Sleep
I want to sleep better
Falling asleep faster, staying asleep, and waking up without needing an alarm. Almost every stack starts here, because everything else gets harder without it.
70 entries across 62 stacks
Entries marked free
25 entries with no monetary cost listed, ordered by how many tracked people are on record, then A to Z. Some require equipment or access you already have. Counts include discussion and disagreement, not just endorsement.
- Consistent sleep and wake timesProtocolFREE, no cost
Same bedtime and wake time every day, weekends included
- +15
- Cutting out alcoholHabitFREE, no cost
Drinking nothing, or close to it: the most common upgrade in these stacks
- +8
- Eight hours of sleepProtocolFREE, no cost
Protecting a full night in bed as a training input, not a leftover
- +6
- Morning sunlight exposureProtocolFREE, no cost
Bright outdoor light soon after waking, 5-30 minutes and no sunglasses
- +5
- BreathworkProtocolFREE, no cost
Structured breathing sessions to shift the nervous system up or down
- +2
- Dim the lights at nightHabitFREE, no cost
Low, warm, low-placed light for the last few hours of the day
- +1
- Phone out of the bedroomHabitFREE, no cost
Charge it in another room and buy an actual alarm clock
- +1
- Afternoon caffeine cutoffHabitFREE, no cost
A cutoff in early afternoon; caffeine's half-life runs longer than most expect
- Delayed morning caffeineProtocolFREE, no cost
A 90-120 minute gap between waking and the first coffee
- Warm bath or shower before bedHabitFREE, no cost
Warm water an hour or two before sleep drops core temperature after
- Hot water with lemonHabitFREE, no cost
A mug of hot water with a slice of lemon, to start the day or wind it down
- No eating close to bedtimeHabitFREE, no cost
Finishing the last meal a few hours before sleep so digestion is done by lights out
- Non-sleep deep rest (NSDR)ProtocolFREE, no cost
10-20 minute guided body-scan rest, sometimes called yoga nidra
- Screens off an hour before bedHabitFREE, no cost
Phone, laptop and TV closed for the last hour, replaced by a book or nothing at all
- 4-7-8 breathingProtocolFREE, no cost
Inhale for four counts, hold for seven, exhale for eight, repeated a few times
- Evening resetHabitFREE, no cost
Clear today's mess and stage tomorrow before you go to bed
- Falling asleep to podcastsHabitFREE, no cost
Narrative audio at lights out in place of a book or the television
- Front-loaded eatingProtocolFREE, no cost
Most of the day's food eaten earlier, with the smallest meal last
- Grounding (earthing)ProtocolFREE, no cost
Bare skin on grass, sand or soil, or a conductive mat wired to earth
- Nasal breathingHabitFREE, no cost
Breathe through the nose by default, including during easy exercise
- No alarm clockHabitFREE, no cost
Waking without an alarm, kept only for early flights
- No phone calls after 10 p.m.HabitFREE, no cost
A hard stop on calls and conversations late in the evening so the brain can wind down
- Reading philosophy before bedHabitFREE, no cost
Ending the day on a page or two of philosophy, then thinking it over before sleep
- Sleep++AppFREE, no cost
Apple Watch sleep tracker that reads overnight motion
- Washing the dishesHabitFREE, no cost
Doing the dishes by hand after dinner as a fixed, screen-free end to the day
Then, entries with a monetary cost
45 products, practices and services filed under sleep, ordered the same way: by how many tracked people are on record, then A to Z.
