The 8 Best Baby Sound Machines Provide Sleep Support Wherever You Go

Hatch Baby, the newest iteration of the award-winning Hatch Rest, is a favorite for parents who love a high-tech, incredibly customizable sleep sidekick. Despite its chic new look, the Hatch Baby still offers tons of soothing white noise options (think heartbeat, static, and gentle rain) as well as songs and lullabies. You can then combine your favorite sound with a specific light setting and save baby’s favorites for later. 

“The ability to save sounds can be helpful for parents who want to create a different environment for night sleep versus napping,” says Leah Rocketto, Associate Commerce Director at What to Expect, who finds the feature to be easy and intuitive to use. Leah also loves the easy-to-use app: “It’s especially helpful if my mom or someone else is with the baby and struggling to turn it on. I can just do it from my phone, and all is well.”

Beyond the aesthetics, the Hatch Baby offers extra helping hands within the app. Features like 1:1 Sleep Consultant Chat and Baby Sleep Guides are there to walk you through those first-year sleep hurdles. You’ll get six months of free access to these pro tips, and if you love them, you can extend the subscription for $6.99 a month.

Sarah Darby, What to Expect's Senior SEO Strategist, also found creating custom combinations to be super useful, especially because it’s easy to accidentally cycle through all of the sounds when turning the machine on and off.

As baby gets older, you can also use the Hatch as an alarm clock and program specific colors to signal to your toddler that it’s time for bed, time to wake up, or time for a nap. Talk about longevity!

Last year's winner of the Sleep Awards, the Yogasleep Hushh is still well-loved by parents for being an impressively useful little device that you can take with you just about anywhere, for a fraction of the cost. With three sound variations, including bright white noise, deep white noise, and gentle surf, plus full volume control, every type of setting can be pretty personalized. Parents also love how easy it is to use the Hushh with simple buttons on the side. The standout feature of the Hushh, however, is the included clip that allows you to attach it to your stroller on walks or your diaper bag. Its compact size means you can take it with you to travel or just around the house while holding baby. Even though it has less fancy customization, parents find that the Yogasleep Hushh is a reliable and effective white noise machine for babies. 

Just remember: Never attach this device (or any other on this list) to your baby’s crib. Not only would that make the sound levels unsafe, but attaching anything to a crib is a hazard, per the AAP. 

When bedtime feels more like a battle, a trusty sound machine can be a game-changer. The Dreamegg D1 offers 24 calming sounds — and seven of these alone are different kinds of white noise. Whenever you want to switch things up, however, you'll have the ability to toggle between natural sounds like a gentle rainfall or ocean waves, along with a few fan sounds, too. Needless to say, this machine is designed to help your little one drift off to dreamland. 

It's also one of many sound machines on this list that doubles as a night light, offering a soft glow to make those late fees a little more cozy. Plus, parents love that this has the option to run it continuously (always on) or select one of the timers that will automatically shut this off once you know baby is sound asleep. Choose between 30, 60, or 90 minutes. Bonus: it'll remember your last used settings, so you don't have to struggle putting on your ideal background noise if the lights have already been shut off. And that goes for you or baby! This machine is just as soothing and comforting for grown-ups who need a little extra help winding down. 

The Dohm is described as a staple in many parents’ homes for several reasons. Instead of digitally recreating sound, it actually has a fan built in inside to produce white noise that many parents say sounds natural and unobtrusive. Plus, it can impressively drown out almost all outside noises — whether it’s coming from the street or other areas of your home — which may be one of the reasons many parents love it in their own rooms, too. 

“The fact that it uses a fan and not a low-quality recording played through a low-quality speaker makes a difference I think,” says Jamison Hermann, What to Expect's former Senior Video Producer, who has two in his home.

Its straightforward design allows you to adjust the tone and volume by twisting the top and sides. Each opens or closes vents so you can modify the level depending on what helps baby sleep. Many parents in the What to Expect community say it has even lasted them for several years. One thing to note, however, is that it doesn’t have a timer, so you’ll have to manually turn it off if you don’t want it to play all night. It also doesn’t have a light. 

This one is slightly controversial, but the number of TikTok views doesn't lie. Winner of this year’s “Best TikTok Sleep Product (That’s Worth It)” in the Sleep Awards, the Baby Shusher is a portable sound machine that emits a real human shushing noise. Many parents credit it for getting them through the newborn phase, and said it gave them a break from constantly saying, “Shhh” to soothe their fussy babies.

While it has an impressive cult following, some parents do share that they can’t stand the noise. It really comes down to personal preference, but you might want to give it a listen before adding it to your cart.

Frida Baby is a brand that What to Expect parents turn to for genius baby products that make life with a newborn a little bit easier. This two-in-one sound machine is just that, as it’s a super lightweight and compact device that you can take with you anywhere to help baby fall asleep. The strap wraps around the machine when not in use, and then can be detached to hook onto your stroller, diaper bag, or just about anywhere else. It’s also small but mighty, as it comes with five sound options, plus an adjustable light so it can double as a nightlight when you’re traveling. 

The sleekness and simplicity of the Sleep Award-winning Hatch Rest Go has made it a top pick among WTE parents and editors alike. What to Expect's Commerce Content Director Liz Buxton (and mom of one!) takes it with her every time she leaves her house, and Blake Bakkila shares it’s quickly become a soothing staple for her son’s daily daytime naps at Grandma’s and while traveling. 

It’s shockingly compact and lightweight, and has just three buttons: One to turn on the machine and change sounds, and two to adjust the volume. Parents also appreciate the attached ring for more relaxing strolls with baby, and as a bonus, it comes in five colorways.

Don’t let the adorable owl shape fool you — this sound machine means business when it comes to lulling your little one to sleep. It also ranks among our favorite night lights, since it can give a soft glow or project a starry night sky on your baby’s nursery wall or ceiling. These light settings can be used together or separately, and there are eight melodies and highly rated nature sounds to choose from.

Psst: if owls aren’t matching your nursery’s vibe, Skip Hop makes an elephant version, too.