Rain, brown noise or white noise: what to play while you study

Background sound can cover up a noisy room or a chatty office. Here is how the common choices differ.

The colors of noise

• White noise has equal energy at every frequency, so it sounds bright, like a hiss or static. It covers a lot of sound, but some people find it harsh.
• Pink noise has more low frequencies, so it sounds softer, a bit like steady rainfall or wind.
• Brown noise is deeper still, like a low rumble or distant waterfall. Many people find it the most comfortable for long sessions.
• Rain and ocean waves have natural variation, which some people find more relaxing than constant noise.

Does it help you focus?

The research on noise and concentration is mixed. Some people concentrate better with steady sound, especially when it masks speech. Others work better in silence. It also depends on the task: sound can help with routine work and get in the way of reading or writing that needs full attention. Try it for a few sessions and keep what works for you.

Tips

• Keep the volume low, well below speech.
• Use headphones in shared spaces.
• Don't play loud sound while falling asleep with headphones on.

Murmur

Murmur plays these sounds in your browser:

1. Five sounds: rain, waves, brown, pink and white noise, with a slider for each.
2. Presets: Focus, Calm and Sleep, as a starting point.
3. A sleep timer from 15 to 90 minutes that fades out gently.
4. It keeps playing with the popup closed, across all your tabs. Shortcut: Alt+Shift+M.

The sounds are generated in your browser, so there is nothing to download, and each loop is built so you don't hear it repeat. Murmur can't see any website and makes no network requests.