Top 5 compared
The best sunrise alarm clocks
Let the room fill with light before the alarm goes off, so dark mornings feel easier.
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The top 5 at a glance
Through the winter, plenty of us get up before it’s light. A sunrise alarm clock is a bedside lamp and clock in one: over the half-hour or so before the alarm, its light climbs from a faint glow to full brightness, so the sound only has to finish the job. Some are wake-up lights first and foremost; others play white noise and nature sounds to fall asleep to.
These are all set with buttons on the clock itself rather than an app, and each display dims for the night, some all the way to dark. Philips’ Wake-up Light is built around the light: a sunrise that shifts color like a real dawn and a sunset that dims the room at bedtime, with fewer sounds than the rest.
What matters
- A longer sunrise setting suits slow wakers.
- A light-only wake mode, if a partner is still sleeping.
- Settings that survive a power outage.
- Separate alarm times for workdays and days off.
#1Odokee Sunrise Alarm Clock and Sound Machine (H03)
$50–$75
A soft fabric-covered clock that works through the whole night: 25 sleep sounds from white and brown noise to rain and waves, a 5W Bluetooth speaker for podcasts, and a sunrise you can stretch from 5 to 60 minutes before the alarm.
What owners say: Owners like how gradually the room brightens before the alarm, say setup is straightforward with no app, and use it as a night light and Bluetooth speaker too; one credits it with getting them up through dark winter mornings.
A closer look: Pick one of the three wake modes: light and sound together, the light alone for a silent start, or just the alarm. The sunset shade on the night light makes a soft glow for reading at bedtime, and the sleep timer turns the sounds off once you’ve dropped off.
- Soft fabric cover
- Three wake modes
- Sleep timer on sounds
- Sunset shade for reading
- Display dims 0 to 100%
Best for: Sound machine and sunrise in one
- Sunrise
- 5–60 min
- Sounds
- 25 sleep, 7 wake
- Night light
- 12 colors
- Controls
- Buttons and dials
- Extras
- 5W Bluetooth speaker
#2REACHER Wood Grain Sunrise Alarm Clock and Sound Machine (R7W)
$30–$50
A wood-grain front that looks like a piece of bedroom furniture, a sunrise that climbs from 1% to full brightness over 5 to 60 minutes, and 26 sleep sounds on a timer that switches off the sound and the night light together.
What owners say: A sound machine and wake-up light in one, plenty of white noise to choose from and a light that brightens so slowly it often has owners awake a few minutes before the alarm: that’s the appeal. Durability is the worry, with several reporting one that stopped after about six months.
A closer look: Turn the display dimmer down to zero at night and the clock disappears into the wood on the nightstand. A built-in battery remembers the alarm, light and sound settings if the power drops, so nothing needs resetting after a storm.
- Timer stops sound and light
- 5–180 min sleep timer
- Display dims to zero
Best for: Bedrooms with wood furniture
- Sunrise
- 5–60 min
- Sounds
- 26 sleep, 8 wake
- Night light
- 8 colors
- Controls
- Top buttons
- Extras
- Keeps settings in outages
#3Wkzay Sunrise Alarm Clock with Sound Machine (SM-07)
$30–$50
Made with light sleepers in mind: it can wake you with light before any sound, and nearly everything can be fine-tuned, with 13 brightness levels, 32 volume steps and a sunrise of 10 to 60 minutes. Thirty sounds and a timer of up to eight hours cover the night.
What owners say: White noise and brown noise are the big draw, with owners using it for night wakings as well as mornings; they find the slow brighten gentle and the brightness easy to adjust.
A closer look: Backlit buttons make it easy to change a sound or hit snooze in the dark without switching on a lamp. The display dims in five steps, so the time stays readable without lighting up the room, and a memory function keeps your usual sound and light ready for the next night.
- Wakes with light first
- 32 volume steps
- Display dims in five steps
- Remembers your sound and light
- LR44 battery included
Best for: Waking to light before sound
- Sunrise
- 10–60 min
- Sounds
- 30 (white noise, nature)
- Night light
- 13 brightness levels
- Controls
- Backlit buttons
- Extras
- Sleep timer up to 8 hrs
#4JALL Full-Screen Sunrise Alarm Clock (K8)
$30–$50
The whole round front lights up, so the sunrise fills more of the room than a small lamp would, and it adds an FM radio, a Bluetooth speaker and two alarms for weekdays and weekends.
What owners say: It’s quick to get going, by owners’ accounts, and being eased awake by the brightening screen and birdsong goes down well, though several had the alarm stop working after a while.
A closer look: Wake to a radio station or one of the nature sounds, and set the snooze anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes. At night the L0 setting blacks the screen out completely, handy for anyone who can’t sleep with a glowing clock in view.
- Whole round front lights up
- Weekday and weekend alarms
- Snooze of 5–20 minutes
- Screen blacks out completely
Best for: Big rooms and radio fans
- Sunrise
- 10–60 min
- Sounds
- 25, plus FM radio
- Night light
- 17 effects
- Controls
- Buttons, phone time sync
- Extras
- FM radio, Bluetooth speaker
#5Philips SmartSleep Wake-up Light (HF3520)
$100–$150
The sunrise shifts from red through orange to warm yellow, the way a real dawn does, and the sunset dims the room over a time you choose at bedtime. A light tap anywhere on the lamp snoozes it.
What owners say: The warm glow and the gentle way it brightens win owners over, and they like the lamp’s looks; views differ on programming it, on the wake sounds and on the price.
A closer look: At up to 300 lux it works as a bedside reading lamp, and the display dims itself when the room goes dark. Two alarms let a weekday and a weekend time sit side by side, and the wake sound builds to its set volume over about a minute and a half.
- Sunrise from red to yellow
- Up to 300 lux
- Auto-dimming display
- Sound builds over 1.5 minutes
- Two alarms
Best for: Colored dawns and bedtime sunsets
- Sunrise
- 20–40 min
- Sounds
- 5 wake, plus FM radio
- Night light
- Reading lamp, 20 levels
- Controls
- Buttons, tap snooze
- Extras
- Sunset fade, FM radio
How they compare
Swipe sideways or rotate device to see all 5.
| Feature | #1Odokee H03 | #2REACHER R7W | #3Wkzay SM-07 | #4JALL K8 | #5Philips HF3520 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Best budget | ||||
| Picked Rating | 9.0 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 8.5 | 8.4 |
| Price | $50–$75 | $30–$50 | $30–$50 | $30–$50 | $100–$150 |
| Sunrise | 5–60 min | 5–60 min | 10–60 min | 10–60 min | 20–40 min |
| Sounds | 25 sleep, 7 wake | 26 sleep, 8 wake | 30 (white noise, nature) | 25, plus FM radio | 5 wake, plus FM radio |
| Night light | 12 colors | 8 colors | 13 brightness levels | 17 effects | Reading lamp, 20 levels |
| Controls | Buttons and dials | Top buttons | Backlit buttons | Buttons, phone time sync | Buttons, tap snooze |
| Extras | 5W Bluetooth speaker | Keeps settings in outages | Sleep timer up to 8 hrs | FM radio, Bluetooth speaker | Sunset fade, FM radio |
| Best for | Sound machine and sunrise in one | Bedrooms with wood furniture | Waking to light before sound | Big rooms and radio fans | Colored dawns and bedtime sunsets |
| Buy now | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
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