Match your frequency in the app — then start masking
Identify Your Tinnitus
Drag the slider to match your phantom ringing.
How do I find my tinnitus frequency? Use headphones in a quiet room. Play a pure tone with the matching tool above and slowly sweep from around 1,000 Hz upward until the tone matches your ringing. Most people find their tinnitus between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz. Close enough is sufficient — you don't need precision.
What frequency is tinnitus most commonly at? Research suggests tinnitus most commonly falls between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz, with high-pitched ringing in the 3,000–6,000 Hz range being most frequently reported. Individual perception varies widely.
Before you start: frequency matching is a self-management tool, not a medical procedure. If your tinnitus is new, sudden, occurs in one ear only, pulses with your heartbeat, or is accompanied by hearing loss, dizziness, or pain — see a healthcare professional first.
What Is Tinnitus Frequency Matching?
Tinnitus frequency matching is the process of identifying the pitch of your tinnitus in Hz by comparing your phantom ringing to external pure tones. It is a self-management tool — not a medical test — used to choose masking and sound-enrichment sounds that more closely overlap with your specific tinnitus pitch. The Tinnitus Relief App lets you tune a pitch-matched tone from 100–15,000 Hz, then play it alone or layered with masking.
You play pure tones at different frequencies through headphones and adjust until the external tone sounds similar to your internal ringing. Once you have your approximate Hz, you can pick masking sounds (white noise, pink noise, brown noise, rain, forest, ocean) that work best for that pitch zone.
Why Frequency Matching Matters
Generic white noise raises the ambient sound floor — and for many people that helps. But it covers all frequencies equally, including ones far from your tinnitus pitch. Matching your frequency first lets you layer sounds that directly overlap with the ringing, which research suggests may produce more effective partial masking than broadband noise alone. Individual results vary significantly.
What frequency matching helps with
- More targeted masking — sounds that better cover your specific pitch.
- Smarter sound selection — guides you toward the right noise colour for your Hz range.
- Tracking changes — noticing shifts with stress, sleep, caffeine, or noise exposure.
- Clearer communication — describing your tinnitus pitch to a professional more precisely.
What frequency matching cannot do
- No diagnosis — only a qualified professional can assess causes or conditions.
- No guaranteed result — sound strategies work differently for different people.
- No cure — frequency matching is a management aid, not a treatment.
- Not permanent — your perceived pitch can shift; re-check if it clearly changes.
Match Your Tinnitus Frequency in 4 Steps
You need a quiet room, headphones or earbuds, and about two minutes. The goal is not laboratory precision — close enough is sufficient. Most people's tinnitus sits between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz. Sweep slowly upward from 1,000 Hz, narrow when it feels close, fine-tune, then save your match.
Start broad — around 1,000 Hz
Open the frequency matcher above. Begin around 1,000 Hz and sweep slowly upward. Most people's tinnitus sits between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz — look for the zone where the tone starts to feel similar to your ringing, not necessarily identical.
Narrow the range
When the tone feels close, slow down. Move within roughly ±500 Hz of that point in smaller increments. You are listening for where the external tone and your internal ringing feel most similar in pitch.
Fine-tune to your closest match
Use the smallest adjustments available until you reach the closest match. It will rarely feel perfect — that is normal. Stop when further adjustments make it feel further away rather than closer.
Save it and test a masking sound
Note your approximate Hz. Pick a masking sound from the suggestions in the table below. Test it during a real situation — at your desk, reading, or at bedtime. Adjust volume until the ringing fades into the background rather than competing with it.
If your match changes on different days, that is not unusual. Tinnitus pitch perception can vary with fatigue, stress, and caffeine. Re-run the steps if the pitch clearly shifts — do not re-check obsessively every day.
Understanding Your Hz Range
Published research suggests most people with subjective tinnitus perceive a pitch between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz. High-pitched ringing and hissing are the most commonly reported forms, often associated with noise exposure or age-related hearing changes. The table below maps each Hz zone to masking sounds that tend to work best for that pitch.
| Pitch zone | Hz range | Often described as | Sounds to try first |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very low | 100–500 Hz | Hum, drone, low rumble | Brown noise, ocean waves, deep fan |
| Low–mid | 500–2,000 Hz | Buzzing, low hiss, muffled tone | Brown noise, pink noise, light rain |
| Mid | 2,000–4,000 Hz | Ringing, mid-pitch hiss | Pink noise, white noise, forest sounds |
| High | 4,000–8,000 Hz | High-pitched ringing, whistling | White noise, pink noise, steady rain, birdsong |
| Very high | 8,000–15,000 Hz | Sharp hiss, very high whistle | White noise, grey noise, high-pitched nature sounds |
These are practical starting points, not rules. Personal comfort matters more than any frequency category. Read more about the differences between white, pink, and brown noise for tinnitus.
What to Do After You Find Your Frequency
Finding your Hz is only the first step. The goal is to build a daily sound therapy routine that keeps relief available throughout your day — not just during quiet moments at home. Use targeted masking during work and reading, sleep timer at bedtime, and background play during calls and meetings.
Building a practical masking routine
During work or focus: set masking at the lowest volume where the ringing becomes less noticeable — you are not trying to drown it out, just reduce the contrast. White noise blends well in office environments without being distracting.
During calls and meetings: the app keeps sound therapy running in the background during phone calls, Zoom, and Teams — so relief does not pause the moment work does. This works on the free tier. See common use cases.
Tracking changes: some people notice that tinnitus feels less intrusive after several weeks of daily sound use. This is consistent with the habituation process described in Tinnitus Retraining Therapy research. Individual results vary significantly.
