Baby Sleep Sounds

Five sounds parents use to settle a baby, in one player: the womb, a shush, a heartbeat, a hair dryer and a vacuum cleaner. Tap one to start it, set the sleep timer, and put the device across the room.

This sound is generated in your browser as it plays. It is not a recording, so nothing streams and nothing is downloaded.

The sound keeps playing with the screen off or locked wherever the browser allows it, and your lock screen gets a play and pause control. Some phones stop background audio anyway, so try it on your own device before you count on it for a whole night.

Everything runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is stored on a server.

Pick a sound

A heartbeat near 70 beats per minute under the slow whoosh of blood flow, over a low bed.
Womb sound: the full page and what is in the mix
A rhythmic shush, the sound a parent makes over a baby's shoulder.
Shushing sound: the full page and the tempo control
The lub-dub on its own, over a quiet bed, at the maternal rate.
Heartbeat sound: the full page and the rate control
Bright fan noise with a motor whine under it.
Hair dryer sound: the full page and how it is built
Deep motor noise with a hollow hose resonance, the sound parents reach for during colic.
Vacuum sound: the full page and the notes on colic

One sound plays at a time. Picking another swaps to it without a gap. The volume, the muffle, the timer and settle mode below apply to whichever one is playing.

Volume, timer and settle mode

Volume-18 dB

Muffle0%

A low-pass filter that rolls off the high frequencies. Left is open, right is fully muffled, like the sound through a closed door.

Sleep timer

Sound fades out over the last 30 seconds and then stops. The countdown runs on the clock, so it keeps going while this tab sits in the background.

Settle mode: start louder, step down

Play starts 6 dB above your volume, drops to 3 dB above it after 3 minutes, and reaches your volume after 6 minutes. Set the volume you want for sleep and let the steps do the rest. Pair it with the sleep timer.

Sound fades in when you press Play and fades out when you stop.

Audio starts on your first tap on Play, as required by your browser.

Playing sound near a baby

Sound machines are common and the evidence behind them is thin. These are the precautions the published guidance supports.

Keep the sound near 50 dB at the baby's ear. That is about as loud as a quiet conversation.
Put the device at least 2 m (7 ft) from the crib, and never inside it.
Use the lowest volume that settles your baby. Louder is not better.
Use the sleep timer instead of playing all night, and turn the sound off once your baby is asleep.
Phone and tablet speakers vary, so the volume slider on this page is not a level meter. A free sound level meter app gives you a rough check at the crib.

A 2014 study in Pediatrics measured 14 infant sleep machines and found every one could exceed 50 dBA at 30 cm at maximum volume, which is why the precautions above are about distance, level and playing time. The American Academy of Pediatrics does not endorse white noise for babies and asks for caution, and the one small trial people cite in its favor covered only 40 newborns; all three sources are below.

This page is not medical advice and these tools treat nothing. They mask other sound, and many parents find that soothing. Ask your pediatrician about your own baby.

Sources

How this page makes the sounds

None of these is a recording. Each one is built from filtered noise, scheduled beats and simple tones, and your browser renders it while it plays, so nothing streams and no loop ever comes back to the same moment. The five full pages carry the controls this one leaves out: the shush tempo, the heartbeat rate, and the longer notes on each sound.

Frequently asked questions

Which sound should I try first?

There is no best one, and no evidence that ranks them. Babies differ, so try each at a low volume and watch your own. The womb mix and the shush are the ones parents reach for first, and the hair dryer and the vacuum are the harsher end of the same idea. Some babies settle to none of them.

Is one of these sounds safer than another?

No. The same rules cover all five: keep the level near 50 dB at your baby's ear, keep the device at least 2 m (7 ft) from the crib, use the lowest volume that works, and turn it off once your baby is asleep. How loud it is and how far away it is decide the risk, not which sound you picked. The sources are in the safety note on this page.

Can I play two sounds at once?

Not on this page. It plays one at a time, and picking another swaps to it. The sound mixer layers up to five sounds, but its sources are the noise colors, a fan and a low hum rather than these five.

Does it keep playing with the screen off?

Usually, but not always. The sound keeps playing with the screen off or locked wherever the browser allows it, and your lock screen gets a play and pause control. Some phones stop background audio anyway, so try it on your own device before you count on it for a whole night.