Brown noise for sleep
Brown noise is a deep, steady background sound. Some people play it at night because a constant sound can make changes such as traffic, pipes, doors, or voices less noticeable.
How sound masking works
A quiet room makes every new sound stand out. A steady background sound reduces the contrast between that baseline and intermittent noises around you. Brown noise emphasizes lower frequencies, so many listeners find it softer than the brighter hiss of white noise.
This is masking, not soundproofing: it changes how prominent another sound seems, but it does not remove the sound itself.
What the evidence says
Research specifically testing brown noise for sleep is limited. Evidence about other steady sounds cannot establish that brown noise improves sleep or that it works better than white noise, pink noise, or silence. The most accurate reason to try it is personal preference: a continuous low sound may make your room feel more consistent.
For an independent clinical overview, see the Cleveland Clinic’s guide to brown noise.
How to try it
- Begin at a low, comfortable volume rather than trying to cover every sound completely.
- Place the speaker near the source of an unwanted sound when practical, instead of raising the volume beside your head.
- Use a sleep timer if you only want sound while settling down.
- Lower the volume or stop if the sound becomes uncomfortable or prevents you from hearing something important.
Using Brown FM at night
Brown FM generates continuous noise on your iPhone while you listen. You can adjust depth, texture, space, and movement, save a preferred sound, and set a timer from the app, a widget, Control Center, Siri, or Shortcuts. There is no repeating recording or track boundary.
Learn how Brown FM generates brown noise, read the focus guide, or see the feature and playback answers.