Sleep Timer

Set a duration and the timer counts down while you fall asleep to whatever is playing on this device; when it reaches zero it fades and stops the audio playing in this page and, in most browsers, pauses media in other tabs of the same browser. The point is to avoid a podcast running until 4 a.m., a video that autoplays into the next episode, or a phone battery that is flat by morning. Presets run from 15 to 90 minutes; most people fall asleep within 10 to 20 minutes, so 30 is a sensible default.

Because the timer runs inside the browser it cannot stop apps such as Spotify or a TV. For those, use the app's own sleep timer; for audio played in a browser tab, this page is the missing feature.

Steady, unchanging sound helps most people sleep because it masks sudden noises, which are what actually wake you. Rain, a fan, brown noise and low ambient music all work; the built-in white noise generator has these and includes its own sleep timer. Speech is more mixed: some people drop off quickly to a familiar podcast because it stops rumination, but the changing content keeps others in light sleep, and the volume of laughter or music stings can wake you. If you use speech, choose something you have heard before and keep the volume low.

Two habits matter more than the audio choice. Keep the screen dark (the page dims automatically while the timer runs), because light in the last half hour delays melatonin. And use the same routine each night; the body learns that the sound means sleep.

Audio stops with a short fade rather than a cut, so you are not woken by the silence. If you wake in the night and want to restart, the last duration is remembered. To be woken in the morning, set the alarm clock in a second tab; the sleep timer never rings, it only stops. For a short daytime sleep with a wake-up sound, the nap timer is the right tool, and our sleep and waking guide covers evening routines in more detail.