredictable noise from outside, try earplugs first.

If poor sleep has gone on for weeks, talk to a doctor or a sleep specialist. A noise color won't fix that.

How StillTune handles noise

In StillTune, noise is an optional layer under instrumental music that the app generates on your device as you listen. You can add white, pink or brown noise, or leave it off. Sleep mode slows down and thins out as it plays, and the sleep timer fades the sound down gradually before it stops.

Given what the Penn study found, our suggestion is to keep any noise layer low and set the timer, so the sound is there while you fall asleep and gone once you are. You can read how Sleep mode changes over the night on our sleep music page, or see how we compare with other apps in our guide to the best sleep sound and music apps.

Try StillTune on the App Store

Frequently asked questions

Is brown noise bad for you?

Nobody knows yet, because it hasn't been properly studied for sleep. It's broadband noise like pink noise, and all-night pink noise reduced REM sleep in the 2026 Penn study. Keeping brown noise low and on a timer is a reasonable precaution.

Should I play noise all night?

Probably not. In the 2026 Penn study, all-night pink noise reduced REM sleep by about 19 minutes. Using sound to fall asleep and letting a timer fade it out avoids most of that exposure.

Is white noise safe for babies?

Be careful with it. Nationwide Children's Hospital recommends a low volume and keeping the machine away from the crib, and the Penn researchers cautioned against broadband noise for newborns and toddlers. Ask your pediatrician before using one.

Are earplugs better than white noise?

For loud, intermittent noise, the evidence favors earplugs. In the 2026 Penn study they protected deep and REM sleep from aircraft noise, and pink noise didn't. Earplugs aren't comfortable for everyone, though.

Sources and further reading