Reviewland
6 apps · Ranking
Best free sleep sound apps for iPhone in 2026
For the most sound for free, White Noise Lite (50+ sounds, no purchases listed) and Rain Rain (50+ sounds, one small banner ad) are the strongest. For white, pink and brown noise on a free plan, White Noise Lite and White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds both list them. If you want free sounds with no ads at all and a sleep timer, Drop (ours) gives you 10 of its 32 sounds free, but no white noise.
All six are free to download. What differs is how much stays free, whether there are ads, and how long the sound plays; all of that is in the table.
At a glance
| App | Price (US) | What is free | App Store privacy label | Version (date) | Rating (US) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep Sounds & Focus: Drop Our app | Free: 10 of 32 sounds, no ads; Drop Pro monthly $4.99 or lifetime options | Rain, dewdrops, fire, forest, river, coffee shop, ocean waves, thunderstorm, bus and fan; sleep timer with 30-second fade | Data Not Linked to You (usage data) | 2.9 (16 Oct 2026) | 4.4 (12 ratings) |
| White Noise Lite | Free, no in-app purchases listed | 50+ looped sounds incl. white, pink and brown noise; timers and alarms with fades | Data Used to Track You (identifiers); Data Linked to You (user content); Data Not Linked to You (location, user content, identifiers, usage data, diagnostics) | 8.7.3 (3 Oct 2026) | 4.8 (277,342 ratings) |
| Rain Rain Sleep Sounds | Free (50+ sounds, small banner ad); Premium listed $3.99, $5.99 or $29.99 a year; sound packs $4.99 | 50+ HD sounds free, no playback limit, every fade-out option, mixer | Data Used to Track You (identifiers); Data Linked to You (identifiers); Data Not Linked to You (usage data, diagnostics) | 6.9.10 (22 Jan 2025) | 4.8 (137,201 ratings) |
| White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds | Free (plays 8 hours at a time); Continuous Play $4.99; Premium from $0.99 weekly to $59.99 family | 30+ free sounds incl. white, pink and brown noise; mixer, sleep timer, widget | Data Linked to You (user content); Data Not Linked to You (purchases, location, user content, search history, identifiers, usage data, diagnostics, other data) | 3.45.0 (25 Sep 2026) | 4.8 (209,557 ratings) |
| Sleep Sounds by Sleep Pillow | Free; sound packs $9.99 to $19.99; All Sound Packs subscription $4.99 | Naturally recorded sounds, up to 300,000 mixes, sleep timer, alarm | Data Not Linked to You (usage data, diagnostics) | 8.0.4 (30 Oct 2023) | 4.9 (90,190 ratings) |
| Dark Noise: Ambient Sounds | Free; Dark Noise Pro listed $0.99, $2.99, $19.99 and lifetime $49.99 | 50+ sounds, custom mixes, fade-out timer, Siri Shortcuts, widgets | Data Not Linked to You (usage data, diagnostics) | 3.6 (11 Sep 2026) | 4.8 (3,690 ratings) |
Prices are the US App Store in-app purchases on 16 October 2026 (an app can list several price points for the same plan). Ratings are the App Store average and number of ratings that day.
Sleep Sounds & Focus: Drop Our app
Best for: free, ad-free calming sounds with a proper sleep timer and a short breathing guide.
- 10 free sounds with no ad banner: rain, dewdrops, fire, forest, river, coffee shop, ocean waves, thunderstorm, bus and fan.
- Sleep timer of 15, 30 or 45 minutes, 1, 2 or 8 hours, with a 30-second fade-out; works offline.
- Breathing sessions of 2 to 20 minutes and a plant that grows as you practise.
- 3 languages (English, Japanese, Chinese), iOS 18 or later, 204 MB.
Limits: only 10 sounds are free and the other 22 need Drop Pro; no white, pink or brown noise; no mixer; needs iOS 18 and has few ratings (12 in the US).
White Noise Lite
Best for: the most free sound for no money: real noise colours, a mixer and timers.
- 50+ looped sounds, including white, pink, brown, blue and violet noise.
- Mix Pad to build mixes; background audio so you can use other apps.
- Timers and alarms that fade audio in and out.
- 3 languages (English, French, Spanish), iOS 14 or later, 94 MB.
Limits: no meditation or breathing, and its privacy label includes identifiers used to track you.
Rain Rain Sleep Sounds
Best for: lots of rain and nature sounds free with no time limit, if you accept a small banner ad.
