Fan Noise for Sleeping

The steady, familiar hum of a box fan — without the draft, the cold, or the electricity bill.

Why fan sounds are so good for sleep

Ask people what they sleep to and "a fan" comes up again and again. Part of it is masking: a fan's steady, low whoosh covers the creaks, traffic, and voices that would otherwise interrupt your night. But for many, the fan sound is also a deeply ingrained cue — years of falling asleep to it have trained the brain to read that hum as "time to sleep." The moment it starts, you relax. It's one of the most reliable sleep sounds there is, and unlike a real fan you can have it warm in winter without freezing the room.

A fan you can take anywhere

The trouble with a real fan is that it isn't always available — hotel rooms, a partner who runs cold, summer-only fans packed away in a closet. Drifted Rain's generated fan noise travels with you. Open it on a laptop or phone, and you have the same enveloping hum on a winter night, on a trip, or in a quiet office for an afternoon rest. It loads in under a second and runs without streaming, so it won't eat your data or stutter overnight.

Make it yours

• Fan alone for the pure, familiar hum.
• Fan + brown noise to deepen the low end into a fuller, more enveloping sound.
• Fan + rain for a fan-by-an-open-window summer-night feeling.

Set the volume just above the room's background, choose a timer with its gentle fade-out, and let it carry you off.