A List of Sleep Tools and Resources

We’ve compiled this huge list of sleep resources that comprises everything you need to get a good night’s sleep.

From apps and articles to teas and supplements, these 79 items cover everything sleep related, from sleep science theories to read about, to practical tools to avoid insomnia and access the restorative sleep we all need.

We’ve even included a section on lucid dreaming.

We’ll be updating this list periodically to keep up to date with the latest tools and research.

Sleep Hacking Sites & Articles

Hack To Sleep: Bringing you advice, features and reviews on everything you need to know about getting a good night’s sleep

Bulletproof Exec: The Art and Science of Sleeping: Famous biohacker Dave Asprey brings us this longform essay on sleep tips, routines, sleep supplementation, food tips for good sleep and tracking devices

The Sleep Guru: Anandi provides sleeping advice and practical tips from the principles of the ancient Ayurveda practices and wisdom

Relax Like a Pro: 5 Steps to Hacking Your Sleep: 4-Hour hero Tim Ferriss runs us through his personal hacks for a great night’s sleep

The Ultimate Guide to Sleep Hacking: The Basics: The Paleo folks behind Primal Eye bring you this comprehensive guide to sleeping, covering wider subjects than just supplementation and food and delving into your bedroom environment, your mental space and your pre-sleep behaviors

National Sleep Foundation: This organization is a resource of popular sleep topics, questions and answers, as well as an ‘ask the expert’ section

End Your Sleep Deprivation: This site is brought to us by the students of the Sleep and Dreams course at Stanford and is more focused on the science behind sleep and sleep disorders

Sleep Apps

f.lux: This can be downloaded onto your laptop or PC and it will adapt the screen light to whatever time of day it is. Your computer emits blue light, which keeps you alert. While this is great during the day, it can end up disrupting your circadian rhythms and stopping you sleep, especially if you use your computer in the evening. f.lux will wind down the amount of blue light emitted as it gets later, mimicking the natural light of the sun.

Sleep Cycle: Analyzes your sleep cycles throughout the night with sound and motion technology and presents the data in easy to read charts. Smart alarm allows you to set a customizable alarm window and it will gently awake you at the lightest point in your sleep cycle.

Awoken: This is a lucid dreaming tool that functions as a journal allowing to you train yourself in dream recall. It will also auto-analyze any detected patterns in your journaling, help you with reality checking and also allow you to set audio cues to trigger lucidity.

Sleep As Android: Another sleep tracking app that analyzes your sleep cycles and uses a smart alarm to wake you gently at the most optimal time. It will record snoring and sleep talking, pre-screen for sleep apnea and allow you to track your sleep deficit and REM sleep statistics. It also has a bounty of lullabies to fall asleep to.

Relax & Sleep Well: Narrated by Glenn Harrold, this is a meditation and self-hypnosis app containing tracks designed to help you get a good night’s sleep. There are 4 free recordings and over 80 in-app recordings to be purchased, covering an array of topics from mindfulness to sleep and from weight loss to self esteem.

Take a look at our 6 best apps for tracking your sleep if you want more sleep monitoring options.

White Noise Apps

Pzizz: This app sends you to sleep with a ‘sleep-optimized’ mix of music, sound effects, binaural beats and voices that can be set to a specific duration.

White Noise: You can create your own sleep-optimized soundscape and smart alarm system.

White Noise Machines

Marpac Dohm-DS All-Natural White Noise Sound Machine: This is the official sound conditioner of the National Sleep Foundation and is available in two speeds with a dual speed motor, which creates the sound of rushing air without the motion disturbance.

LectroFan White Noise Machine: Comes with 10 white noise options, 10 fan noise options and 7 different sleep settings. It also has a sleep timer so you can set your preferred duration.

HoMedics SS-2000G/F-AMZ Sound Spa Relaxation Machine: Has 6 recorded soundscapes to choose from: white noise, thunder, ocean, rain, brook or summer night. You can set the machine for your preferred duration and it has an auto-off timer.

Sleep Courses

Sleepio: Brought together by Oxford University sleep scientists, this course draws on 35 years of research to build you a complete and personalised sleep program based on goals you set when you start. They advise on specific lifestyle, environmental, cognitive and schedule adaptations and promise to help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep, feel refreshed, boost energy and improve your performance without the use of drugs.

Learn Optimal Sleep to Improve Your Health, Energy and Mind: This Udemy course is inexpensive but packs in a massive 37 lectures into its 4.5 hours. It’s been recently updated in 2016 and is well reviewed by hundreds of happy customers. It contains a blueprint for sleep hacking, simple and weird tips, and how to alter your environment to get the best sleep.

Secrets of Sleep Science: From Dreams to Disorders: If you’re more interested in the theoretical science of sleep, this short course consisting of 24 30-minute lectures from Stanford professor H Craig Heller could be right up your alley. He focuses on the progress made by neuroscientists and biologists in this field, looking specifically at the subjects of circadian clocks, dreaming, timing and function of REM sleep, neuroanatomy and neurochemistry of sleep, parasomnias, the future of sleep and much more.