- Per its listing, the free version has 50+ HD sounds, no limit on playback time, every fade-out timer option and a mixer with per-sound volume.
- No audio or video ads, only a small image banner at the bottom; Premium adds 60+ sounds and removes it.
- 4 languages (English, French, Italian, Spanish), iOS 12 or later, 105 MB.
Limits: last updated on 22 January 2025, and its privacy label includes identifiers used to track you.
White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds
Best for: a big library (250+ extra premium sounds) with 30+ free sounds, including white, pink and brown noise, for adults and babies.
- Free sounds listed include fan, baby shusher, vacuum cleaner, airplane cabin, rain, thunder, ocean waves, and white, pink and brown noise.
- Sleep timer, sound mixing, widget, AirPlay 2.
- Per its listing the free version plays sounds for eight hours; continuous play needs a subscription.
- 33 languages, iOS 15 or later, 200 MB.
Limits: the free version stops after eight hours, so for a night of sleep it is enough, but not for all-day use; many price points.
Sleep Sounds by Sleep Pillow
Best for: a classic sleep-sound app with a sleep timer, alarm clock and mixes.
- Sleep timer with slow fade-out and an alarm clock with slow fade-in.
- Runs in the background and with the screen locked; favourites list.
- English only, iOS 12 or later, 182 MB.
Limits: last updated on 30 October 2023, almost three years before this check; extra sounds are sold as packs.
Dark Noise: Ambient Sounds
Best for: the most polished design, with Siri Shortcuts, widgets and AirPlay.
- 50+ sounds with animated icons and custom mixes.
- Fade-out timer, Siri Shortcuts (also from a HomePod), interactive widgets and Lock Screen widgets.
- 10 themes; English only, 430 MB.
Limits: it requires iOS 26 or later, so many iPhones cannot install it, and it is the largest download here.
Who should use what
- You want the most free sound: White Noise Lite or Rain Rain.
- You need white, pink or brown noise: White Noise Lite or White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds.
- You want no ads and a good sleep timer: Drop (ours).
- You like a polished design and Siri Shortcuts, and have iOS 26: Dark Noise.
- You want a classic app with alarm and mixes: Sleep Pillow, keeping in mind it was last updated in 2023.
Use cases
- Falling asleep to rain or a fan with a timer that fades out (any of the six).
- Masking street noise all night (White Noise Lite or Rain Rain, with no time limit).
- Soothing a baby with white noise (White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds lists baby sounds and shushers).
- Focus or study with a coffee shop or fan sound (Drop, White Noise Lite).
How we checked
On 16 October 2026 we opened each app's US App Store page and Apple's lookup data: in-app purchases, version and release date, rating and number of ratings, languages, size, minimum iOS and the privacy label. What is free comes from each developer's description; for Drop, which is ours, from the app itself (version 2.9). We did not invent ratings or reviews and did not test audio quality or battery use.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free sleep sound app for iPhone?
It depends on what you need free. White Noise Lite has 50+ sounds and no listed purchases; Rain Rain has 50+ free sounds with a small banner ad; Drop has 10 free sounds with no ads and a sleep timer.
Which free app has white noise, pink noise and brown noise?
White Noise Lite lists white, pink, brown, blue and violet noise; White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds lists white, pink and brown noise among its free sounds. Drop has a fan and a bus sound but not white, pink or brown noise.
Does the free version of a sleep sound app stop after a few hours?
White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds says its free version plays for eight hours and continuous play needs a subscription. Rain Rain lists no limit on playback time in its free version.
Is there a sleep sound app with no ads?
Drop has no ads. Rain Rain says it has no audio or video ads, only a small image banner. White Noise Lite lists no purchases; check its ads when you install it.
Which sleep sound app works on older iPhones?
Rain Rain and Sleep Pillow ask for iOS 12 or later, White Noise Lite iOS 14. Dark Noise needs iOS 26 and Drop needs iOS 18.
Sources
- Drop (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1462269642 (16 October 2026)
- White Noise Lite (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id292987597 (16 October 2026)
- Rain Rain Sleep Sounds (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id478687481 (16 October 2026)
- White Noise Deep Sleep Sounds (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1083248251 (16 October 2026)
- Sleep Sounds by Sleep Pillow (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id410606661 (16 October 2026)
- Dark Noise (App Store): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1465439395 (16 October 2026)