Features worth looking out for include ...

White noise

You've probably heard white noise without realising it. It's the hissing sound you can hear if you tune between stations on your radio.

Pink noise 

This also makes a hissing sound, but is softer than white noise.

Blue, brown and purple noise

Some of the software products we mention produce these types of sounds. Similar to white and pink noise, they produce a hissing sound that may be harsher or softer. Natural sounds in the environment, such as waterfalls, fountains and heavy rain, also produce hissing type sounds.

Loudness

We tested each desktop sound generator for loudness by measuring the sound output at maximum volume. However, we wouldn’t recommend using them at full volume, for relaxation it's best to have the sounds gently playing in the background.

Nature / environmental sounds

This includes any sound that you would find in the natural environment, such as waterfalls, streams, rainfall and forest noises. Many sound generators use these types of sounds.

Sound quality / realism

We asked our panel of volunteers to rate each desktop sound generator to find which model produced the most natural, realistic sounds.