The Sleep Guru Personal Sleep Review: A personalised 30- or 90-day sleep review that is a custom-tailored Ayurvedic approach, performed by Anandi herself. Includes a custom assessment and plan for long-term results.

Sleep Teas

Take a look at our 7 best teas for a good night’s sleep feature. We also love these products:

AfterGlow Sleep Tea: With organic lemon myrtle, chamomile, valerian, mistletoe, organic honeybush, lemongrass, gingko and St John’s Wort

Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime Extra Herbal Tea: With chamomile, tilia estrella, valerian, spearmint, lemongrass, hawthorn and orange blossom

Be Sleepy Tea Tonix Relaxing Bedtime Tea: With chamomile, lavender, kava kava, valerian, passionflower, hops, lemon balm, catnip, violet leaves and vervain (all organic)

Organic India Tulsi Wellness Sleep Tea: With Tulsi, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, black pepper, stevia and clove

Zhena’s Calm Me Sleep Tea: With chamomile, valerian, rooibos, cinnamon, roasted chicory, orange peel, rosehips, lemon balm, passionflower, licorice and spearmint

Sleep Supplements and Natural Sleep Aids

Luna Natural Sleep Aid with valerian, chamomile, passionflower, lemon balm and melatonin

Driftoff Natural Sleep Aid with valerian, melatonin, magnesium, vitamin B6, L-tryptophan, goji, lemon balm, passion fruit, L-taurine, L-theanine, skullcap, chamomile, hops, St John’s Wort, ashwagandha, inositol and 5-HTP

Zenwise Labs Natural Sleep Aid with melatonin, valerian, L-taurine, 5-HTP and L-theanine

Natrogix 100% Natural Sleeping Pills with melatonin, valerian, calcium, Vitamin B6, magnesium, L-theanine, GABA, 5-HTP, L-tryptophan, valerian, goji, chamomile, hops, St John’s Wort, L-taurine, lemon balm, passion fruit, inositol, skullcap, ashwagandha

Nature’s Wellness Natural Sleep Aid with magnesium, L-theanine, lemon balm, passion flower, hops, chamomile, GABA, 5-HTP, melatonin, L-tryptophan and valerian

Nature Made Softgel Sleep Natural Sleep Aid with L-theanine, melatonin, chamomile, passionflower and lemon balm

Jarrow Formulas Sleep Optimizer with valerian, L-tryptophan, hops, lemon balm, PharmaGABA and melatonin

Guided Meditations for Sleep

Guided Meditation for Deep Sleep by Deepak Chopra: 4 minutes

Into Sleep: 9 minutes

Bedtime Meditation by Lodro Rinzler: 9 minutes

Peaceful Sleep Meditation: 16 minutes

Yoga Nidra for Sleep by Jennifer Piercy: 22 minutes

Books About Sleep

Fast Asleep, Wide Awake: Discover the Secrets of Restorative Sleep and Vibrant Energy (Dr Nerina Ramlakhan, 2017 pre-order) Renowned sleep expert Dr Ramlakhan has compiled a new methodology in how to access restorative sleep and migrate that energy into your wakeful life

The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night at a Time (Arianna Huffington, 2016) HuffPo editor Huffington argues the case for a sleep revolution in a world of sleep deprivation. She explores sleep history, new sleep science, dreaming and the consequences of sleep deprivation

Sleep Smarter: 21 Essential Strategies to Sleep Your Way to a Better Body, Better Health and Bigger Success (Shawn Stevenson, 2016) A deeply practical guide in getting a better night’s sleep and having more energy to achieve your goals. Includes a 14-day sleep makeover

The 8-Hour Sleep Paradox: How We are Sleeping our Way to Fatigue, Disease and Unhappiness (Dr Mark Burhenne, 2016) An alternative voice arguing that sleeping long doesn’t necessarily equate to sleeping well, and how you can access better sleep and greater success in our waking lives

Sleep Soundly Every Night, Feel Fantastic Every Day: a Doctor’s Guide to Solving Your Sleep Problems (Robert Rosenberg DO FCCP, 2014) Using clinical research and anecdotal evidence from his own patients, Dr Rosenberg guides the reader in avoiding sleep disorders, finding relief, the meaning of new findings in sleep science and how to regain energy and build a better health foundation through sleep

TED Talks on Sleep

Podcasts about Sleep

Tim Ferriss: 5 Tools I Use for Faster and Better Sleep: A 20-minute podcast with reviews of sleep-related goods beloved by 4-Hour Work Week author Ferriss.

Brain Science: Sleep Science with Penny Lewis: Dr Penelope Lewis is interviewed on the Brain Science podcast on sleep research currently being undertaken on humans, animals and insects, as well as brain changes during sleep and the scientific merits of improving slow wave sleep for cognitive performance.

Freakonomics: The Economics of Sleep: Fascinating economic analysis on everything we know about sleep, including: who sleeps more, according to race, sex and income; how legit is the data we’re working with; and has sleep duration changed over time.

Sleep Studies

Sleep, Rhythms and Metabolism: Too Many Links to be Ignored (2016): The links between our sleep and our metabolism, how dietary intake can affect results and the associations between sleep duration and obesity.

