The free things worth trying first.
These cost nothing. The evidence behind them is modest, but so is the risk.
Measure before you change anything
Record a week of nights with a phone app, or ask your partner to keep notes. Without a starting point, it’s hard to tell whether anything helped.
Sleep on your side
Snoring is often worse on the back. Germany’s snoring guideline lists positional therapy among the options that can be offered. A 2024 review of nine studies (235 people) found mixed results, mostly from weak study designs. A firm pillow behind your back is the simplest version to try.
Less alcohol in the evening
Alcohol relaxes the throat muscles. Guideline advice to avoid it before bed rests on expert agreement rather than good trials, but it is free to test.
Weight, if it applies
For people carrying extra weight, the German guideline recommends weight loss. It also notes the data behind that advice are limited.
A blocked nose
If your nose is often blocked, that’s worth treating for its own sake. Talk to a pharmacist or doctor. Nasal strips may help some people whose nostrils narrow when they breathe in.
Mouth and throat exercises
A 2015 trial of 39 people found three months of daily exercises reduced snoring measured in a sleep lab. Germany’s 2019 guideline judged the evidence too thin to recommend them. We show both, because they disagree.
Breathing pauses, gasping or heavy daytime sleepiness need an assessment, whatever you try at home.
Original sources & their limits
- S3-Leitlinie: Diagnostik und Therapie des Schnarchens des Erwachsenen (AWMF, 2019) ↗
German national guideline on snoring in adults. Read with AI-assisted translation. Its current validity was not confirmed; it may be awaiting an update.
- Positional therapy for snoring: systematic review (2024) ↗
Read. Nine studies, 235 people. Mostly weak study designs; results for snoring were mixed.
- Mouth and throat exercises for snoring: randomised trial (Chest, 2015) ↗
Trial record read. 39 people with primary snoring or mild-to-moderate sleep apnoea, three months. Exercises reduced snoring measured in a sleep lab. The comparison group used nasal strips plus breathing exercises and showed no significant change.
Sources checked 26 Oct 2026.