Blanket vs Noisli

Blanket

• Linux users who want background noise while they work
• Falling asleep in a noisy environment
• People who want to mix their own audio files with stock sounds

Noisli

• Masking office, traffic or household noise while working
• People who prefer mixing their own ambient sound to playing music
• Writers who want background sound, a timer and an editor in one tab

Blanket

• Linux only, from Flathub or distribution packages. The README lists Windows, macOS, Android and web apps only under Related Projects, as apps inspired by Blanket.
• The built-in library is 14 sounds; anything else has to be added as a custom audio file.
• The latest release, 0.8.0, is dated July 27, 2025; the one before it, 0.7.0, came out in April 2024.

Noisli

• The Free plan limits streaming to 1.5 hours a day and includes 16 of the 28 sounds.
• Oscillation, Shuffle, the advanced Timer and the advanced Text Editor need Pro or Business.
• Noisli says plan features are intended for desktop browsers on Mac or Windows; the iPhone and iPad app is a separate $1.99 purchase.
• The site also names an Android app and a Chrome extension, but its Google Play link returned Not Found and its Chrome Web Store link showed the item as not available.

Blanket

Fourteen built-in sounds

Birds, Boat, City, Coffee Shop, Fireplace, Pink Noise, Rain, Summer Night, Storm, Stream, Train, Waves, White Noise and Wind, with a general volume control over the whole mix.

Presets

Save a set of sounds and their volumes as a preset and switch between presets later. Presets arrived in version 0.5.0.

Custom sounds

Add your own audio files alongside the built-in sounds. Version 0.8.0 added the ability to rename custom sounds.

Background playback and autostart

Sounds can keep playing after the window is closed, and the app can start in the background when you log in, with a preference to always start paused.

MPRIS controls

Play, Pause, Stop and PlayPause are available through MPRIS, the Linux desktop's media player interface, and its Next and Previous commands step through presets.

Power awareness

Playback pauses when the system enters power saver mode. Keeping the computer from suspending while sounds play is an option, off by default.

Noisli

Sound mixer

28 background sounds, each with its own volume control, can be layered into a mix that Noisli calls a Combo. The Free plan includes 16 of them.

Curated Playlists

Playlists group suggested Combos for situations such as focus, study, writing and sleep. Free accounts get 3 Playlists and paid plans 10.

Favorites

Save your own Combos to replay later and share them with other people. The Free plan stores up to 5 and paid plans up to 10.

Session Timer

Set the length of work sessions and breaks, with optional auto-start and a daily count of finished sessions. Sounds stop when the time is up.

Text Editor

A minimal writing space with Markdown formatting and a word counter. Text is saved to the account and can be downloaded or sent to Dropbox or Google Drive.

Oscillation and Shuffle

On paid plans, Oscillation slowly varies the volume of sounds within a Combo, and Shuffle moves between Combos at a frequency you set.

Blanket

• Blanket$0

  The complete Linux app: 14 built-in sounds, custom sounds, presets, background playback and MPRIS controls.

Noisli

• Free$0

  1 user, 16 sounds, 1.5 hours of streaming a day, 3 curated Playlists, up to 5 Favorites, simple Timer and Text Editor.

• iOS app$1.99

  one-time purchase, US App Store

  The iPhone and iPad app, bought separately from the web plans: offline sounds, saved Combos and a timer with fade-out.

• Pro$10

  per month, billed yearly ($120)

  1 user, 28 sounds, unlimited streaming, 10 Playlists, advanced Timer and Text Editor, Oscillation and Shuffle. $12 if billed monthly.

• Business$24

  per month for 2 users, billed yearly

  Pro features plus team management and centralised billing. The page's plan data prices it at $144 per user a year, or $14 per user monthly.

Blanket

No public discounts listed.

Noisli

• Annual discount

  Yearly Pro billing costs about 17% less

  The pricing page's plan data lists Pro at $120 billed yearly against $12 billed monthly, which comes to $144 over twelve months.

• Education

  Discount for students and teachers

  Noisli offers students, teachers and educational institutions a special discount on its yearly plan. The page does not state the amount.