How loud should masking sound be to cover snoring?

Just above the snoring's average level at your pillow, not its loudest peak. Start moderate and raise it one step at a time. Masking works by blurring the snore into the background, not by out-shouting it.

Guide · Block out snoring

How to Block Out Snoring With Sound Masking

Q: What sound blocks out snoring best?

Brown noise. Snoring concentrates its energy below roughly 500 Hz, and brown noise puts its energy in the same low range, so it covers snoring at a lower overall volume than white noise. Rain layered over brown noise works as well and sounds more natural.

Q: Does white noise cover snoring?

Partially. White noise spreads energy evenly across all frequencies, so only a fraction lands in the low range where snoring lives. To cover snoring with white noise you must play it uncomfortably loud; brown noise does the job quieter.

You tried white noise and still heard every snore. That is a frequency problem, not a volume problem — and it has a frequency solution.

Last updated: July 11, 2026

Short answer: snoring lives in the low frequencies, mostly below 500 Hz. Mask it with sound that also lives there: brown noise alone, or rain layered over brown noise. Set the volume just above the snoring's average level at your pillow and run it all night with DRMN's 10-hour timer.

Why white noise fails against snoring

White noise spreads its energy evenly from low frequencies to high. Snoring doesn't: it rumbles, concentrated in the bottom of the spectrum. When you play white noise against a snore, only a small slice of the noise overlaps the snore's range, so the snore punches through. Turning up the volume eventually covers it — at a level that hisses you awake instead.

Brown noise flips the equation. Its energy piles up exactly where snoring sits, so it blurs the snore into the background at a volume you can comfortably sleep in.

The masking hierarchy for snoring

Option	How well it covers snoring	Notes
Brown noise	Best	Low-frequency energy matches the snore's range
Rain + brown noise mix	Best, more natural	Rain adds texture; brown noise carries the low end
Fan noise	Good	Decent low-mid coverage, familiar to fan sleepers
Pink noise	Fair	Softer than white, still light in the lowest range
White noise	Weak at safe volume	Needs to be loud to cover lows

DRMN sound mixer combining rain and brown noise to mask snoring — The anti-snoring mix in DRMN: brown noise as the base layer, rain on top for texture.

Set up the anti-snoring mix in DRMN

Download Sound Machine Deep Sleep DRMN free from the App Store.
Start Brown Noise from the library.
Open the mixer and layer Rain on top at a lower volume, if pure brown noise feels too flat.
With your partner snoring, raise the volume one step at a time until the snore blurs into the noise. Stop there — you want to mask the average, not the loudest peak.
Set the sleep timer to 8–10 hours so masking lasts as long as the snoring does, and press play.

Position helps too: put the phone or a Bluetooth speaker on your side of the bed, between your ear and the snorer. Sound masking works best when the masker is closer to you than the noise.

Sound Machine Deep Sleep DRMN Brown noise, rain, and a 10-hour timer — free on the App Store

Frequently asked questions

What sound blocks out snoring best?

Brown noise, because its energy sits in the same low range as the snore. Rain over brown noise covers the same range and sounds more natural.

How loud should the masking be?

Just above the snoring's average level at your pillow. Masking blurs the snore into the background; it does not need to drown the peaks.

Does white noise cover snoring?

Only at uncomfortable volume. Its energy spreads across all frequencies, so little lands where the snore lives. Brown noise does it quieter.