Vibrating Wristband vs Bed Shaker: Which Silent Alarm Suits You?

Both wake you with vibration instead of sound. A bed shaker is a disc or pad that goes under your pillow or mattress, usually plugged into a bedside alarm clock. A vibrating wristband is worn on your wrist or ankle and vibrates against your skin. They solve the same problem in different ways, and the right one depends on how you sleep.

Side by side

	Vibrating wristband	Bed shaker
Who it wakes	Only you	You, and often anyone else sharing the bed
Where it works	Anywhere you're wearing it	Only in the bed it's set up in
Travel	Goes in your bag	Needs the clock, a cable and a power point
If you move in your sleep	Moves with you	Can end up out from under your pillow
Comfort	Something on your wrist overnight	Nothing to wear
Power	Rechargeable (the Nudge lasts up to 14 days a charge)	Usually mains or batteries via the bedside clock
Heavy sleepers	Strong when it's against your skin	Strong, but it depends on where the pad sits

Choose a wristband if…

• You share a bed and want to wake only yourself.
• You travel, stay away for work, or do FIFO rotations.
• You move around a lot in your sleep.
• You'd rather not have another cable and clock at the bedside.

Choose a bed shaker if…

• You really don't want to wear anything to bed.
• You sleep alone, or your partner doesn't mind being shaken too.
• You want a single bedside unit that also flashes or sounds.

What about under-pillow vibrating alarms?

Under-pillow alarms are a type of bed shaker: a small vibrating puck or pad that sits under your pillow, either plugged into a bedside clock or running on batteries.

• Pros: nothing to wear, fairly quiet, and effective if your head stays on the pillow.
• Cons: if you move or the pad shifts, you may not feel it. A partner on the same pillow can feel it too, and wired versions need a clock and power point.

If you move a lot in your sleep, or share a pillow-top mattress, a wristband is usually more reliable.

Can you use both?

Yes. Some people use a bed shaker at home and a wristband for travel. Others wear a wristband and keep a bed shaker as a backup for important mornings.

About the Sovune Nudge

The Sovune Nudge is a wristband alarm:

• It's completely silent, with no speaker.
• It starts with a gentle tap and escalates through three levels over a full minute.
• It holds three alarms, so you can set different times for different days.
• You set it on the band, with no app.
• It has an adjustable strap that you can also wear on your ankle.

It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can find out for yourself whether a wristband suits you.

See the Sovune Nudge →

For every other type of silent alarm, see our complete guide to vibrating alarms. If hearing loss is the reason you're comparing, read vibrating alarms for deaf and hard-of-hearing people.