Terror and Bliss? Commonalities and Distinctions Between Sleep Paralysis, Lucid Dreaming, and their Associations with Waking Life Experiences (2016): What are the links and differences between sleep paralysis and lucid dreaming and how do dissociative experiences during wakefulness affect this.

Consumer Sleep Technologies: a Review of the Landscape (2015): How are sleep apps, wearables and other technologies affecting clinical medicine, are they valid and what are the social, legal and ethical issues posed.

Effects of Low Oral Doses of Melatonin, Given 2-4 Hours Before Habitual Bedtime, on Sleep in Normal Young Humans (1996): The effects of melatonin supplementation on young, healthy volunteers, examining their sleep onset latency and mood and performance the following day.

Luxury Mattress Brands

There are thousands of mattresses on the market which vary hugely in quality, comfort and support. Take a look at our Mattress Reviews section for in-depth analysis of the best models on the market.

In the meantime, explore these brands for the best of the best products when it comes to a good night’s sleep.

Layla Sleep: Layla have manufactured the world’s first copper-infused memory foam mattress that provides plenty of health benefits beyond its remarkable comfort. Check out our in-depth review and remember to buy online for $50 off

Tempur-Pedic: One of the big names when it comes to memory foam mattresses, Tempur-Pedic provide premium products for a premium pricetag

Lucid: Creators of gel memory foam mattresses for highly affordable prices

Tuft & Needle: A Phoenix-based startup intent on revolutionizing the mattress industry with its low prices, universally comfortable mattresses and easy shipping. Check out our in-depth review of their Queen style

Zinus: A prolific furniture design company with a roster of high quality, low price mattresses, specializing in memory foam, green tea infusions and cooling gels. Check out our review of their Sleep Master Ultima.

Dynasty Mattress: A mattress and bedding manufacturer that specialize in memory foam that sleeps cool. You can read our review of their Cool Breeze 12-inch model here.

Advanced Sleep Products: Innovators in sleep technology and specialists in waterbed mattresses. Their bestsellers include: air beds, softside waterbeds, waterbed sheets and waterbed accessories with a variety of foam mattress pads.

Best Pillows

Remember to check out our Pillows section for in-depth reviews and recommendations.

Adjustable Shredded Memory Foam Pillow by Coop Home Goods: Fully adjustable height, shredded visco-elastic memory foam, hypoallergenic and dust mite resistant, machine washable. Check out our in-depth review

Bamboo Pillow with Shredded Down Alternative by Relax Home Life: Stay cool cover, adjustable height, machine-washable

Snuggle-Pedic Bamboo Shredded Memory Foam Pillow: Kool-Flow micro-vented covering, shredded combination memory foam that never goes flat, hypoallergenic and dust mite resistant

Equinox Memory Foam Pillow: Cooling gel technology, dust mite resistant and hypoallergenic

Iso-Cool Memory Foam Pillow by Sleep Better: 100% cotton, covered in Outlast Adaptive Comfort material with tiny PCM beads to absorb or release heat, visco-elastic memory foam, excellent for side sleepers

Hypoallergenic Bamboo Pillow by Xtreme Comforts: Shredded memory foam, Kool-Flow micro-vented bamboo cover, hypoallergenic and dust mite resistant

Articles & Sites on Dreaming

Dreaming: Psychology Today: A great resource on the basics of dreaming and nightmares

Journal: Dreaming: This is a peer-reviewed scientific journal from the International Association for the Study of Dreams, publishing articles pertaining to dreams from a number of different disciplines

Dream Dictionary: Interpret what the symbols of your dreams could be representing with this easy-to-use dictionary

Books on Dreaming

The Interpretation of Dreams: The Complete and Definitive Text: This is Sigmund Freud’s definitive masterpiece on dreaming, exploring what our dreams mean in the context of our waking lives

The Mind at Night: The New Science of How and Why We Dream: Journalist Andrea Rock uncovers the history of dream research and where we are now

Dreams: Discover the Meaning of Your Dreams and How to Dream What You Want: This 2015 textbook focuses on dream interpretation and psychology, as well as the mysterious world of lucid dreaming

The Divinity Code to Understanding Your Dreams and Visions: This is another book focusing on dream interpretation but is bible-based and Christian-centric

Lucid Dreaming Resources

The Ways to Control Dreaming: A good introduction to lucid dreaming in the Atlantic, together with the science and some relevant studies behind the phenomena

Lucidity: A site dedicated to the art of and experimentation within lucid dreaming

World of Lucid Dreaming: A site exploring the what, how and why of lucid dreaming

The Mysteries of ‘Lucid’ Dreaming: The Guardian explores what lucid dreaming can tell us about the brain

Lucid Dreaming Sub-Reddit: A discussion forum and support network on the whys and hows of lucid dreaming.

Neuroon Lucid Dreaming System: A high-tech app dedicated to encouraging and developing lucid dreaming, consisting of 3 modules: guided meditations before falling asleep, external stimuli during REM sleep, a sleep diary and reality check training

7 Steps to Start Lucid Dreaming: A Life Hacker article designed to get you started in the act of lucidity