Using Frequency Matching for Better Sleep
Tinnitus often feels worse at bedtime because silence amplifies the contrast between phantom sound and environment. Targeted masking at your matched frequency reduces that contrast just enough for the brain to relax — without becoming a new source of stimulation.
For most people, the right bedtime volume is the lowest level where the ringing fades into the background. Going louder does not help — it usually makes the room feel busier and harder to sleep in. Start at a low volume, lie down for two minutes, then adjust only if needed.
The Premium sleep timer fades audio gradually so it does not disturb deeper sleep stages, while the free tier plays continuously through the night. For a complete bedtime protocol, see the sleeping with tinnitus guide.
Practical Tips for Better Frequency Matching
Most people can find a reasonably accurate match in two minutes. A few common issues make it harder — and easy to avoid once you know about them.
When to do it
Do the matching process when your tinnitus is at a typical level — not during an acute spike when it may seem louder or different, and not right after noise exposure. Evening, when you are relaxed but not exhausted, tends to work well. Avoid immediately before bed — focusing on tinnitus at bedtime can increase anxiety.
What "matching" feels like
The moment of match is rarely dramatic. The external tone does not make the tinnitus disappear. What you are looking for is the point where the external tone and the internal ringing feel like they are in the same pitch neighbourhood — where adjusting the tone either higher or lower makes them feel less similar. Stop there.
Many people overshoot on the first pass. If you swept quickly to 6,000 Hz and it felt close, go back to 5,000 Hz and approach again more slowly. Small adjustments in the final 500 Hz make a meaningful difference.
Multiple tones
Some people experience tinnitus with multiple pitches simultaneously — a primary high tone with a secondary lower buzz, for example. In this case, match the tone that is most prominent and most distressing. The secondary tone will often receive enough indirect masking from the background sound around the primary frequency.
Premium per-ear control allows independent frequency settings for each ear, which is useful when the tones clearly differ between left and right. For single-frequency tinnitus, one match is sufficient.
When the match seems to change
Tinnitus pitch can fluctuate with stress, caffeine, sleep quality, and noise exposure. If the match you found last week no longer feels accurate, simply run the process again and update your setting. Do not check daily — only when something clearly feels different. Obsessive rechecking reinforces attention to tinnitus and works against habituation.
Using Your Frequency Match for Habituation
Knowing your frequency is useful on its own. But it becomes significantly more powerful when combined with sound enrichment that targets that specific pitch.
The free tier of the app plays white noise centred around your matched frequency. This means the background sound is strongest in the frequency band where your tinnitus lives — providing more targeted contrast reduction than a generic white noise track that covers all frequencies equally.
Over time, with this targeted enrichment playing consistently, the brain encounters its own phantom signal alongside an external counterpart. Research on Tinnitus Retraining Therapy suggests this is the mechanism by which habituation develops — the brain gradually reclassifies the internal signal as unimportant because it has learned to process it alongside external sound. Individual results vary significantly.
For the full process of building a daily sound therapy habit around your matched frequency, see the 30-day tinnitus sound therapy routine.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Frequency matching is a self-management tool that helps you choose more targeted masking sounds. It is not a cure, treatment, or medical diagnosis. There is currently no universal cure for tinnitus.
Close enough is sufficient. The goal is to land in a useful pitch range that guides your sound selection — not laboratory-grade precision. Most people find that a match within a few hundred Hz is entirely workable.
Some people notice shifts in perceived pitch, particularly with changes in stress, sleep quality, or caffeine intake. If the pitch clearly changes, re-run the matching steps. Do not re-check obsessively — only when something clearly feels different.
If tinnitus sounds noticeably different in each ear, testing separately is useful. The Premium tier supports independent frequency settings per ear. If your tinnitus feels the same in both ears, a single match is practical.
Published research suggests tinnitus pitches most commonly fall between 1,000 Hz and 8,000 Hz, with many people reporting high-pitched ringing in the 3,000–6,000 Hz range. Individual perception varies widely — some people experience very low humming, others a very high hiss.
For high-pitched tinnitus in the 3,000–8,000 Hz range, white noise, pink noise, steady rain, and forest sounds are frequently reported as comfortable. For lower-pitched tinnitus, brown noise and ocean sounds tend to feel more natural. Personal comfort is ultimately what matters most.
The matching step works best in a quiet moment with focused attention — it takes about two minutes. After that, the masking sounds you select are designed for real-life use during work, calls, and sleep.
Sources
- Tunkel DE, et al. Clinical Practice Guideline: Tinnitus. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery. 2014;151(2 Suppl):S1–S40.
- Baguley D, McFerran D, Hall D. Tinnitus. The Lancet. 2013;382(9904):1600–1607.
- Henry JA, Roberts LE, Caspary DM, Frisina RD, Salvi RJ. Underlying Mechanisms of Tinnitus: Review and Clinical Implications. Journal of the American Academy of Audiology. 2014;25(1):5–22.
- Cima RFF, et al. A multidisciplinary European guideline for tinnitus: diagnostics, assessment, and treatment. HNO. 2019;67(Suppl 1):10–42.
- Jastreboff PJ. Phantom auditory perception (tinnitus): mechanisms of generation and perception. Neuroscience Research. 1990;8(4):221–254.
Tinnitus Relief App
Use your matched frequency in the app — free
The pitch you just found is how the app works. White noise plays at your exact frequency — your brain hears an external version of the ringing and starts to tune it out. Background play keeps it running during calls, meetings, and locked screen.
Free · 7-day Premium trial · No signup
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