About
Underlay.fm is focus sound, not music
Underlay.fm is a focus audio web app. Before each session it asks what you are working on and how you are feeling, then mixes layered ambient sound for that combination. It is not music: no melodies, rhythm, or lyrics.
Key facts
- What it is
- A web app that plays layered ambient sound for focused work.
- Category
- Focus audio, alongside Brain.fm, Endel and Noisli.
- Not to be confused with
- Flooring underlay or network underlays. The name is always written Underlay.fm.
- Made for
- Coding, studying, writing, reading and other deep work, including people with ADHD who find music distracting.
- Platforms
- Any modern browser on desktop or mobile. Installable as an app on iOS and Android, with offline playback.
- Price
- Free plan, plus Pro at $7.99 a month, $47.99 a year or $79.99 once.
- Launched
- 2026
- Contact
- support@underlay.fm
How it works
Two questions, then sound built for the answer
Pick a work mode
Deep Focus, Light Work, Reading, Creative Thinking or Journaling. The mode sets the baseline: brighter and more alert for deep focus, slower and more open for journaling.
Say how you feel
Scattered, Anxious, Steady, Tired or Wired. The mood changes the audio itself: anxious draws a warmer, darker palette, tired a brighter one.
The engine mixes it live
Pre-produced ambient stems are layered and modulated in your browser, so the sound keeps shifting instead of looping a fixed track. Volume, warmth, depth and individual layers stay adjustable mid-session.
What it isn't
Deliberately narrow
Not music
No melody, chord progressions, rhythm or lyrics, so there is nothing for your attention to follow or hum along to.
Not for sleep
The sound is tuned to keep you alert and working. Sleep audio needs a different design.
Not a medical tool
Underlay.fm makes no clinical claims, including about ADHD.
Pricing
Free every day, Pro when you want more
The free plan includes one session a day, up to 45 minutes, in every work mode. Your first session needs no account or card and includes everything in Pro.
Pro costs $7.99 a month, $47.99 a year (about $4 a month) or $79.99 once. It adds unlimited sessions up to 8 hours, binaural beats, Pomodoro cycles and mood-tagged session history. See pricing.
How it compares
Where Underlay.fm sits
- Brain.fm plays AI-generated functional music, which still has musical structure.
- Endel adapts soundscapes passively to time of day, weather and biometrics. Underlay.fm asks how you feel instead of inferring it.
- Noisli is a manual mixer that starts from silence. Underlay.fm starts from a mix built for your mode and mood.
- Lo-fi playlists are music chosen to sound studious. Underlay.fm has no music in it at all.
Also on YouTube and Product Hunt.