Sleep is one of the most important aspects of your overall health—mentally, physically, and emotionally. Sleep is what your body needs to reset and recharge, so getting enough sleep is vital. If you're someone who struggles to get a full night's sleep, listening to sleep stories could be the answer.
And sleep stories aren't just for kids; they can help adults, too. In fact, listening to a bedtime story can help you relax, calm your mind, and fall asleep quicker. Below are some great mobile apps that offer bedtime stories for adults.
1. Calm
Calm is possibly the most well-known mindfulness app around. Many people use the Calm app for the various meditation sessions that can help them focus, reduce stress, and more. However, Calm also has an extensive library of sleep stories.
Calm's range of stories has something for everyone, whether you love ASMR stories, non-fiction stories, or travel stories. There are even stories narrated by celebrities like Shawn Mendes, Kate Winslet, Matthew McConaughey, and Harry Styles. So, you can drift off to sleep while listening to the dreamy voice of your favorite celeb.
Download: Calm for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
2. Slumber
The Slumber app promises to put you to sleep fast using subtle techniques. The stories are told by a variety of soothing voices, and you can even search for stories based on your favorite narrator. Additionally, you can choose to add some gentle background effects to the story as it's being narrated, such as the sound of the ocean, rain, or birds.
What makes Slumber special is the range of stories you can choose from. For example, you can listen to classic books, like Alice in Wonderland, which are told in separate parts over various episodes. Besides the sleep stories, Slumber also features a large sleep library with sleep meditations, sleep sounds, sleep music, ASMR, and bedtime stories to help kids fall asleep.
Download: Slumber for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
3. Loóna
If you're looking for an enchanting escape from the stresses of life, then Loona is highly recommended. The Loona app features tons of immersive sleep stories with various categories to explore like fantasy, nature, and nostalgia.
Are you someone who loves mystical fairy tales? Try listening to The Lost Portal or The Unexpected Journey story collections. On the other hand, if you'd like something a bit more mysterious, try The Rain Garden stories. A unique aspect of the Loona app is the collection of sleepscape journeys called Escapes. These offer fun and interactive ways to unwind and fall asleep if the stories just aren't doing it for you.
Download: Loóna for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
4. BetterSleep
Monitoring your sleep patterns can help you see how much sleep you're actually getting and better understand your sleeping patterns. Tracking and recording your sleep is super simple with the BetterSleep app.
But besides tracking your sleep, BetterSleep can also help you drift off with a large library of over 100 bedtime stories. You can easily filter through the stories according to their theme, duration, and narrator. Interesting categories include sci-fi, mythology, and exploration. The best bit is that you can even create your own unique story based on whatever subject you choose.
Download: BetterSleep for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
5. Pzizz
Pzizz is an app that can help you sleep, nap, or focus better. And when it comes to sleep stories, Pzizz gives you the freedom to customize them to your liking. You can personalize basically everything when you listen to one of Pzizz's bedtime stories, from the desired narrator to the amount of time before the story stops playing.
The library of narrations on Pzizz is also great, and you'll see unique categories like Sleep History, Dreamy Myths, and Sleep Journeys. In addition, you can even select gentle music or sounds to play in the background.
Download: Pzizz for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
6. Headspace
From guided meditations to soothing sleep sounds, Headspace has it all when it comes to sleep, including sleep stories! Headspace's sleep stories are actually called sleepcasts. The sleepcasts offer a diverse mix of bedtime tales to lull you to sleep.
In general, all the stories from Headspace are around 45 minutes long. The narrators vary, and you can modify the ambiance and voice level to suit you. A few exciting stories to try are Night Train and Star Wars X-Wing Voyage. Be sure to look out for a special sleepcast that singer-songwriter John Legend narrates!
Download: Headspace for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
7. Calm Sleep
The Calm Sleep app doesn't have the largest library of sleep stories. However, the stories it does have are quite a pleasure to listen to. They are categorized based on accent, narrator, and whether it's a kid's story.
Do you want to enjoy an island paradise? Try listening to The Tropical Retreat. Fancy visiting one of the most ancient monuments in the world? Have a listen to the story called Stonehenge. Calm Sleep's stories are sure to take you on a journey from the comfort of your bed. Moreover, you can choose to download the stories for offline listening.
Download: Calm Sleep for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
8. Yours
If you're looking for a selection of different practices to boost your well-being then Yours is the app for you. The main attraction of Yours is that there are tons of calming sleep stories to explore for both kids and adults.
The adult library features quite a few stories to choose from, whether you're looking for classic reads like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or something a bit more festive like A Christmas Present. For the most part, the stories are quite short and don't exceed 30 minutes. Yet, some are almost an hour, if you'd prefer that; these stories include multiple chapters.
Download: Yours for iOS | Android (Free, subscription available)
Grown-Up Sleep Stories to Help You Get Some Shut Eye
Children love listening to a soothing bedtime story because it helps them relax and feel safe. However, bedtime stories can be beneficial for adults, too. So if you're someone who lies in bed for hours at night struggling to sleep, then you might need a helping hand getting a good night's rest.
Sleep stories are the secret to helping your brain calm down and change over into a sleep state. So be sure to take a look at these mobile apps that offer some of the best libraries of sleep stories for grown-ups.