The best earplugs for a supreme undisturbed sleep
Visit the land of nod more quickly and stay there longer with a pair of the best earplugs designed to improve the quality of your sleep
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The best earplugs for sleeping can be an absolute lifesaver for light snoozers, long-term snorer sufferers and anyone who happens to live in a noisy area. Creating the ultimate place to drift off to the land of nod is tough is more than just buying one of the best mattresses, not least because there are plenty of nightly noises to disrupt your rest. How do you combat that? With a good pair of noise-blocking earplugs to great a bit of bloody shhh as you sleep, that’s how.
Margaret Thatcher might have famously survived on four hours a night, but we wouldn't recommend it as a route to wellness. In fact, the body requires between seven and eight hours of sleep to keep your immune system strong, your digestive system in check and your brain firing on all cylinders. But for many of us, it isn’t always easy to get to and stay asleep.
And while we’ll happily proclaim the benefits of investing in the best pillow sets, a solid duvet, perhaps a sleep mask and definitely one of the best electric blankets to keep warm this winter, the best thing you can do is invest in a pair of single-use, disposable foam earplugs to drown out the sound of antisocial neighbours, snoring partners, noisy birds and 4am bin men.
There's a whole world of noise-masking, reusable sleeping earplugs that ergonomically contour to the shape of your ear or come in different sizes for particularly large or small ear canals. Here, we run through what to look out for before you invest.
What are the best earplugs for sleeping?
Silicone earplugs are the absolute way to go if you're hunting for supreme comfort as you drift away, and you won't find much more comfortable than Wutan's offering. With wingtips to keep them snug inside your ear, no matter how much you move at night, these will block out low-level sounds for undisturbed sleep.
Beary Quiet's rubber offerings are among the most popular earplugs on Amazon, with reviewers raving about the quality of the blockage, the comfort and the ease with which you can drift off to Nod-land while wearing them.
If you're looking for the ultimate noise blockers to get your perfect night's sleep, look no further than QuietOn's 3 Sleepbuds. Designed specifically to help you get your sleep with almost no noise disturbance, these are light, comfortable and unrivalled for its noise cancellation.
- Best earplugs for comfort: Wutan earplugs for sleeping, £16.99 at amazon.co.uk
- Best disposable earplugs: Beary Quiet, £14.99 at amazon.co.uk
- Best earplugs for all ear shapes: Deep Sleeps Soft Silicone Earplugs for Sleeping, £8.99 at amazon.co.uk
- Best affordable earplugs for sleeping: Boots Soft Disposable Ear Plugs, £7 at boots.com
- Best premium earplugs for sleeping: QuietOn 3 Sleepbuds, £249 at quieton.com
- Best lightweight earplugs for sleeping: Amazfit ZenBuds, £119 at amazfit.com
What should I look for in earplugs for a good night's sleep?
There are three main types of earplugs for sleeping, which can also be used for travel, and blocking out irritating co-workers in the office. Most come with a decibel noise reduction rating (25-32dB is the most common) which gives you an idea of the amount of extra noise a pair of earplugs can block out.
Foam Earplugs: The type of earplugs often given away in hotels, they’re cheap, soft and once shoved in your ears, expand to stay in place (hopefully) long enough for you to fall asleep. These disposable earplugs are great at blocking background noise, but many people struggle to keep a pair in all night. The fact that they're not generally reusable means they aren't great for the planet, either.
Silicone Earplugs: Pillow soft silicone earplugs are reusable, easy to clean and available in a host of stylish colours and designs, many of which borrow heavily from in-ear headphone designs with wingtips to help keep them in position. Comfortable, often hypoallergenic and lightweight, but they are significantly more expensive than most foam designs. These might also come with a carrying case to take around on planes or trips abroad.
Moldable EarPlugs: Made from either wax or soft silicone, these small blobs need warming up in your fingers before you squash them into your ears. They don’t go as deep as a silicone or foam design, but create a bespoke seal for the perfect fit, and block out loads of ambient noise while staying firmly in place. They’re great for people with awkwardly shaped ears, and also ideal for swimmers who struggle with ear infections.
It’s totally down to you which one you go for, though keep in mind that reusable earplugs or wax earplugs that you reuse and then through away are good for blocking out noise but definitely aren’t environmentally friendly,
What are the smart earplugs options out there?
Bose kickstarted the idea of a smart earplug – combining passive noise cancellation with smart features such as calming audio soundscapes and white noise – and several brands have been quick to follow suit. Many, like the Bose Sleepbuds, can’t play your usual podcasts or music, but some such as the Kokoon now combine your own content with soothing white noise to help eliminate background noise and get you to sleep. Many of these hi-tech earplugs also feature heart rate and motion sensors which can also track your sleep and help you build a picture of your nighttime health.
How we test the best earplugs for sleeping
Struggling to get off to the land of nod without some quiet? You're not alone, as we've been testing out the best noise-blocking earplugs for sleeping to ensure you get your tranquil 40 winks every night. We've selected the below because we've used them ourselves, testing out the quality of the fit, the comfort and how much noise it genuinely deletes for you. We also assessed how eco-friendly they are and if they are worth your cash.
