Using a melodic song you enjoy as an alarm sound can potentially reduce feelings of grogginess upon waking. However, waking suddenly from sleep may have negative effects.

Many people use an alarm clock (or an alarm sound on their cellphone) to ensure they wake up on time.

If you’ve ever slept through an alarm or fallen asleep after turning one off, you’ll know that even waking to an insistent alarm may not always get you out of bed feeling alert.

Research suggests alarms with a melody generally reduce grogginess in adults, though multiple factors can also play a role in making you feel more alert:

  • volume
  • tempo, or speed of the music
  • rhythm, or the beat of the music
  • melody or tune

Keep reading to learn about sleep inertia, the best alarms to reduce it, other measures to take, and the potential downsides of sudden morning alarms.

If you wake up feeling groggy and disoriented, it may be due to sleep inertia.

Sleep inertia is the natural process of the body transitioning from sleeping to wakefulness that typically lasts about 30 minutes but may last up to 4 hours.

You’re more likely to be affected by sleep inertia if you wake up suddenly from a deeper REM sleep instead of a lighter non-REM sleep. This may be more likely to happen when you wake from an alarm rather than when you wake up naturally. However, many people don’t have the option to wake naturally without an alarm.

While experiencing sleep inertia, you may have impairments to:

Researchers suggest sleep inertia may be an adaptive mechanism for helping people fall back asleep when they wake up unintentionally during sleep.

Sleep inertia may be worse if you:

A 2020 review of prior research suggests that certain alarm sounds may reduce feelings of sleep inertia. The type of alarm that may be best for reducing sleep inertia can vary depending on age.

For children, a low-pitched alarm or voice warnings appear more effective than alarms with higher frequencies in counteracting sleep inertia. Note that this research was conducted in emergency situations, unlike that for adults below.

For adults, melodic sounds and music may reduce perceived sleep inertia.

Another 2020 review of research by the same lead researcher suggests that the following may reduce sleep inertia in adults:

  • high preference upbeat music or an alarm sound with a melody and rhythm at 60 decibels (dB) (generally the normal volume of a typical conversation between two people)
  • pink noise (a type of sound with equal energy per octave, often described as deeper and less sharp than white noise, similar to steady rainfall or rustling leaves) at 75 dB (the volume of a washing machine)

The researchers found that sounds that participants rated as neither melodic nor non-melodic were associated with increased perceived sleep inertia.

Their research also suggests that listening to music while experiencing sleep inertia, even after you initially wake up, may help reduce your feelings of sleep inertia.

Other tips for waking up more easily

If you often snooze or turn off your alarm without remembering you did so, you may benefit from keeping your alarm out of arm’s reach. This way, you’ll have to get out of bed to turn it off.

If you sleep through your alarm, you may want to set multiple loud alarms. If you still sleep through them, you might want to find a different type of alarm. Alternative alarm options include ones that:

  • shake your bed
  • move around
  • flash lights

While waking to a sudden alarm that jolts you from sleep may help you feel awake and wake up on time, it may have a negative effect on your blood pressure.

According to a small 2024 pilot study in 32 healthy adults, forced waking to an alarm clock was associated with an increased morning blood pressure surge, which is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and stroke. Though more research is still needed to support this conclusion, the researchers suggest that waking naturally after a full night of restful sleep is best for your heart.

For those who cannot rely on waking naturally due to life obligations like work and school, you may be able to wake more naturally with:

  • a sunrise alarm clock that wakes you with gradually brightening light
  • a gradual alarm clock that slowly increases its volume to wake you more gently
  • a flexible alarm setting that may wake you when you’re in a lighter sleep cycle

You may be able to wake up more easily if you improve your sleep hygiene. This can include:

If you feel tired when you wake up, certain practices can help you get up and feel awake. These can include:

Some health conditions, including sleep apnea and sleep disorders, can negatively affect sleep quality, leading to fatigue when you’re awake.

If you consistently feel tired upon waking, it may be best to talk with a primary care doctor about ordering a sleep study. Sleep medicine specialists usually perform these studies in a sleep center.

The best sounds for a wake-up alarm for adults usually include popular music or alarms with melodies. An alarm that plays pink noise may also help you wake up and feel alert.

Try setting a melodic alarm at a comfortable volume and placing it across the room.

If you still feel excessively groggy after waking up, you may need to revisit your sleep practices to ensure you’re getting enough restful, uninterrupted sleep. Certain practices, like morning exercise or caffeine, can also help.

If you have trouble waking up despite an alarm, you can try a different type of alarm clock, such as one that uses light to wake you, or set multiple loud alarms.