Melatonin and sleep
What 3 graded rows on melatonin agree on for sleep, and where they differ. Counted side by side, never averaged.
Consensus finder Rows from the Melatonin page, reviewed Oct 21, 2026 How it decides
What the rows agree on
Each block and row is one graded row from the Melatonin page, with its PubMed record.
Your question
Melatonin and sleep
3 rows · 3,488 peopleThey agree: all 3 rows found an improvement.
- BGrade B× 3
- Rows
- 3
- Trials
- 3
- At least: a review without a trial count
- People
- 3,488
- Pooled reviews may count some twice
What the rows share
From the rowsThe best-graded row, grade B, is a meta-analysis of 1,689 people (2024) and found an improvement.
The rows run from 116 to 1,689 people, published from 2013 to 2024: 2 pooled reviews and 1 single study.
The rows
3 improved- BGrade BSleep onset and total sleep by dose and timing · Improved
Meta-analysis · n 1,689 · 2024 · Patients with insomnia and healthy volunteers in 26 double-blind randomized controlled trials
Effect rose with dose, peaking at 4 mg/day · Varied across trials
Melatonin gradually reduced sleep onset latency and increased total sleep time, peaking at 4 mg/day. Effects were larger in people with insomnia and when taken earlier before bedtime (about 3 hours) than the common 2 mg 30 minutes before.
- BGrade BTime to fall asleep, total sleep time and sleep quality · Improved
Meta-analysis · n 1,683 · 2013 · People with primary sleep disorders in 19 studies comparing melatonin with placebo
Varied; higher doses gave larger effects on sleep onset and total sleep · Varied; longer trials gave larger effects
Melatonin shortened sleep onset by about 7 minutes, increased total sleep by about 8 minutes and modestly improved sleep quality (SMD 0.22) versus placebo. Effects did not fade with continued use.
- BGrade BEarlier sleep onset with a delayed body clock · Improved
RCT · n 116 · 2018 · Patients (mean age 29) with delayed sleep-wake phase disorder and a delayed melatonin rhythm, all following a fixed bedtime schedule
0.5 mg 1 hour before the desired bedtime, at least 5 nights a week · 4 weeks
Sleep began 34 minutes earlier with melatonin than placebo; sleep disturbance, insomnia severity and functional disability scores fell, and more patients improved (52.8% vs 24.0%). Side-effect rates were similar between groups.