- Wake-up light alarm clocks can be seriously helpful in ensuring you wake up in the best way possible, so you can be productive from minute one.
- That’s why we’ve chosen the Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clock as our top pick – because it’s fully capable of ensuring you wake up ready to go.
Waking up is no fun. We all know the feeling of being deep into our third sleep cycle of the night, only to be abruptly yanked out by a rude alarm clock. Thankfully, alarm clocks have evolved a lot over the past few years, so that the feeling of waking up cold may soon be a thing of the past.
Thanks to a ton of research into the science of sleep and how we wake up, there are a number of products on the market designed to help you get to sleep, stay asleep during the night, and then wake up easily. Most of the products on this list address that last issue, though you’ll find that many of them help you out with getting to sleep and tracking your sleep, too.
There are a few things to consider when you’re buying a light therapy alarm clock. For starters, you’ll want to consider if you’re looking for any extra features from your alarm clock. Some of them, for example, offer sleep tracking, while others double as a Bluetooth speaker. There are even a few that allow you to turn off the actual clock at night to keep the room nice and dark.
Here are the best wake-up light alarm clocks:
- Best overall: Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clock
- Best on a budget: Myfree Wake-Up Light
- Best with a speaker: iHome Zenergy
- Best for sleeping in total darkness: Lumie Bodyclock 250
Prices and links are current as of 3/2/2020. We also updated our pick for the best budget alarm clock due to our previous pick being out of stock.
The best overall
The Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clock is a sleek and stylish device offering plenty of wake-up options, and it won’t stop working in a power outage.
Philips has made a number of great light alarm clocks over the years, but perhaps the best to date is the Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clock. The clock is well-designed and stylish, plus it boasts a number of great features to help you both get to sleep and wake up in the morning.
When you're trying to get to sleep, the Philips light clock will help by showing dimming sunset colors and related sounds. Then, before it's time to wake up, it'll gradually fade in a representation of natural light, along with one of five calming wake-up sounds, including birds, Zen garden, a gentle piano, and more.
If you'd prefer, you can even tell the device to instead fade in the FM radio, and there's a tap to snooze feature in case it's still not time to wake up.
Plenty of us have experienced the dread of an alarm clock failing to wake us up because of a power outage, but Philips addresses that issue too with its built-in battery that lasts eight hours before it runs out of juice.
That being said, it's not perfect: It's a little expensive and despite having a speaker, you can't connect to it through Bluetooth to play music from your phone as an alarm. At least, there's that FM radio.
Pros: Well-designed, easy to use, plenty of wake-up options
Cons: Expensive, no Bluetooth support
The best on a budget
The Myfree Wake Up Light alarm clock offers many of the same features as the others on this list but at a far lower price.
The clocks on this list have a lot to offer, but beyond that, they also have something else in common - they're a little pricey. If you're looking for a wake-up light alarm clock that's a little cheaper, then the Myfree Wake Up Light alarm clock may the best one for you.
The Myfree alarm clock may be inexpensive, but it still has some nice options. For example, you can choose between seven colors and 10 levels of brightness for your sunrise light. There are also six natural sounds and an FM radio to choose from, plus, 15 levels of volume for those sounds. And, for added convenience, the clock has a USB port on the back.
CNN also recommends the Myfree alarm clock as a great budget option. Of course, like everything, you do get what you pay for. Buyers have reported a few different issues with the alarm clock, including some build quality issues. Still, there aren't many other budget options out there, and the competition in this price range seems to be far worse than this device.
Pros: Inexpensive
Cons: Some build quality issues, no accompanying app
The best with a speaker
The iHome Zenergy offers a number of great light alarm features, but it also has a pretty great Bluetooth speaker built into it.
While some of the other devices on this list double as Bluetooth speakers, most of them treat the speaker as more of a tool for the alarm than as an actual music-listening speaker. The iHome Zenergy, however, is for music specifically.
Let's start with the alarm itself, which boasts a number of great features. For example, the light on the device is 360-degrees and allows for a range of different colors to fit your mood. The alarm comes with 10 naturally-recorded environmental and white sound noises to keep you relaxed as you go to sleep and wake up. Last but not least, the device has a USB port on the back to help you charge your device next to your bed.
Perhaps one of the best reasons to buy this device is the fact that it doubles as a Bluetooth speaker, and it sounds pretty good for a device in this price range.
There are some downsides to the iHome Zenergy. For starters, the Bluetooth is sometimes a little spotty. Still, the device has an auxiliary port, so you can connect your phone to it directly if the Bluetooth is giving you trouble. On top of that, some find the range of sounds to be a little limiting.
Pros: Well-designed, has a nice speaker, USB charging
Cons: Spotty Bluetooth
The best for total darkness
If you're someone who likes to sleep in pitch dark, you'll love the dimmable clock and options of the Lumie Bodyclock 250.
While wake-up light alarm clocks offer a number of benefits, some of them blast a bright light in your face when showing the time during the night. The Lumie Bodyclock Active 250 alleviates that issue by allowing users to dim the display as much as they want with two buttons on the front of the device.
Of course, beyond simply having a dimmable display, the Lumie Bodyclock Active 250 offers a number of other great features. It allows you to choose when the "sunrise" starts, so you can set when the clock should start the fade-in process.
Like the other clocks on this list, the Lumie Bodyclock 250 has some options. For example, there are five sounds you can choose to wake up to, or you can use the built-in FM radio. You even have six language choices.
We did come across a few buyer reviews complaining that the clock is difficult to set up, and the instructions are unhelpful. If you don't need the features of this clock, you may be better served by our other picks.
Pros: Dimmable clock, lots of options, easy to use
Cons: Expensive, difficult to set up
Check out our other sleep guides
The best alarm clocks
Let's face it: The ring, blare, buzz, or chirp of your alarm clock is probably never going to be your favorite sound. But then again, the angry rumble of your boss, when you show up late for work after oversleeping, is even worse. So make mornings a little easier by choosing an alarm clock that makes your return to reality if not a pleasure, then at least not a pain. These are the best alarm clocks.
The best sound machines
White noise machines, with their soft, steady, repeating loops of sound, help mask sudden or unusual noise, thus lulling your brain into relaxation, and eventually, sweet sweet sleep. These are the best sound machines for a good night's sleep.
The best smart lightbulbs
Smart lightbulbs give you the ability to control your lights with your voice, program them to appear a certain color at a certain time of day, or turn on or off on a timer. If you're looking to get a better night's sleep, you can use them to mimic a sunset or slowly turn on to wake you gently. These are the best smart lightbulbs.
