Take a warm shower before bed

Take a comfortably warm shower or bath in the evening, with reviewed studies suggesting a window about one to two hours before bedtime.

At a glance

What we know: A small, varied body of sleep studies suggests that warm bathing one to two hours before bed may shorten sleep onset.
What’s uncertain: The evidence base is small, with uncertain optimal timing, duration and temperature; it is not an established treatment for chronic insomnia.
First step: If it suits you, take a comfortably warm shower or bath about one to two hours before bedtime.
Before you try it: Avoid water hot enough to cause pain, lightheadedness, or a burn. All precautions

Takeaway

A systematic review included 17 studies, 13 with comparable quantitative data. Water-based heating at 40–42.5 °C was associated with better self-rated sleep quality and sleep efficiency, and studies using it 1–2 hours before bed for as little as 10 minutes found shorter sleep-onset latency. The evidence base was relatively small, and optimal timing, duration, and temperature remain uncertain; this is not an established treatment for chronic insomnia.

Discussed byMatthew WalkerView statements ↓

Sleep10–20 min · Easy · Free

Reviewed Sep 28, 2026

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Scientific evidence

What the research shows

Outcome assessments based on research, including its uncertainties and limitations.

No outcome assessment published

This entry is an overview. Its background references do not establish whether the practice works.

What people say

Who discusses this?

Public statements, with positions specific to each source and topic. These views do not determine the scientific evidence assessment.

What the research shows ↑

Matthew Walker
Public figure
DiscussesOn: Warm bath and heat before sleep
The chapter identifies warm bathing and heat before sleep. Warm bathing is a closer match to this habit than to a general wind-down routine; the chapter also mentions sauna, which is a separate practice.
Direct source · Podcast · YouTube · Chapter verified
Chapter heading checked; the full statement and its context have not been verified.
Huberman Lab — Guest Series | Dr. Matthew Walker: Protocols to Improve Your Sleep (opens in a new tab)
Play at 1:58:57

Practical steps and precautions

How to try it

If it suits you, take a comfortably warm shower or bath about one to two hours before bedtime.
The review found some effects with sessions as short as 10 minutes; treat that as a studied minimum, not a required target.
Use comfortable water rather than chasing a precise temperature; the studies varied and the review did not establish one best personal setting.

Precautions

Avoid water hot enough to cause pain, lightheadedness, or a burn.
Use a non-slip surface or support if getting in or out of the shower or bath is unsteady.

References

Background and safety references

These support context and precautions; they are separate from assessed outcome sources.

Before-bedtime passive body heating by warm shower or bath to improve sleep: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Haghayegh S, Khoshnevis S, Smolensky MH, Diller KR, Castriotta RJ · Sleep Medicine Reviews · 2019

Systematic reviewSystematic review; 17 studies met inclusion criteria and 13 supplied comparable quantitative data for meta-analysis, verified against the PubMed abstract (PMID 31102877).Verified from abstractBackground or safety reference

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Discussion

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Editorial history and review method

Revision 2 · Approved for publication · Codex (publication approval explicitly authorized by site owner; category migration)

Prepared and checked with AI. Publication approval does not imply independent expert review. Request a correction.

New Basic entry. Source metadata and quoted facts were checked against the listed abstract or organizational page. No outcome assessment is published; the text preserves the source's population, dose, and uncertainty limits. Independent approval remains pending. Publication release 2026-10-04: site owner authorized a bounded AI audit and release of this exact revision. See docs/release-audit-2026-10-04.md for source-check findings and limits. No independent health-professional or peer review is claimed. Category migration 2026-10-04: removed the separate goals field; categories: Sleep → Sleep. Research assessments, sources, guidance, precautions, and evidence review dates are unchanged. This revision awaits publication approval; no new evidence review is claimed. Publication approval 2026-10-04: site owner explicitly accepted all current category-migration revisions for deployment and requested that remaining limitations be retained in docs/content-review-backlog.md. Approval applies to this exact content revision. No new evidence review, independent expert review, or clinical validation is claimed; existing precautions and disclosures remain in effect.