White Noise for Cats: Does It Actually Help?
White noise doesn’t calm a cat directly; it masks a sudden sound, so a doorbell or a firework thump stands out less against a steady hiss or rumble, and there’s less for your cat to react to. Slo plays brown, white and pink noise free in your browser, with a timer so it won’t run all night by default. Whether that settles her or unsettles her further is something you watch for, not something anyone can tell you in advance.
When it’s worth trying
Reach for it when one of these is coming up:
- Visitors, or the house getting loud and busy for a while
- Fireworks or thunder
- Moving house, when the new place is loud in ways you haven’t tuned out yet
- A new baby, crying at odd hours
Cats and dogs don’t show fireworks fear the same way: in a large survey of owners, most cats hid, while dogs tended to stay close to their people instead. For fireworks specifically, the plan written for a dog scared of fireworks uses the same timing and volume logic, even though it’s aimed at dogs.
How to set it up
Match the colour to what’s setting her off. White noise is flat across the range, so it covers sharp, close sounds best: a doorbell, voices, a knock. Brown noise carries most of its energy low, which is where fireworks thumps and traffic rumble sit. Pink noise falls in between, and it’s the easier pick when you’re covering a mix of both, like the first night in a new home.
Keep the volume lower than feels right. A cat’s hearing runs well above yours, up to around 64,000 Hz, and a loud, unfamiliar sound is itself something cats find frightening, so start quiet and raise it only if you need to.
Put the speaker away from the litter tray, the food and water bowls, and wherever your cat already goes to feel safe. Vets’ feline guidelines keep those same spots separate from each other for the same reason: they need to stay predictable, not gain a new noise layered on top.
Then let her decide. Settling nearby or ignoring it is a fine sign. Moving further away or avoiding the room means turn it off; a sound she’s avoiding isn’t doing its job.
If you don’t already have a speaker set up for this, you can play any of these colours free in your browser and set a timer, so it doesn’t run all night by default.
When to call the vet instead
Hiding on its own isn’t something a speaker needs to fix. Vets’ feline guidelines list hiding as one of the normal ways cats cope with stress, not a problem on its own. A place she can retreat to and feel safe does more for her than any sound will.
Call the vet if it goes further than that: she stops eating, stays hidden for days rather than hours, or starts toileting outside the tray. Those point to real stress or illness, past anything a masking sound addresses.
Questions people ask
Do cats like white noise?
Nobody’s tested it, so there’s no clean yes or no. What the sound does is mask a sudden noise, not create a feeling cats are known to enjoy. Watch how your own cat reacts and let that answer it.
Which noise colour is best for a cat?
It depends on what you’re trying to cover. White noise handles sharp, indoor sounds like a doorbell or a knock at the door. Brown noise handles low, distant sounds like fireworks or traffic. Pink noise is a reasonable middle ground when you’re covering a bit of both.
Is it okay to leave white noise on all day for a cat?
Running it for a few hours around a specific trigger, like visitors or a fireworks display, is fine. Leaving it on constantly hasn’t been shown to add anything, so use it for the situation, then switch it off.
Will white noise stop my cat from hiding during fireworks?
No. Cats mostly cope with fear by hiding rather than pacing, and that’s normal, not a problem to override. Sound can soften a distant thump; it won’t reach a firework outside the window, and it’s no substitute for giving her somewhere to hide.
Sources
- Ellis, S.L.H. et al. (2013). AAFP and ISFM Feline Environmental Needs Guidelines, Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery 15, 219–230. Hiding as a normal coping behaviour, and keeping toileting, food and water resources separated.
- van Herwijnen, I.R., Vinke, C.M., Arndt, S.S., Roulaux, P.E.M. (2024). Firework aversion in cats and dogs as reported by Dutch animal owners, Veterinary and Animal Science. Survey of cat and dog owners on fear responses.
- Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine, hearing ranges by species.
Explore more sounds in Slo
Stack two or three sounds, keep the blend, and let the timer stop it. Slo, on iOS, Android and Mac.
