Is a warm bedroom contributing to your insomnia? Does temperature make a difference in sleep quality?
We’ve been looking into these questions, and we think we’ve found some actionable research results that may really help. The body’s natural thermoregulation process forms a healthy sleep pattern, which can be found in all mammals, not just humans. As evening approaches, the body naturally lowers core temperature by redistributing heat from the torso to the extremities. This decline in core body temperature is a key physiological signal that helps you fall asleep and stay asleep. Disruption of this cooling process has been linked to longer sleep onset and insomnia symptoms.
A general recommendation for quality sleep is to keep the temperature in the bedroom at about 65-68 ℉, this allows for a shorter sleep onset time and less disruption of sleep throughout the night. Insomnia sufferers often complain of overheating or night sweats, or even simply feeling the covers are too heavy, and a lighter covering and lower room temperature are often enough to change sleep patterns.
For those who still have problems sleeping, a number of devices are coming on the market that may help some people. These are marketed as comfort or wellness devices, not medical therapies, but they are showing some good results.
Devices like cooling sheets, pillows or even mattress pads may offer comfort and hope for better sleep, although some can be pricey. For a table showing popular cooling devices, see this page on our GPS site.
References:
Perlmutter, Austin. The key role of temperature in sleep quality. Psychology Today, March 4, 2025.
Florane Pasquier, Maxime Chauvineau, Greta Castellini, Silvia Gianola, Silvia Bargeri, Jacopo Vitale, Mathieu Nedelec. Does body cooling facilitated by bedding compared to control condition improve sleep among adults (18–64 years old)? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Thermal Biology, Volume 127, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2024.104030.
Harding EC, Franks NP, Wisden W. The Temperature Dependence of Sleep. Front Neurosci. 2019 Apr 24;13:336. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2019.00336. PMID: 31105512; PMCID: PMC6491889.