Could magnesium work better than melatonin for sleep?

Melatonin has dominated the sleep-supplement market for decades, with sales of products containing the hormone expected to approach $800 million in 2025, according to market researcher NBJ. But magnesium is attracting growing attention from people who say it gives them deeper, more restorative sleep without morning grogginess.

NBJ reported that sales of magnesium sleep supplements rose about 17% in 2025, compared with an increase of roughly 5% for products containing melatonin. Jennifer Martin, a clinical psychologist who studies sleep disorders at Florida International University, said the shift may partly reflect recent “bad press” surrounding melatonin. Some supplements have contained much higher hormone levels than their labels promised, while alarming headlines have linked melatonin products to heart risks.

There is limited evidence supporting magnesium as a sleep aid, said Sujay Kansagra, a sleep specialist at Duke Health. But whether it works at all, or works better than melatonin, remains disputed.

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bad press

Magnesium is an essential nutrient involved in several bodily functions, including regulation of blood pressure and blood sugar and control of nerve and muscle activity. Martin said researchers have conducted little high-quality work on whether it improves sleep.

In a 2025 trial, researchers assigned 155 healthy adults with sleep problems to take either 250 milligrams of magnesium glycinate 30 to 60 minutes before bed or a placebo. The magnesium group reported “significantly greater” improvements in insomnia symptoms, but the gains were modest. A separate 2021 study followed the sleep and dietary habits of nearly 4,000 people aged 18 to 30 over 20 years. Participants who reported the highest magnesium intake were 36% less likely to report sleeping fewer than seven hours and 30% more likely to report better-quality sleep than those with the lowest intake. Those differences disappeared when researchers looked only at participants with depression.

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significantly greater