5 Best Sunrise Alarm Clocks, Tested & Reviewed
Getting out of bed just got way easier.
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There’s nothing worse than waking up to a blaring alarm while in the middle of a dream. To make it just a little bit easier to get out of bed in the mornings, consider adding a sunrise alarm clock to your bedside repertoire. Not only do these unique alarm clocks help you wake up naturally with light stimulation — i.e., a soft, gentle glow that steadily increases in brightness — but most of our favorite picks come with extra features like built-in sound, adjustable brightness, night lights and more.
The tech experts and engineers at the Good Housekeeping Institute have been testing sleep gadgets for decades, from the best sleep apps to help you relax before bed to smart alarm clocks, alarm clocks, sound machines, light therapy lamps and more. Below you’ll find more information about the best sunrise alarm clocks to get you up and running, according to our sleep pros. So go ahead and put your phone aside; it’s time to start waking up more blissfully.
To find out whether sunrise alarm clocks really work and whether they're worth it for you, keep scrolling past our favorite picks.
Pros
- Features wake up and wind down simulations
- Adjustable brightness and light settings
- Easy to use touch display
Cons
- No smartphone app compatibility or smart connectivity
Sometimes it can be difficult to get out of bed, but not with this sunrise alarm clock from Philips. Our tech pros love that the built-in wake-up light gradually increases in brightness and adjusts its shade from red to yellow before your alarm clock sounds to help naturally stimulate your body and ease you out of bed. In a similar fashion, you can use the sunset simulation that slowly dims the lighting to help you wind down and relax when it's time for bed. When testing the alarm clock at home, our tech experts were impressed by the clock's performance and easy-to-use interface.
Other features include a soft light you can use to navigate to the bathroom in the middle of the night, an intuitive touch interface, up to 25 brightness settings and access to local FM radio stations. Just keep in mind that this SmartSleep alarm clock cannot connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth so you aren’t able to customize the sounds you wake up to beyond the clock’s seven built-in wake-up sounds. That also means you won’t be able to use an app to adjust any settings; for smartphone compatibility, we recommend the slightly pricier SmartSleep Connected Sleep and Wake-Up Light.
Pros
- Great value
- Comes in three design configurations
- Adjustable brightness and colors
Cons
- Manual buttons may be harder to use at night
Featuring more than 25,000 reviews and an average 4.3-star rating, you can’t go wrong with this super affordable sunrise alarm clock from Jall. It comes in three different configurations, including a wood grain shade our pros love, and is designed for both adults and kids. Like other sunrise alarm clocks, it’ll slowly wake you up by increasing its brightness over the span of 30 minutes (or 20 or 10 if you prefer) along with one of eight sounds. Brightness can be adjusted to 20 different levels, and you can also choose among several shades as you lounge in bed.
But what we love most is that it comes with some of the features you’ll find in more premium, and pricey, alarm clocks like FM radio and a night light. While it doesn’t feature a touch display, our tech experts found the buttons intuitive and straightforward to operate once you're familiar with where they are.
Pros
- Sleek, modern design
- Intuitive and responsive
- Can be further customized in Glow app
Cons
- Doesn’t feature any audio
The product analysts at the GH Institute are already fans of Casper mattresses, but we also love the compact, sleek design of the brand’s Glow Light. The soft self-dimming light should help you drift off to sleep as well as slowly wake up in the morning. Brightness levels can be adjusted with a quick twist of the light and a shake enables an ambient light so you can make your way around the house without waking anyone up.
Our experts appreciate that the light can be further customized in the Glow app, where you can create bedtime and morning schedules or even sync multiple Glow lights together. Though not having a display or many physical buttons to operate the lamp might take a few nights to get used to, we found it super easy to use and responsive overall. Just keep in mind that this sunrise alarm clock doesn’t actually feature speakers so you’ll have to rely on waking up to light only.
Pros
- Minimalist design
- Impressive audio library
- Intuitive interface and app
- Can be operated via smartphone
Cons
- Subscription required for access to all features
Not only does this sunrise alarm clock come in the shape of a rising sun that’ll look beautiful on any nightstand, but it has everything you need to help you improve your sleep routine. It features soothing sounds like white noise or “forest birds” that you can listen to whether you’re trying to fall asleep or slowly wake up. Plus, you can set the mood with a bedside light that is adjustable to your liking straight from your smartphone.
Our pros love the Restore 2's minimalist design that’s available in three colors, as well as its intuitive interface that includes three buttons. Though a subscription isn’t required to use the Restore 2, for $4.99 per month you’ll have access to premium features such as customizable routines and an extensive audio library. "I used to need five to six alarms to wake up in the morning but now I wake up almost instantly," says Grace Wu, product analyst at the Good Housekeeping Institute. She does note, however, that if her eyes are under the covers from moving around at night, that defeats the purpose of the sunrise element.
