White Noise vs Pink Noise

White noise has equal power at every frequency; pink noise has equal power in every octave. To your ear that’s the difference between a hiss and a hush. Switch between them below.

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All 22 sounds: noise colors, nature, places and machines

Noise colors

Nature

Places

Machines

The difference in one picture

Imagine the range of hearing split into octaves (see colors of noise1): 20–40 Hz, 40–80 Hz and so on up to 20,000 Hz. White noise puts the same power into every hertz, so the top octave, which is 10,000 Hz wide, gets far more than the bottom one. Pink noise puts the same power into every octave. Since we hear in octaves, pink noise sounds balanced and white noise sounds tilted toward the treble.

White noisePink noise
Sounds likeStatic, a hissSteady rain, a hush
PowerEqual per hertzEqual per octave (−3 dB/octave per hertz)
Masking voicesStrongestStrong
Comfort over hoursCan be tiringEasier
Sleep researchHelped in noisy settings 2Timed pulses helped deep sleep 3; steady all-night pink noise cut REM 4

Which to choose

  • Covering conversations: white noise, or white with a little pink.
  • All-day background at work: pink noise.
  • Sleep: pink noise for most people; white if voices keep you up.
  • Tinnitus: pink noise is often more comfortable; ask an audiologist.

Read more: what is white noise?, what is pink noise?, and white noise vs brown noise.

Sources

  1. Wikipedia. Colors of noise. en.wikipedia.org.
  2. Stanchina ML, et al. (2005). The influence of white noise on sleep in subjects exposed to ICU noise. Sleep Medicine.
  3. Ngo HV, Martinetz T, Born J, Mölle M (2013). Auditory closed-loop stimulation of the sleep slow oscillation enhances memory. Neuron 78(3):545–553.
  4. Basner M, et al. (2026). Efficacy of pink noise and earplugs for mitigating the effects of intermittent environmental noise exposure on sleep. Sleep.

Questions

Is pink noise or white noise better for sleep?

Most people find pink noise more pleasant; white noise masks voices more strongly. Neither is a proven sleep aid, and a 2026 study found all-night pink noise reduced REM sleep, so keep either one quiet.

Why does pink noise sound quieter?

It has less energy in the high frequencies, where our ears are most sensitive, so it sounds softer at the same overall level.

Last updated .