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Pink noise

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No. 001 · PINK NOISE

Pink noise — a softer, more balanced steady sound

  • 01 Softer than white noise
  • 02 Sleep timer with a one-minute fade-out
  • 03 Dim warm screen light, adjustable to black

Pink noise sounds like steady rain or wind in leaves: the same hiss as white noise with the harsh top end turned down. Press Play, set a sleep timer, and the sound fades out in the last minute. The screen can glow a dim warm colour or stay black.

Other sleep sounds and clocks —
Night clockFull screen clockWhite noiseBrown noise
§ 01

What makes noise pink

In pink noise the power falls by 3 dB for every doubling in frequency, a 1/f pattern. The result is equal energy in each octave, from the lowest bass octave to the highest. White noise has equal energy at every frequency instead, so most of its energy is up in the treble. Pink therefore sounds fuller in the lows and less hissy than white.

§ 02

Many natural sounds sit close to a 1/f slope, including steady rain and rustling leaves, which is one reason pink often sounds more natural than white.

Where pink noise turns up

Many natural sounds sit close to a 1/f slope, including steady rain and rustling leaves, which is one reason pink often sounds more natural than white. Audio engineers also use it to test rooms and speakers because equal energy per octave matches how pitch is heard.

§ 03

What to expect for sleep

Pink noise masks background sound in the same way white noise does. Some research tests carefully timed pink noise bursts played during deep sleep, but that is a laboratory technique and this page plays a steady sound, so do not expect the same effect. Evidence for steady noise improving sleep is limited, and masking is the benefit you can rely on.

Procedure

Three moves to peak output

  1. 01

    Press Play

    Audio starts on your tap. Begin with the Volume slider low and raise it only until the background noise is covered.

  2. 02

    Pick a sleep timer

    15, 30, 60 or 90 minutes. Sound and screen light fade over the final minute and then the page stops.

  3. 03

    Compare with white and brown

    Use the sound buttons to try white, brown or ocean waves without leaving the page. If pink still feels too bright or too heavy, one of the others may suit you better.

Inquiries

Questions worth asking

Q.01 Is pink noise better than white noise?
Neither is better in general. Pink has more bass and a softer top end, so many people find it less harsh. White is better at covering high-pitched sounds. Try both at a low volume and keep the one you stop noticing.
Q.02 Why is it called pink?
By analogy with light. Mixing all visible wavelengths equally gives white light, and a spectrum weighted toward the low-frequency end is like light weighted toward red. The name describes the shape of the spectrum and nothing else.
Q.03 How is the sound made?
The browser generates random noise and shapes it with a filter that approximates a 3 dB-per-octave slope, then loops an eight-second stretch of it. Nothing is streamed, and the loop has a cross-faded join so you should not hear a click.
Q.04 Is this a recording?
No. The sound is generated by your browser as you listen, so there is nothing to download and no file to buffer. It plays as a repeating eight-second pattern, long enough that most people do not notice the loop.
Q.05 Will it keep playing when my phone locks?
Not reliably. Some phone browsers pause web audio once the screen turns off. Playing keeps the screen awake on browsers that support the Screen Wake Lock API (Chrome, Edge and recent Safari). Turn the Screen light down to 0% and the screen shows black. If your phone still stops the sound, switch off auto-lock for the night.
Q.06 How loud should I set it?
Quiet enough to talk over comfortably, and no louder than you need to cover the sounds you want to mask. The Volume slider is relative to your device volume, so the page cannot tell you how many decibels you are getting. For a baby's room, keep the speaker well away from the crib and the volume low.
Q.07 Does noise help you sleep?
The well-established effect is masking: a steady sound makes sudden noises such as traffic, a neighbour or a snoring partner less noticeable. Research on whether steady noise improves sleep itself is mixed and mostly small. It is not a treatment for insomnia or any other condition, so talk to a doctor if you cannot sleep for weeks.
Cross-reference

Try adjacent plates