Our experts also love the latest Hatch Restore 3, which offers phone-free control so you can reduce time spent on your phone (and the app) before bed.
READ MORE: My Honest Review of the Hatch Restore 2 Sunrise Alarm Clock
Pros
- Features sunrise and sunset simulations
- Adjustable brightness and colors
- Great value
Cons
- Fewer premium features than other SmartSleep alarm clocks
Similar to other SmartSleep alarm clocks, this one will help you wake up naturally with a combination of light and sound. Though we’ll admit that its design isn’t quite as sleek as pricier picks, you’ll get many of the same features but at a lower price. The Wake-Up Light has five sounds built-in as well as FM radio and 20 brightness settings. Colors used for the sunrise and sunset simulation include red, orange and yellow and there’s a midnight light so you can navigate the dark without lighting up your bedroom.
“It really helps me ease into my morning by gradually mimicking sunrise when it's pitch black outside,” said one tester. “It also has an option for bird calls as the alarm sound, which is so much more soothing than the usual beeping noises.” One con to note, according to our pros: The controls can feel a little hard to understand when you want to set up the functions.
How we test the best sunrise alarm clocks
At the Good Housekeeping Institute Media & Tech Lab, experts and analysts test everything sleep-related, from sleep trackers like the Oura Ring to baby sound machines. When narrowing down the best sunrise alarm clocks, our pros review each pick for key factors like ease of use when turning alarm clocks on and off as well as the intuitiveness of controls. We also consider light settings, colors and brightness. When applicable, we assess the sound quality of alarm clocks as well as the number of sounds available, clock visibility and any extra features available, such as app connectivity.
In addition to reviewing sunrise alarm clocks in the Lab, our pros bring alarm clocks home to further evaluate their performance — i.e. alarm accuracy and whether sunrise simulations were effective at waking us up. Whenever possible, we send our consumer tester panel home with sunrise alarm clocks to share more real-world feedback on factors like their design, ease of setup and operation and more.
What to look for when shopping for a sunrise alarm clock
✔️ Lux: All sunrise alarm clocks have built-in lights, but some are brighter than others. If you want one with maximum brightness and light intensity to ensure you wake up, double-check the lux, or the unit of illumination. Our pros recommend one with at least 200 lux, though 300 is ideal.
✔️ Design: Since you're investing in an alarm clock that will permanently live on your nightstand, you'll likely want one that looks attractive and sleek. If you're tight on space, double-check the dimensions and opt for one that is compact.
✔️ Extra features: Though all sunrise alarm clocks are meant to wake you up gently with increasing light, some are more feature rich than others. For instance, look for a model with adjustable light settings so you can alternate between brightness levels and colors. If you like drifting off to sleep with white noise, you'll want a model that comes with built-in sounds (in addition to various alarm tones). Lastly, consider a smart sunrise alarm clock if you'd like to be able to make adjustments via a smartphone app on your phone.
Do sunrise alarm clocks really work?
Unlike classic alarm clocks, sunrise alarm clocks are designed to help you wake up to your biological rhythm. They contain a light that mimics sunlight as it gradually increases in intensity until your desired wake-up time. When the light is bright enough, it can stimulate the sensors at the back of your eye to tell your brain it's time to get up, according to Kin Yuen, M.D., M.S., a sleep medicine specialist at the University of California San Francisco. The brain then suppresses melatonin — the sleep-inducing hormone — and bumps up the release of cortisol, a stress-induced hormone, and neurotransmitters such as serotonin, norepinephrine and histamine to stir you awake.
So yes, sunrise alarm clocks can be effective at waking you up more naturally (including heavy sleepers) by syncing your sleep and wake patterns with the cycle of the sun.
However, according to Dr. Yuen, it’s important to keep in mind that sunrise alarm clocks may not work for everyone. Your sensitivity to light as well as your overall condition (whether you’re exhausted or stayed up super late) are factors to consider. Also, if your head often ends up buried under a pillow in the morning hours or you sleep with an eye mask, the light of sunrise alarm clocks will have little to no effect. Dr. Yuen adds that conditions like cataracts can impair your eye's reactivity to light.
Why trust Good Housekepping?
The Good Housekeeping Institute Media & Tech Lab provides expert reviews and advice on all types of consumer electronics and sleep gadgets. GH Institute writer and product analyst Olivia Lipski covers everything from tech to home, fitness, sleep, travel and more. During her time at GH, she’s tested a number of alarm clocks in her bedroom, like the Loftie alarm clock, and has evaluated which ones are not only the most effective but also the most enjoyable to wake up to.
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