The best alarm clocks of 2023

Stop jolting awake with a smartphone alarm.
By Daniel Modlin  on 
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Overview

Best overall

Loftie Clock

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Best sunrise clock

Hatch Restore 2

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Best bare-bones alarm clock

Braun Classic Analogue Alarm Clock

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Best budget sunrise clock

Philips Wake-Up Light

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Alarm clocks might seem outdated, but if you’re anything like me, they’re a valuable way to get the phone out of the bedroom. Having an alarm clock that isn’t your phone might prevent you from doomscrolling all night and waking up with bloodshot eyes. At the very least, it’ll help you get up in time for work.

Nowadays, there's a whole suite of advanced alarm clocks that can wake you up more gently, or even simulate the rising sun. Keep reading to see our favorite alarm clocks for every type of person (even morning people). 

Can’t I just use my phone as an alarm clock?

You could, and many smartphones have great alarm clocks that utilize plenty of great sounds, as well as meditation and white noise apps. However, since you're likely on your phone all day, it might not be the first thing you want to wake up to. Many people (myself included) leave their phones in another room so they don’t use them while falling asleep or first thing when they wake up. In this case, an alarm clock that isn’t your phone can be handy.

What is a sunrise alarm clock?

Sunrise alarm clocks primarily use light (and sometimes sound) to wake you up. The idea is that a light that simulates the sun might help you get out of bed naturally (like if you left your blinds open). The cool part is you can set them to any time so you can naturally wake up at 4 a.m. when it’s still dark outside. These often provide the gentlest way to wake up, instead of a jolting or annoying sound. 

What is a multi-stage alarm clock? 

A multi-stage alarm clock is one that doesn’t just go off full-blast when the clock strikes 6 a.m. Instead, many smart models that are multi-stage might play a different, more gentle sound that doesn’t fully wake you up for the first minute. The purpose of this is to lull you out of deep REM sleep in order to wake you up more gently. After that first minute, the alarm will switch to a louder sound, prompting you to get out of bed.

While this works with sound, it can also work with sunrise clocks that use light to wake you up. In this case, a clock would begin at a dimmer setting, and then slowly raise its brightness to get you out of bed. 

Regardless of how you want to be woken up, you’ll need a good alarm clock to help you get out of bed. Here are our favorite smart alarm clocks of 2023:

The Loftie Clock doesn’t just look chic, it’s packed with tons of features. It has a multi-stage alarm that first lulls you out of deep sleep and then gets you out of bed, as well as a sunlight feature to help you wake up more naturally. 

Beyond its alarm functionality, it notably connects to WiFi in order to automatically adjust the time (a nice feature for Daylight Savings Time) and is packed with meditation apps as well as different white noises to help you fall asleep. All in all, it looks beautiful on your night table and does its job well.

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The Hatch Restore 2 elevates the sunlight clock with sound baths and mood-setting features you’d never expect from an alarm clock. With a slow-rolling wakeup routine that fills a bedroom with natural light and simulates the sunrise, this clock effectively (and gently) woke me up during testing

But one of the best features is the tactile buttons on the top to snooze or shut off the clock, which were, importantly, easy to find when half-asleep. On top of that, the clock also has an alarm on/off toggle that is easily accessible. Overall, this clock is a design-worthy piece with modern technology that is the perfect bedside companion. 


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The Braun Classic Clock is nothing special, but that’s why we love it. It has no fancy features, no sound library, and no app compatibility. It’s not even digital. But it does have an alarm that will get you out of bed every single morning without fail. Its design is sleek and barely noticeable, and you can even take this traveling since it's so compact. For just over $20, this may be all you really need from your alarm clock.

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The Philips Wake-Up Light is a cheap, simple sunrise clock. It features 10 different brightness levels, and a red display that looks classic and is easy to read (while not being so bright that it'll keep you awake). It doesn’t have any fancy app compatibility or meditation classes.

The material itself is much flimsier to the touch than its more expensive competitors but despite that, this clock will get you up and is easy to read — two very important features when it comes to alarm clocks. If you’re looking for a sunrise alarm clock, nothing more, and nothing less, this is the one to get. 

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How we tested

We hands-on tested each alarm clock by using it to wake up for a week. We tested models with varying price points, from budget-friendly alarms to more expensive alarms, and included new, buzzy models. While testing, here are some of the things we looked out for:

Ease of Use: We compared the alarms to see how easy they were to use, and if they were difficult to set up, start, or turn off.

Alarm Types: We compared different alarm types to see which was our favorite to wake to, including multi-stage, sunrise, and regular. 

Style and accessibility: Because this will be on your bedside table, we made sure to consider style and ease of reading.

Frequently Asked Questions


If you’re a light sleeper, the good news is that most things will wake you up. So the real answer comes down to personal preference when it comes to smart alarm clocks. Light sleepers can choose from sunrise alarm clocks, multi-stage alarm clocks, or even old-fashioned alarm clocks and still get out of bed. The factors worth considering are how you’d like to wake up, if any other features are important to you (like sound baths or meditation), and if you prefer your clock to be digital or analog. The choice is yours.


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