- SaunaProtocol$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Regular heat exposure, often 4 sessions a week at 20 minutes
- +12
- Magnesium (threonate or glycinate)Supplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Taken 30-60 minutes before bed to help with sleep onset
- +6
- Cool, dark bedroomProtocol$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Around 65-68°F, properly dark, reserved for sleep
- +3
- Why We SleepBook$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Matthew Walker on what sleep does for memory, immunity and mood
- +3
- WHOOPGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Screenless wrist strap tracking strain, recovery and sleep
- +1
- Oura RingGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Ring-worn sleep and readiness tracker
- Blue-light blocking glassesGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Amber lenses worn in the evening: popular, and genuinely contested
- MelatoninSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Widely sold as a sleeping aid; mostly a timing signal, not a sedative
- Eight SleepGear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Mattress cover that actively heats and cools each side of the bed
- HeadspaceApp$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Guided meditation app built around ten-minute sessions, voiced by Andy Puddicombe
- Light therapy lampGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Bright artificial light for dark mornings when sunlight is not available
- Sleep eye maskGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
A cloth mask that blocks light at the eyes when a room cannot be made dark
- AshwagandhaSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Adaptogen used short-term to lower cortisol during stressful stretches
- CalmApp$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Meditation and sleep app with guided sessions, sleep stories and soundscapes
- CBT-I (cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia)Protocol$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
A structured sleep program; Matthew Walker and Andrew Huberman both point people to it
- GlycineSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Amino acid taken before bed, often 2-3g, to help sleep onset
- L-theanineSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Amino acid from tea used for calm focus, or with caffeine
- Mouth tapeGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Adhesive tape worn across the lips overnight to force nasal breathing
- Weighted blanketGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
A blanket loaded with beads or pellets, usually near a tenth of body weight
- White noise machineGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
A speaker playing steady broadband sound to mask noise overnight
- Acupressure matGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
A mat covered in plastic spikes, used for 15 to 40 minutes before bed
- ApigeninSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Chamomile-derived compound taken before bed, usually 50mg
- Apple WatchGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Apple's wrist computer for activity, sleep and notifications
- Apple Watch UltraGear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Apple's biggest watch: titanium case, brighter screen, more than a day of battery
- Blackout curtainsGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Lined curtains or blinds that keep street light and dawn out of a bedroom
- BreathBook$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
James Nestor on nasal breathing, and what modern jaws lost
- Camping tentGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Pitched shelter, used by a few people as a permanent outdoor bedroom
- CentrApp$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Chris Hemsworth's training, nutrition and meditation app, built with his own team
- EarplugsGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Foam or silicone plugs that cut night noise without making a room silent
- Far-infrared recovery sleepwearGear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Pajamas woven with a bioceramic print that reflects body heat back as far-infrared
- HallowApp$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Catholic prayer and meditation app with guided sessions, Lent challenges and sleep prayers
- Helix Sleep mattressGear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Mail-order mattresses sorted by sleeping position and firmness, not one model
- Hot water bottleGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
A rubber bottle of hot water used to warm the hands and feet before bed
- HRV biofeedback trainingProtocol$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Paced breathing against a live heart rate variability readout, a few minutes a day
- Myo-inositolSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Taken before bed, often for getting back to sleep after waking
- Nasal dilator stripsGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Adhesive strips or internal dilators that hold the nasal passage open
- OthershipApp$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Guided breathwork app with sessions sorted by the state you want to reach
- Red light bulbsGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Ordinary fittings that put out red light, dimmed for the hours before bed
- Respiratory rate trackingHabit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Watching overnight breathing rate as an early fatigue and illness signal
- ReveriApp$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Self-hypnosis sessions for sleep, stress and pain
- Sleep score trackingHabit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Checking a nightly sleep score from a wearable or app, and comparing notes with friends
- Sunrise alarm clockGear$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Bedside lamp that brightens gradually in the half hour before the alarm sounds
- Tart cherry juiceSupplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Montmorency cherry juice or concentrate, usually drunk in the evening
- Whole-body cryotherapyProtocol$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Two to three minutes standing in a chamber cooled by liquid nitrogen vapor
- ZMA (zinc, magnesium, B6)Supplement$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Zinc and magnesium aspartate with vitamin B6, usually taken in the evening
Nothing on this site is medical advice. It is a record of what public figures have discussed, used or recommended, which is not the same as evidence that it works, and definitely not the same as advice for you. Talk to a clinician before changing anything about your sleep, diet, training or medication. How this works.