Snoring
Snoring is soft tissue vibrating in a narrowed airway. Where it narrows decides everything — which remedies can possibly help you, and which are a waste of money.
Snoring is a sound made by soft tissue vibrating in a partially narrowed airway. That is the entire physics of it.
Everything useful follows from one question: where does your airway narrow? Because that determines which remedies are even mechanically capable of helping you — and it is the reason most people conclude that nothing works for snoring, having bought things at random.
Start here if you do nothing else
Two free tests, ninety seconds, and they sort most of it.
The cheek-pull test. Pull the skin of your cheek outward beside one nostril and breathe in. Noticeably easier means your narrowing is at the nasal valve.
The jaw test. Imitate your snore, then push your lower jaw forward a centimetre and try again. If the sound reduces, your obstruction is at the tongue base.
The full decision tree runs six questions and tells you what to do with the answers.
The four types
| Type | Where it narrows | What it sounds like | What can help |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | Nostrils, valve, septum, turbinates | Snuffly, higher pitched, often with a blocked nose | Nasal strips, dilators, treating congestion |
| Mouth | Air bypasses the nose entirely | Loud, dry, wakes you parched | Anything restoring nasal breathing |
| Tongue-base | Tongue falls back into the throat | Deep, irregular, far worse on your back | Position training, mandibular devices |
| Palatal | Soft palate and uvula flutter | The classic fluttering "sawing" | Throat exercises, weight, alcohol timing |
Most people are a blend with one dominant type. The four types in detail.
Why people snore
Anatomy, much of it inherited — jaw position, palate length, nasal valve width, tongue size. Is snoring genetic.
Weight, particularly around the neck. Neck circumference predicts airway narrowing better than overall weight. The mechanism.
Alcohol, where timing matters more than quantity. Why.
Sleeping position. Snoring is dramatically worse on the back for most people. Positional training.
Nasal congestion from allergy, infection or structural narrowing. The routes.
Age, as muscle tone declines and cartilage weakens. Why it worsens.
Medication that reduces airway muscle tone. Which drugs.
Hormonal change, particularly around menopause. More.
Common questions
Why did I suddenly start snoring? · Why do I only snore sometimes? · Can snoring be cured? · Does everyone snore? · Can you hear yourself snore? · Why do I snore with my mouth closed? · Why do I snore more when tired? · Can snoring damage your throat? · Is snoring bad for your health?
What actually works
Ranked honestly, and the free things come first because they work.
Positional training — free, evidenced, and the highest-yield intervention for the large group whose snoring is much worse on their back. How to do it
Alcohol timing — finish three to four hours before bed. Costs nothing. Work out your cutoff
Treating nasal congestion — the upstream cause of a great deal of downstream snoring. The guide
Weight reduction where relevant. The mechanism
Throat exercises — best evidence of any exercise approach, about three months to work. The exercises
Mandibular advancement devices — the strongest evidence of anything purchasable, for tongue-base snorers. Compared
Nasal strips for nasal valve narrowing. The guide
Mouth tape for a mouth falling open above a clear nose. The guide
Every remedy ranked by evidence · devices compared
When snoring is not just snoring
The most important section on this page.
Snoring is the most audible symptom of obstructive sleep apnea, where the airway repeatedly closes rather than merely narrowing. No product sold without a prescription treats it, and quietening the noise removes the warning while the condition continues.
Get assessed if anyone has seen you stop breathing, you gasp or choke awake, you wake with headaches most mornings, you are heavily sleepy during the day, or your blood pressure is difficult to control.
What separates them · an eight-question risk check · the sleep apnea guide
For the person listening to it
An entire section of this site is written for the partner rather than the snorer — what the sleep loss costs, what to do about the noise tonight, and how to get a reluctant snorer assessed.
The partners section · what their snoring is costing you · the best earplugs for it
Free tools
What kind of snorer are you · your snore score · remedy finder · apnea risk check · all the tools