Imagine this – you’re lying down in bed, blanket tucked in just right, and drifting into a peaceful nap. But instead of just relaxing or recharging your energy, you’re actually earning money while you sleep. Yes, you read that right. There are ways Australians can get paid to nap. Whether it’s through sleep studies, mattress testing, or representing sleep-related brands, there are genuine opportunities to transform your snoozing into cold, hard cash.
If you’re curious to know how you can snag these unique jobs and start earning by simply catching Z’s, you’re in the right place. This article will take you through different ways you can get paid to nap, the steps to find such opportunities, and even tips to improve your chances of scoring a “nap job”.
Why Would Someone Pay You to Sleep?
First, it’s worth understanding why someone would hand you money to sleep. It might seem strange at first, but there are plenty of reasons why certain industries are itching to pay people for their naps. Businesses in the health, wellness, and mattress sectors use paid nappers or sleep participants for research and marketing purposes. For example, companies may want to know how certain mattresses improve sleep quality or how diet or stress affects sleep patterns.
On top of that, sleep is a hot topic. More companies are focusing on sleep science, which has opened doors to niche opportunities where you can literally snooze for compensation.
How Australians Can Get Paid to Nap
Now that we know why people are cashing in on their naps, it’s time to explore the ways Australians can jump on this bandwagon. Here are some of the most popular opportunities for paid sleep jobs:
1. Participate in Sleep Studies
Academic institutions, hospitals, and research firms regularly carry out sleep studies to gather data on sleep patterns, disorders, and overall health. Participants are paid to take naps or sleep overnight while researchers monitor their sleep through specialized equipment, such as EEG machines or heart rate monitors.
For Australians, some universities and sleep centers, like the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research or the Sleep Health Foundation, often recruit participants for sleep studies. These studies typically focus on areas like insomnia, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, or the impact of new medications on sleep.
Steps to Get Paid for Sleep Studies in Australia:
- Find Listed Opportunities: Watch out for recruitment ads from research centers on their websites or social media channels. Check platforms like ClinicalTrials.gov or local university health departments for open calls.
- Sign Up and Be Honest: Most sleep studies require basic screening to determine if you fit the study’s criteria. Be clear about your sleep habits and medical history to boost your chances of being accepted.
- Prepare for Monitoring: You might need to spend multiple nights in a clinical setting or use wearable tech while sleeping at home. These setups are quite comfortable and non-invasive.
Pay for these studies varies, but you could earn anywhere from $50 to $500 (and sometimes more) depending on the study’s scope.
2. Mattress Tester Jobs
Ever wondered who evaluates whether a mattress is truly as comfortable as marketing campaigns claim them to be? The answer is—you guessed it—paid testers. Brands often need real users to test the comfort and durability of their products before launching them on the market.
Paid mattress testing jobs involve spending time, usually a few weeks, sleeping on a new mattress model. You’ll be required to share feedback on factors like firmness, temperature regulation, and sleep quality. Some roles even involve testing pillows or bedding alongside the mattress.
Finding Mattress Tester Jobs in Australia:
- Keep an eye on major mattress companies like Koala, Ecosa, or Sleeping Duck, as they may run recruitment programs for real-world testers.
- Scroll through employment sites like Seek, Indeed, or Remote.co, which occasionally list product tester roles.
Compensation can vary depending on the company, but you could earn free bedding products (worth hundreds of dollars) along with cash.
3. Professional Nappers
Yes, professional nappers are a real thing. Some jobs involve being paid to nap in various environments to test comfort and gauge human reactions. For example, “nap review” companies or brands focused on stress relief may pay people to nap as part of marketing efforts or content creation.
Some wellness organizations also use professional nappers to test out therapies like sensory deprivation capsules or meditation sessions meant to aid sleep. It’s more of an experimental gig but can be highly rewarding if you find the right fit.
4. Become a Sleep-In Influencer
Social media has opened up countless unconventional ways to earn money, and now even naps can go viral. If you have a knack for standing out on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube, consider becoming a “sleepfluencer.”
Sleepfluencers test and review everything sleep-related—from luxury mattresses to sleepwear, sound machines, or sleep-tracking apps. They partner with brands who want authentic reviews from trusted voices, and they often get paid handsomely for their involvement.
Building a following can take time, but consistency and niche content can help you carve out space in the sleep industry.
Tips for Landing Nap Jobs
Here’s how to improve your odds of securing paid sleep roles in Australia:
- Stay Alert for Opportunities Online: Monitor job boards, participate in Facebook groups related to freelance gigs, or set up job alerts for terms like “get paid to nap” or “sleep study participant.”
- Be Willing to Experiment: Many of these opportunities are part-time or one-off gigs, so keep your schedule flexible.
- Polish Your Online Presence: For jobs like mattress testing or sleepfluencing, brands will often look at your personal social media or online reviews to gauge how relatable you are to their target audience.
- Network Within Industry Spaces: Some paid sleep roles are advertised exclusively through relevant groups or communities. Signing up for wellness events, product forums, or sleep-related surveys can help you get on a company’s radar.
Real-Life Examples of Nap Jobs
Here are some fascinating real-life stories that show how Australians (or people worldwide) are earning money while sleeping:
- A Melbourne resident earned $1,500 participating in a sleep study designed to assess how caffeine consumption affects REM sleep cycles.
- Sydney-based mattress testers reported getting perks like free bedding as well as payment for providing feedback on luxury mattresses released by top brands.
- Internationally, one man earned thousands after being hired by a meditation app to nap for eight weeks while recording his experience.
While some of these gigs are ongoing opportunities, others involve short-term commitments with the possibility of renewal.
Wrapping It Up
Getting paid to nap might sound like a dream come true, but it’s an achievable reality if you know where to look. From sleep studies in Australia to testing groundbreaking products, there’s a growing number of ways to turn your downtime into income.
To make the most of these opportunities, stay proactive by networking with the right communities, monitoring job postings, and showcasing your skills—yes, even nap-related gigs require you to demonstrate your genuine interest and reliability. Whether you join a paid sleep study, become a mattress tester, or even end up influencing a sleep brand, there’s no doubt that you’ll be enjoying both financial and rest benefits.
Catch those Z’s—and your paycheck too!
