How to use the baby white noise player
- Choose a Sound. Shush, Heartbeat and Womb sounds are the gentlest places to start; White noise, Pink noise, Hair dryer and Vacuum cleaner are steadier and better at covering household noise.
- Press Play (or the Space bar). The sound fades in over about a second.
- Set the Volume. The player starts low on purpose. Raise it only until the sounds that disturb your baby, such as a television or traffic, blend into the background.
- Check the Sleep timer. It is set to 30 minutes the first time you visit, and the sound fades out over the last 45 seconds so the stop is not sudden. Choose Off if you prefer steady sound all night.
- For the shush, adjust Shush pace (how many "shhh"s per minute). For the heartbeat and womb sounds, adjust Heart rate between 60 and 80 beats per minute.
- Put your phone or speaker across the room, at least about 2 metres (7 feet) from the cot, silence notifications and lock the screen. On most phones the sound keeps playing with the screen off as long as the tab stays open.
Your sound, pace, heart rate, volume and timer are remembered in this browser, so at the next nap you only need to press Play.
The sounds, and how they are made
Every sound is synthesised live by your browser's Web Audio engine; nothing is a recording and nothing is downloaded.
| Sound | What it is | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Shush | Random noise limited to roughly 2.5–6 kHz, the band of a spoken "shhh", shaped by a slow breathing rhythm | Like a parent shushing beside the cot |
| Heartbeat | Low "lub-dub" thumps that glide downwards in pitch, 60–80 beats per minute, with tiny natural variations | Calm and rhythmic |
| Womb sounds | Deep low-passed brown noise, a muffled heartbeat with a pulsing whoosh, and a very slow swell | Dark, muffled and enveloping |
| White noise | Equal power at every frequency, gently softened at the very top | Even hiss that masks voices well |
| Pink noise | Power falls by about 3 dB per octave | Softer and fuller, like steady rain |
| Hair dryer | Broadband airflow with a presence peak around 3 kHz and a faint motor whine | Bright, steady blowing |
| Vacuum cleaner | Airflow centred lower, a low rumble and a quiet high whine | Steady motor drone |
The heartbeat and womb sounds play from a short loop of eight slightly different beats, so the rhythm feels natural without sounding mechanical. Because all of the sounds run on the audio clock rather than on timers in the page, they keep going steadily even when your phone's screen is locked. If you want to know how white, pink and brown noise differ, see white, pink and brown noise: what's the difference?
Why parents use white noise and shushing
Shushing, humming and rocking are among the oldest ways of settling a baby, and a sound player is a way of keeping that up without shushing for half an hour yourself. There are a few plausible reasons it helps some babies:
- It may feel familiar. The womb is not quiet. Before birth a baby hears a constant background of blood flow, the mother's heartbeat and muffled sounds from outside, which is the idea behind the womb and heartbeat options.
- It masks household noise. Steady sound makes a door, a dog, a sibling or traffic stand out less, so a baby in light sleep may be less likely to startle awake.
- It can become a sleep cue. Played at the same point in the bedtime routine each night, a familiar sound can become one of the signals that it is time to sleep.
Be realistic about the evidence. A few small studies have reported that newborns settled more quickly with white noise, but they involved few babies, and many babies sleep perfectly well without any sound. Some seem to dislike it. Treat it as one gentle option to try, and stop if it does not seem to help. It is not a treatment for colic, reflux or any medical problem; if your baby cries for long periods, seems unwell or is hard to settle by any means, talk to your health visitor, GP or paediatrician.
Safe volume and placement
The main concern with sound machines for babies is loudness, not the sound itself. Researchers who measured infant sleep machines at full volume and close range found that they could exceed the noise limits recommended for hospital nurseries. A phone or smart speaker can be just as loud. So:
- Keep it quiet, roughly as loud as a soft shower running in the next room. If you have to raise your voice to talk over it, it is too loud.
- Keep it at a distance: at least about 2 metres (7 feet) from the cot, never in the cot, Moses basket or pram and never attached to the rail. Keep cables and chargers out of reach.
- No earphones or headphones on babies. They put the sound right at the eardrum.
- Use the timer if your baby settles with sound but sleeps well in a quiet room; that keeps the total exposure low. If you play it all night, the volume and distance advice matters even more.
- Check from where your baby lies. The volume slider here is capped, but your device volume adds to it, and a phone sounds very different on a shelf than next to a pillow.
White noise does not change safe-sleep advice and does not reduce the risk of sudden infant death. Follow your health service's safe-sleep guidance on how and where your baby sleeps, and make sure you can still hear your baby over the sound, or use a baby monitor. Our guide is white noise safe for babies? covers volume, distance, timers and when to stop in more detail.
Shush, heartbeat, noise or lullabies?
There is no best sound. Many parents find the lower, softer options (womb, heartbeat, shush) gentler for newborns, and the steady noises better for covering a noisy flat, a shared room or daytime naps. Some babies prefer music: our lullabies play gentle music-box versions of Brahms' Lullaby, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and other traditional tunes with the same kind of timer. For yourself, the white noise, pink noise, brown noise and fan noise pages offer more control, and the sleep and relaxation sounds hub lists everything in one place.
Privacy: the sounds are generated on your device. No audio is recorded, downloaded or uploaded, and the only data stored is your settings, in this browser's local storage.
Frequently asked questions
How loud should white noise be for a baby?
As quiet as still works: roughly the loudness of a soft shower in the next room, with the phone or speaker at least about 2 metres (7 feet) from the cot. Start at the lowest level and turn it up only until household sounds blend in.
Should I leave white noise on all night?
Either approach is reasonable. A timer that fades out after your baby falls asleep keeps exposure lower; steady sound all night can help in a noisy home or if your baby wakes when it stops. If you leave it on, keep it especially quiet and far from the cot.
Which sound is best for a newborn?
There is no proven best sound. Many parents start with the shush, heartbeat or womb sounds because they are lower and softer than white noise, then switch if their baby seems to settle better with something steadier.
Will it keep playing when my phone screen turns off?
On most phones, yes, as long as you lock the screen rather than closing the browser tab. Silence calls and notifications, and keep the phone charging or well charged. Some battery-saving modes can still pause background audio.
Can white noise help with colic?
Some parents find steady sound helps a crying baby calm down, but it does not treat colic or its causes. If your baby cries for long periods most days, seems to be in pain or you are worried, talk to your health visitor, GP or paediatrician.
Will my baby become dependent on white noise?
Babies can come to expect it, like any part of a bedtime routine. That is not harmful, but lowering the volume or shortening the timer over the months makes it easier to sleep without it when you travel.
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