How to build a white noise app for iOS
What a white noise app needs
- A library of looping sounds: rain, ocean, fan, brown noise, and so on
- A mixer to play and balance several sounds at once
- Seamless looping with no audible gap at the loop point
- Background playback that survives the screen turning off
- Lock Screen and Control Center playback controls
- A sleep timer that fades out and stops after a set time
- Optional saved mixes and a Home Screen widget to start a favorite
The whole product rests on two things working flawlessly: gapless looping and uninterrupted background audio. If either stutters, people stop trusting the app at night.
How to build it with AppFlight
Describe it in plain English, for example: "A white noise app with a library of looping ambient sounds. Let me play several at once and adjust each one's volume to make a mix. Keep playing when the screen is off, show Lock Screen controls, and add a sleep timer that fades out after a set time. Let me save mixes and start a favorite from a widget." AppFlight plans the screens, generates native SwiftUI with a background audio session, and launches it in a live simulator so you can play and blend sounds immediately. You add your audio as bundled or downloadable files, then iterate in plain language, for example adding a fade-in or a bedtime reminder. AppFlight can produce the icon and screenshots, but the audio itself is yours to record or license.
Monetization for a white noise app
The usual model is a free taste with a paid upgrade. Free users get a few sounds and a single-sound player; the subscription unlocks premium sound packs, mixing several sounds at once, longer and recurring timers, and saved mixes. Add a RevenueCat paywall to manage subscriptions, and use Superwall to test paywall designs without shipping an update. Sleep apps see strong annual conversion because people use them nightly, so lead with a longer free trial and an annual plan.
Shipping it to the App Store
When the app is ready, AppFlight signs the build, uploads to TestFlight so you can test background playback on your own device overnight, then submits to the App Store with metadata and screenshots from the simulator. If Apple rejects the build, AppFlight reads the reason, works on the fix, and resubmits. Confirm you hold the rights to every sound you ship, and declare the audio background mode honestly. Apple reviews every app, so a submission is not the same as an approval, but the whole pipeline runs without you opening Xcode.
FAQ
Where do the sounds come from?
You provide them. A white noise app needs clean, loopable audio for rain, wind, fans, and similar, which you record or license. AppFlight builds the playback, mixing, and timer around your audio files; it does not generate the sounds.
Does it keep playing when the screen is off?
Yes. AppFlight builds native Swift, so the app can use the system audio session for background playback and show Lock Screen and Control Center controls. That background mode is essential for a sleep app.
How do white noise apps make money?
A few free sounds with a subscription for premium sound packs, mixing more than one sound at a time, and longer timers. A RevenueCat or Superwall paywall is the common setup.