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Shop GQ’s pick of the best earplugs for sleeping 2024…
1/9Loop Quiet
Pros: Multiple sizes and colours to choose from | Washable and reusable
Cons: Fairly poor noise cancellation | Some complain they fall out easily- Best for: Comfortable, reusable sleep buds with powerful noise blockage
- Noise reduction: 27dbs
- Type/material: Reusable soft silicone
Stylish, secure and designed to lower ambient noise by as much as 27 decibels, the super-soft silicone Loop Quiet is ergonomically designed to squish into the inner part of the ear – the pinna – and offer a super comfy and reliable fit. Available in a host of tasteful colours, they come with a handy case full of six different sets of ear tips to virtually guarantee a good fit, and they’re washable, reusable and come with a lifetime warranty. £17.95. At amazon.co.uk
2/9Flare Audio Calmer Nights
Pros: Soft and malleable for all ear shapes | Reusable and washable
Cons: Users say the material can get uncomfortable when used multiple nights in a row- Best for: Easy placement in the ear
- Noise reduction: N/A
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
Flare Audio makes a whole range of high-quality earplugs and earphones for sleep, safer gig going and even ingenious audio enhancements, but the Calmer is a little different as it reduces resonance (distortion) to take the edge off disturbing background sounds. It does this by using a tiny waveguide to reflect sound into your ear while bypassing the Concha. The result means the harsh edges of alarms, mobiles, dogs barking and kids complaining are softened. They’re also great for use in the office when you need to stay concentrated. Downsides? We couldn’t find out specifically how much noise they block out, so keep that in mind. £19.99. At amazon.co.uk
3/9Wutan Earplugs for Sleeping
Pros: Decent noise blockage | Comfortable, secure fit | Can be used for swimming too
Cons: Pricey for what they are- Best for: Blocking out all but the loudest noises
- Noise reduction: 33dbs
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
These tiny silicone earplugs block noise to an impressive 33 decibels, which should eliminate the racket from your heavy-footed housemates if you're a light sleeper, plus road traffic noise or your partner’s snoring. Well designed, and, like the Loop, offering an enhanced fit that stays in all night, they're sold in pairs, so you get one large and one small set. Depending on your sleeping arrangements and bedtime habits, they could just save your relationship. £17.99. At amazon.co.uk
4/9Amazfit ZenBuds
Pros: Very light and comfortable | Auto-sleep detection
Cons: Expensive- Best for: Lightweight, premium noise-cancellation
- Noise reduction: 40dbs
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
Think of the ZenBuds as great value, smart tracking alternatives to the Bose. They’re ultralight (2g), super comfortable and like the SleepBuds, pump your ears full of soothing sounds to help you drift off quickly. They use ambient noise isolation instead of ANC and you can’t play your own content, but the soothing sounds and ambient noise-blocking soundscapes are still suitably relaxing. They also monitor your average resting heart rate during the night, your sleep stages and sleeping positions and provide a sleep quality score, all accessible using the Zepp App. £119. At amazfit.com
5/9QuietOn 3 Sleepbuds
Pros: Specifically designed to combat snorers | Emits low frequencies to block out further noise
Cons: Very expensive- Best for: Unrivalled ANC while sleeping
- Noise reduction: 35dbs
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
Engineered to tackle the most voluminous of snoring partners, the ultra-compact QuietOn 3 blocks out background noise better than most thanks to the double-whammy of foam-tipped earbuds and Active Noise Cancellation (ANC). The earbuds – supplied in four sizes – expand to completely fill your ear canals naturally blocking out noise, but the ANC chip has been tuned to block lower-frequency noises like snoring, washing machines and the rumbling of trains and traffic. £249. At quieton.com
6/9Beary Quiet
Pros: Top-level noise blockage
Cons: Disposable and bad for the planet | Scratchy material- Best for: The flexibility of solid noise blockage over multiple nights
- Noise reduction: 38dbs
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
If you don’t get on with silicone and prefer simple foam sleep earbuds, this box of 30 offers solid value and more style than most. Designed to dampen noise by about 38 decibels, they’re not fancy but will get the job done. Impressively, they come with a small travel case for a pair, and a 30-day money-back trial scheme. Note that they’re non-reusable and not biodegradable though.
£14.99£11.99. At amazon.co.uk
7/9Boots Soft Disposable Ear Plugs
Pros: Affordable | Decent noise cancellation
Cons: Might not stay in all ears for the whole night | Bad for the environment- Best for: The most affordable silent night's sleep
- Noise reduction: 15dbs
- Type/material: Soft foam disposable earplugs
The absolute basic hearing protection to help you sleep, Boots’ soft foam earplugs are the bread and butter option. There’s nothing fancy here, just simply a good blockage of noise for when you need it. Reviews on Botts’ website suggest they are comfortable and do a solid job of blocking out all but the loudest sounds, though some suggest they might slip out if you have unusually shaped ears. £7. At boots.com
8/9Alpine SleepSoft Ear Plugs
Pros: Expand to fill all ear sizes | Reusable | Plastic is kinder to your skin
Cons: Might be too bulky and uncomfortable- Best for: Complete passive noise cancellation
- Noise reduction: 25dbs
- Type/material: Reusable thermoplastic
Alpine’s Sleepsoft offers a manageable set of reusable earplugs made from thermoplastic, which has been noted to be more comfortable and a bit kinder to your skin while still valiantly defending you from outside noises. They can be adjusted with the useful stalk that hangs out the back, but it’s also pliable so you shouldn’t feel them crushing into your skull as you sleep. £10. At amazon.co.uk
9/9Deep Sleeps Soft Silicone Earplugs for Sleeping
Pros: Washable and reusable | Mould to the shape of your ears
Cons: Quite fiddly to get in | Not particularly good sound blocking- Best for: Washable, reusable blockage
- Noise reduction: 27dbs
- Type/material: Reusable silicone
If you struggle to find earplugs that stay in your ears then consider some that can be moulded to your exact requirements. Deep Sleep’s Silicone earplugs are made of silicone putty and are fully washable and reusable (great if you’ve got a large build-up of ear wax) and can be adjustable infinitely to get the right fit every time. Users say they are comfortable but might not block out as much noise as you’d perhaps want from pricier models. £9.99. At amazon.co.uk
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