If the kids aren’t sleeping, no one is sleeping, amiright? That’s why we launched our new Parents Kids’ Sleep Awards to spotlight tools that get the little ones settled in, nodding off, and sleeping through the night. Because even though parents and caregivers have been managing (eventually) to get kids to bed without any special products, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t make things easier on ourselves.
How We Chose the Best Sleep Products
The 21 winners of our Parents Kids’ Sleep Awards include some classic, beloved products and some brand-new offerings. To come up with this list, we zeroed in on important purchases such as mattresses for kids, pillows, bedding, night-lights, white noise machines, alarm clocks, and air filters. We also consulted with Parents advisors Jodi Mindell, Ph.D., associate director of the Sleep Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Judith Owens, M.D., director of the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital, for intel about which types of sleep products are most helpful and safe for kids.
After our editors scouted the market and consulted with the experts, we tapped 25 families to test more than 70 sleep products and give us real-world feedback. Only then did we arrive at this final list of winners.
Three of our winning sleep products are for pregnant people, because the struggle for sleep starts right there, with a baby in your bump keeping you up at night. But the majority of these bedtime heroes are for children ages 3 and up. It's during the preschool years that kids graduate from the crib and are sleeping in a toddler or twin bed. It's an exciting milestone but also a time when they're likely to pop right back up after you put them down. Our testers say these products help make kids want to be in bed!
If you have a baby who is keeping you up, many of these will work for you, too, such as the white noise machine and blackout curtains. We also recommend a swaddle in the early months. Above all, we can’t stress enough the important of making, and sticking to, a bedtime routine.
Here's to more good nights of you and the kids sleeping better with the help of the products below.
Best Calming Lotion: Hello Bello Sleep Sweet Nighttime Lotion
Take evening moisturizing up a notch with Hello Bello Sleep Sweet Nighttime Lotion. Made with chamomile and elderflower, the scent nudges young night owls to bed. One mom said it had all the hallmarks of a great night lotion: “It smells nice, has a thick texture, and dries quickly.”
To buy: Hello Bello Sleep Sweet Nighttime Lotion
Best Air Purifier: Cuisinart Countertop HEPA Air Purifier
Trapping viruses, bacteria, and allergens that can cause sleep-robbing stuffy noses, air cleaners have become a hot item since the pandemic. Testers said the Cuisinart Countertop HEPA Air Purifier was less noisy and more attractive than other models. Plus, it can double as a night-light.
To buy: Cuisinart Countertop HEPA Air Purifier
Best Soothing Device: My Little Morphée
For nights when you can’t read “one more story” or your child needs some solo time, let My Little Morphée take the reins. One mom loved that the guided meditation device allows her son to do his own wind-down routine. “I tell him it’s the last meditation, and he goes to bed.” Ages 3 to 8.
To buy: My Little Morphée
Best Alarm Clock: Hatch Rest+
The Hatch Rest+ is an excellent teaching tool. Set a “time to rise” light color so your kid knows that when it glows, say, green at 7 a.m., it’s okay to get up. Soon they’ll start to associate clock numbers with sleep and wake times too. It’s also a two-way audio monitor that lets you hear what’s going on in there, and it has a backup battery in case of a power outage.
To buy: Hatch Rest+
Best Night-Light: Tommee Tippee Penguin 2-in-1 Portable Night-Light
Kids who are scared of the dark might relax if you plug in a Tommee Tippee Penguin 2-in-1 Portable Night-Light. The penguin charges a glowing egg, which they can pluck off and carry as a flashlight. “It’s given my 8-year-old confidence,” one parent said. “The comforting glow throws no weird shadows, and he can grab the egg when he goes to the bathroom.”
To buy: Tommee Tippee Penguin 2-in-1 Portable Night-Light
Best Sleeping Bag: L.L.Bean Kids' Cotton-Blend Camp Sleeping Bag
A classic fave, the L.L.Bean Kids’ Cotton-Blend Camp Sleeping Bag now features more durable fabric and recycled insulation for extra warmth (kids stay toasty in weather as cool as 40 degrees F). It was so comfy, testers begged for at-home campouts. At 62 inches long, the machine-washable bag was plenty roomy for tweens too.
To buy: L.L.Bean Kids’ Cotton-Blend Camp Sleeping Bag
Best Star Projector: Cloud B Twilight Turtle
The classic Cloud B Twilight Turtle projects a starry night sky, including eight constellations, signaling day’s end in a soothing way. Our 5-year-old tester “fell right asleep and slept the whole dang night in her bed, which she hasn’t done in forever,” her mom said. Bonus points for not having to plug it in, since this runs on batteries and turns off after 45 minutes.
To buy: Cloud B Twilight Turtle
Best White Noise: Snooz
A repetitive sound can induce sleep and cover up outside clatter. But many white-noise machines sound fake or (annoyingly) emit what’s clearly a recording on loop. The Snooz has a small fan to create “high-quality sound that’s really pleasing.” Operate via the app, or tap to adjust the volume.
