The best podcasts to fall asleep to

What makes a good podcast to fall asleep?

For some years now, podcasts have been an integral part of our everyday life. But when you're cooking, driving your car, or cleaning your house, you probably listen to different podcasts than at night-time when you want to fall asleep. Although TrueCrime podcasts, for example, are currently enjoying great popularity, they do not qualify as good sleep podcasts. The unsolved murders and mysterious crimes may entertain you during the day, but late in the day likely give you nightmares and restless nights. You should not listen to too exciting podcasts to fall asleep, after all, your goal is to drift off into sleep and not to sit upright in bed.

Thematically the podcast does not necessarily have to be about sleeping. Podcasts in which people talk about everyday topics without getting excited are the perfect companions during the sleep phase. Make sure that the podcasters have a pleasant, rather quiet voice. What is being said should not be too boring, because then you are again occupied with your own thoughts. But if the stories are too exciting, you won't get tired - in the golden mean you'll find the perfect podcasts to fall asleep to.

By the way, you can set a sleep timer for yourself on Spotify. When the time runs out, the playback stops automatically, and you can continue listening to iit the next time without searching where you left off.

„Chatting podcasts“– Distracted by the everyday life of others

Podcasts from this category do not claim to educate you, provide you with daily news or show you other tricks. It feels more like you are part of a conversation among friends. As a podcast to fall asleep to, relaxed conversations are perfectly suited. There are two productions at the top.

Fest & Flauschig

As the most successful German-language podcast on Spotify, "Fest & Flauschig" should not be missing from the list. Twice a week Jan Böhmermann and Olli Schulz take you into their world of thoughts. From partly fictional details about their everyday activities and their lives to comments on current world politics, everything is included. However, the two can sometimes get in a rage about some topics, so you might want to turn the sound down a bit, so that you are not suddenly woken from a half-sleep. Twice a week (with frequent bonus episodes) new episodes are uploaded with a length between 30 minutes and one and a half hours.

Herrengedeck

Contrary to the first assumption, the podcast that ran until July of 2021 is moderated by two women. Laura and Ariana live in Berlin, do something with media and can be described as the female counterpart to "Fest & Flauschig". In the half-hour episodes they talk about their everyday lives, what moves them and what's going on in the world. A wonderfully funny podcast that will distract you from your thoughts. There are new episodes twice a week, so you are always well looked after. The last episode was released in July 2021. However, with a total of 209 episodes, there is quite a bit of audio material available.

Good night stories for adults - Sleep with me

As a child you lay in bed and mum or dad would read your favourite stories to help you fall asleep. At a certain age, the bedtime stories stop, and you are on your own. We are glad that there are podcasts to fall asleep to that do exactly what we loved as children. The roughly 60-minute-long episodes of “Sleep with me” distract you from your thoughts and take you into the dreamland of host Drew Ackermann in his role as "Dearest Scooter". New episodes of the podcast in English are usually available twice a week to help you sleep easily.

Slowdown – Welcome to the world of poetry

A nice way to find relaxation is the podcast "The Slowdown". The English podcast appetizers appear every weekday, in which everyday anecdotes are told at the beginning, which then lead to a poem with a matching theme. Admittedly, at just five minutes, the episodes are more suited for people who can fall asleep very quickly. But to slow down, the podcast is perfect and thus prepares you for the night's rest very gently and with lyrical input.

The “Einschlafen Podcast” - The original falling asleep podcast

If the episodes of “The Slowdown” are too short and you prefer German instead of English, the "Einschlafen Podcast" might be just the right thing for you. For most people it is a nightmare if the person opposite falls asleep while you are talking. Toby Baier has set himself exactly this goal: to tell rather boring stories in a calm, monotonous voice and thus make the listener fall asleep. At the beginning he talks about the world and his wife, about FC Pauli or experiments in the kitchen, without revealing too much private stuff. Anyone who makes it to the reading part, in which, for example, Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason" is read aloud, is guaranteed to fall asleep by this time at the latest. The only drawback: Toby only uploads a new podcast episode every two weeks. But the gap between the new episodes can easily be bridged with the episodes from the archive. With more than 500 episodes averaging 60 minutes, you’ve got enough sleep material.

Even more tips for falling asleep

In addition to podcasts to fall asleep to, there are other tricks to help you fall asleep. Stop looking at your phone or TV screen for an hour before you go to sleep. Bright colours and quick flashes of light prevent your body from entering sleep mode. It's better to take a relaxing bath, read a book or do a round of bedtime yoga. A regular bedtime provides structure and makes falling asleep easier. Also, talk to your loved ones about what is on your mind. Once said out loud, your thoughts will no longer circle so strongly, and you will fall asleep better.