Noisli vs Portal

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

Portal

• People who focus or sleep better with nature sounds than music
• Mac users who want a moving nature scene as their desktop
• Homes with Philips Hue or Nanoleaf lights
• Families: Premium can be shared with up to five relatives

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.

Portal

• Apple devices only: iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro. No Android, Windows or web version is listed.
• Open Access covers 3 portals at a time; the rest of the library and smart lighting support need a Premium membership.
• The App Store listing requires iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4 or macOS 15.4 or later, and some v4 features need iOS 26.
• On the Mac, HomeKit lights are not supported and visuals cannot span more than one screen.

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.

Portal

Motion visuals

Window-like views of nature filmed with digital cinema cameras in up to 12K resolution. On the Mac they play full screen or as a moving desktop background.

Spatial audio

Nature recordings in spatial audio, up to 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos. Head-tracked playback needs AirPods (3rd generation or later), AirPods Pro, AirPods Max or Beats Fit Pro.

Timers, breathing and wake-up alarm

A Pomodoro timer, a sleep timer, meditation timers and breathing exercises are built in, along with a virtual sunrise wake-up alarm.

Smart lighting

Philips Hue lights on a Hue Bridge and Nanoleaf panels can follow the light and hue of each scene. HomeKit lights are supported on iPhone and iPad but not on the Mac.

Circadian Flow

Syncs Portal with the local time of day and plays portals that follow the changing light outside from sunrise to sunset. Whole collections can also play in sequence.

Audio mixing and offline use

Portal's sound can play under your own music, podcasts, audiobooks or guided meditations. Portals can be made available offline, and Siri, Shortcuts and widgets give quick access.

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.

Portal

• Open Access$0

  Three portals, changed monthly, with no ads or time limits, plus the timers, breathing exercises and audio mixing.

• Monthly Membership$2.99

  per month, US App Store in-app purchase

  Portal Premium billed monthly: the full library of more than 100 portals on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro, with smart lighting.

• Annual Membership$29.99

  per year, US App Store in-app purchase

  The same Premium access, billed as one payment for the full year.

• Portal Membership (Lifetime)$99.99

  one-time purchase

  Premium access for a single up-front payment. Portal's FAQ says Lifetime memberships may be available from time to time.

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.

Portal

• Annual discount

  Annual Membership costs about 16% less than monthly

  The US App Store lists the Annual Membership at $29.99 against the Monthly Membership at $2.99, which comes to $35.88 over twelve months.

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Membership for a one-time payment

  A Portal Membership (Lifetime) in-app purchase is listed at $99.99 on the US App Store, charged as a single up-front payment.