To buy: Snooz White Noise Machine
Best Air Mattress: Air Comfort Dream Easy Kids' Air Mattress
Perfect for travel (to Grandma’s house we go) and handy to have when the cousins visit, the Air Comfort Dream Easy Kids’ Air Mattress has bumpers to stop kids from rolling off. A dad said it took less than five minutes to set up. (A pump and a fitted sheet are included—woo-hoo!) It supports kids who weigh up to 150 pounds, so there’s no danger they’ll outgrow it too soon.
To buy: Air Comfort Dream Easy Kids’ Air Mattress
Best Curtains: Marmalade Twinkle 108-Inch Grommet 100% Blackout Window Curtain
Don’t let a sliver of sunshine wake your small snoozer. Testers said the “super-cute” Marmalade Twinkle blackout curtain did an “amazing” job keeping their kids’ rooms dark and cozy. When a mom sent a video review, we thought the file didn’t work—it was that dark.
To buy: Marmalade Twinkle 108-Inch Grommet 100% Blackout Window Curtain, $; buybuybaby.com.
Best Pillow: Kid Purple Pillow
A scaled-down version of the company’s groundbreaking adult-size pillow (you may want your own), the Kid Purple Pillow uses a patented stretchy material to provide stellar neck and head support. A parent reported, “My kid snores less and wakes up more refreshed since we started using this pillow.”
To buy: Kid Purple Pillow
Best Mattress: Helix Kids
Helix Kids solves the issue of kids wanting a softer mattress as they get older. One side of the product is firm, providing sturdy spinal support for 3- to 7-year-olds. Once a kid enters tweendom, flip it to its cushier side. Parents also dug the eco-friendly stain- and water-repellent finish, the cover made from wood fibers, and the 10-year warranty.
To buy: Helix Kids Twin Mattress
Best Heavy Blankie: Tranquility Kids Weighted Blanket
Thanks to its washable cover, softness, and reasonable price, the 6-pound Tranquility Kids Weighted Blanket won the blankie battle. A kid tester who is prone to worries woke up in the morning and told his parents, “I slept fantastic!” That’s music to our (tired) ears.
To buy: Tranquility Kids Weighted Blanket
Best Bed Rail
Tuck the Munchkin Sleep Safety Bedrail under your preschooler’s mattress and they’ll feel “cozy and secure” but still have room to roll over with no danger of falling out. It flips down so you can sit on the edge of the bed to read nightly stories.
To buy: Munchkin Sleep Safety Bedrail
Best Wearable Blanket: Pillowfort Hooded Blanket
The Pillowfort Hooded Blanket will make your preschooler the envy of classroom naptime. The Target exclusive comes in several styles, including this fox, an astronaut, and a gnome. Said one kid tester, “It’s a pillow, stuffy, and blanket in one. I want to take it everywhere I go.”
To buy: Pillowfort Hooded Blanket, $20; target.com.
Best Sheets: Garnet Hill Kids' Bedding
While kids zeroed in on the cool designs on Garnet Hill Kids’ Bedding—one pattern even glows in the dark—parents raved about the quality of this line. The fitted sheet, especially, drew praise for being roomy enough to easily cover the mattress and mattress pad, avoiding those dreaded middle-of-the-night pop-offs.
To buy: Garnet Hill Kids’ Polka-Dot Percale Bedding
Best Soothing Scent: Little Yawn Collective Relaxing Pillow Spray
Little Yawn Collective Relaxing Pillow Spray was “absolutely adored” by testers and borrowed by their parents. Spraying the subtle floral mist, “not that stereotypical lavender bomb,” one mom said, made bedtime special. “It put my kid and me in a mellow mood and made for a cuddlier reading time.”
To buy: Little Yawn Collective Relaxing Pillow Spray
Best Door Alarm: Decco the Toddlermonitor
Consider Decco the Toddlermonitor if you have a sleepwalker (one of the device’s inventors had a kid who wandered outside at night). “Great for giving bathroom access to a child who still needs supervision,” a tester told us. Charge it via USB, then pair the device to your phone using the Toddlermonitor app so it sends you an alert if their door opens.
To buy: Decco the Toddlermonitor, $90; toddlermonitor.com.
Pregnancy Insomnia Solutions
Best Sleep Bra: Kindred Bravely Sublime Adjustable Crossover Nursing & Lounge Bra
If you feel heavy or leaky, you might rest easier wearing a Kindred Bravely Sublime Adjustable Crossover Nursing & Lounge Bra. “The black even seems, dare I say, kind of sexy,” a tester said.
To buy: Kindred Bravely Sublime Adjustable Crossover Nursing & Lounge Bra
Best Pregnancy Pillow: Boppy Cuddle Pillow
Use a versatile Boppy Cuddle Pillow to cradle your bump, back, or head—wherever you need it at the moment. Our tester said, “If you want to skip a bulky full-body pillow, this is the perfect option and easy to maneuver in the middle of the night.”
To buy: Boppy Cuddle Pillow
Best Nightgown: Mori Bump to Baby Nightgown
The soft, loose-fitting Mori Bump to Baby Nightgown “just kind of glides over your skin—and it feels cool and breathable,” our nine-months-pregnant tester said. A few buttons down the front make it nursing-friendly when the baby arrives.
To buy: Mori Bump to Baby Nightgown
