How loud should white noise be for a baby?

By Valentin Galmand, dad and maker of Nala · October 4, 2026 · Updated October 9, 2026

Keep white noise low, about the level of a quiet conversation, and as far from the crib as the room allows. Hospital nurseries aim for roughly 45 to 50 dB. That is a hospital target, not a proven safe limit for every baby, but many sleep machines at full volume go far past it.

What the research measured

In 2014, researchers tested 14 infant sleep machines at their maximum volume (1). At 30 cm, about the distance of a crib rail, every one of them went over 50 dB, the level the authors cite as the recommended limit for babies in hospital nurseries. Three went over 85 dB.

That 50 dB figure comes from hospital settings. A 1997 statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended keeping neonatal intensive care units under 45 dB (2). These are hospital targets, not a rule for your bedroom, but they give a useful idea of scale: around 45 to 50 dB is roughly a quiet conversation.

No study has set one safe level for every baby and every length of exposure at home. How loud is too loud also depends on how close the sound is and how long it plays. So treat 50 dB as a reference point from hospital guidance, not as a guarantee.

The study's authors suggested placing sound machines as far from the baby as possible, never in the crib or on the rail, at a low volume and for a short time (3). Not every expert agrees on the "short time" part, but no one argues for loud and close.

Does white noise help at all?

For some babies, it seems to. In a small 1990 trial with 40 newborns, 80% fell asleep within five minutes with white noise, against 25% without (4). Australia's Raising Children Network says white noise might soothe a baby who wakes easily, as long as it is low and away from the baby's ears, and notes that a child can come to depend on it to fall asleep (5). So: a tool that can help, used gently.

Distance matters as much as volume

Sound gets quieter quickly as you move away from it. A sound machine on the crib rail and the same machine across the room are not the same exposure. That's why the advice is always distance first: put the sound on a dresser or shelf as far from the crib as the room allows. About 7 feet (2 meters) is a practical target in most bedrooms. If the speaker is a phone that is charging, keep the cable at least 3 feet (1 meter) from the crib too (6).

Distance first, then volume. Check the level where the baby's head is, not next to the phone.

A simple checklist

Put the sound as far from the crib as the room allows, never in it or on the rail.
Set it low: stand by the crib and check you could talk quietly over it.
If you want a number, hold a sound meter app at mattress height, where the baby's head is, and aim for around 50 dB or less. Phone meter apps are approximate: readings vary from one phone to another and with calibration, sometimes by several decibels, so use them as a rough guide.
Use a timer if your baby only needs help falling asleep.
Pick a timer that fades out, so the end of the sound doesn't startle the baby.
Check the volume again when you change device or speaker.

How Nala helps

Nala has a volume check built in. When a sound plays and your iPhone volume is high, Nala suggests turning it down and reminds you to keep the phone about 7 feet (2 meters) from the bed. The sleep timer lowers the sound over a full minute before it stops. Both are free, with white noise.

To be clear about what the warning does: it reacts to your iPhone's volume setting. It does not measure the sound level at your baby's ears, which depends on the room, the distance and the phone. Keeping the phone far from the crib and checking by the crib still matter. More on Nala's white noise.

Questions parents ask

Is white noise safe for babies?

Used gently, it seems to be fine for many babies: keep it low, far from the crib and not on all night if you don't need it. The concern in the research is volume: some sleep machines at full volume, close to the crib, go far past hospital nursery noise guidance.

How many decibels should white noise be for a baby?

Hospital nurseries aim for roughly 45 to 50 dB, which is around the level of a quiet conversation. That is a hospital target, not a proven limit for every baby. At home, the simple rule is: low enough that you can talk quietly over it, checked where the baby sleeps.

How far should a sound machine be from the crib?

As far as the room allows, never in the crib or on the crib rail. About 7 feet (2 meters) is a practical target in most bedrooms.

Should white noise play all night?

It doesn't have to. Many babies only need it to fall asleep. A timer that fades the sound out keeps the total time down without a sudden silence.

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Sources

Hugh SC et al. Infant sleep machines and hazardous sound pressure levels. Pediatrics, 2014.
Almadhoob A, Ohlsson A. Cochrane review on sound reduction in neonatal intensive care units, 2020 (citing the AAP Committee on Environmental Health, 1997).
CNN Health. Sound machines for babies: Too loud? Too close? 2014.
Spencer JA et al. White noise and sleep induction. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 1990.
Raising Children Network. Light, noise and baby sleep: FAQs.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Baby monitor cord safety alert.