Healthy Phone Habits to Help You Get a Good Night’s Sleep
This can be a problem, but you don’t need to give up your phone completely to get a good night’s sleep. A few simple settings and small changes to your routine can help your phone work with your bedtime, rather than keep you awake. From night mode and scheduled notifications to screen time tools and wind-down features, here are some easy ways to build healthier phone habits and make getting ready for sleep a little easier.
Does your phone’s blue light really mess with your sleep?
Yes, your phone’s blue light can affect sleep. Blue light can suppress melatonin, the hormone that helps tell your body it’s time to wind down, and bright screens can also keep your brain feeling more alert when you’re trying to switch off.
However, this is very easy to manage. Android phones have built-in options designed to make your screen more comfortable to use at night. On motorola devices, Night Light shifts the display towards warmer, amber tones, which reduces the amount of blue light from the screen. You can also dim the display, then schedule Night Light to come on automatically in the evening, so you don’t have to remember to switch it on yourself.
Simple phone settings that make a big difference before bed
The best part about healthier phone habits? You don’t need to overhaul your whole evening. A few quick settings changes can make your phone feel much more bedtime-friendly, and once they’re set up, you can let them run automatically.
Turning on night mode or a warm colour filter
Most phones have a night mode or warm colour filter that shifts the display towards warmer tones, which reduces the amount of blue light coming from the screen. It can make your display feel more comfortable in a darker room, too. On Android, you’ll usually find this under Settings > Display > Nightlight.
Rather than remembering to switch it on every night, set a schedule and let your phone handle it automatically. You can choose an evening start time and a morning end time, so your display adjusts itself as your day moves from bright and busy to ready for bed.
Scheduling notifications so evenings stay quiet
Too many notifications can turn a peaceful evening into a stream of interruptions. Scheduling Do Not Disturb periods or adjusting your notification settings lets you quiet the non-essential alerts during your wind-down time, whilst still allowing important calls or messages from the people you choose.
You can usually customise which apps and contacts can get through, so you’re not completely cut off. This helps to make sure you don’t miss anything important, but you can still give your evenings a little less digital noise.
Setting up a phone sleep mode or wind-down routine
Android’s Bedtime mode brings a number of useful changes together in one place. You can schedule it to turn the screen to grayscale, switch on Do Not Disturb to quiet notifications, and start at a set time each evening. It means you can enjoy a quieter, calmer phone without having to change several settings individually.
It also means you can keep using your phone for the apps that help you wind down, such as a meditation app or audiobook, without the usual stream of distractions pulling you back into other apps.
Building an evening routine that your phone supports
You don’t need to create a perfect bedtime routine straight away. Instead, just aim to make the hour before bed a little calmer and more predictable. For example, you might finish dinner, set your phone to wind down at 9pm, put it on charge away from the bed, and spend the next hour reading, listening to music, getting ready for bed, or catching up with a podcast. When the lights go out, your phone is already in its quiet mode, rather than tempting you into another scroll.
It can help to attach this routine to something you already do every night. When you brush your teeth, for example, that can be your cue to put your phone on charge and start winding down. You could also use your phone for things that support the routine, such as a sleep tracker, a relaxing audio app, or an app that reminds you to take evening medication at the right time. The trick is to make your phone part of the routine without making it the main event.
Screen time tools that keep you honest without the guilt
If you’re not sure where your evening screen time is going, Android’s Digital Wellbeing tools can give you a useful reality check. You can see how long you’ve spent in different apps, how many times you’ve unlocked your phone, and how many notifications you’ve received. If your social media usage tends to creep up after 9pm, for example, that’s a pattern you can do something about. For example, app timers can give you a gentle nudge when you’ve reached the amount of time you’ve set for yourself.
Motorola’s Moto Unplugged takes this idea a step further by creating a dedicated space on your phone for focused, distraction-free time. You can choose the apps and people you want access to, and filter out the notifications and interruptions you don’t need. That can be especially useful in the evening: you can keep essentials such as calls from family, your alarm, or a medication reminder available, and put social feeds, work apps, and other distractions to one side. It’s less about telling you to stop using your phone and more about making your phone fit the kind of evening you want to have.
Start tonight: one small change for a better night’s sleep
You don’t need to change everything at once. Pick one habit from this guide and try it tonight, perhaps scheduling Night Light, setting up Bedtime mode, or giving yourself a cut-off time for scrolling. Once that feels natural, you can add another.
Your phone doesn’t have to be the thing keeping you awake. With a few thoughtful settings and small changes to your routine, it can fit neatly into your evening and help you wind down for the night.
