Headphones on, playlist going, textbook open. For millions of students, that’s what studying looks like.
Some swear music helps them focus. Others can’t concentrate with anything playing.
So does music help you study? For reading and understanding text, the research gives a fairly clear answer.
Music usually hurts a little, and songs with lyrics hurt most.
- A meta-analysis of 65 studies found background music, noise and speech all slightly reduced how well people understood what they read.
- Songs with lyrics were about as distracting as someone talking nearby.
- Instrumental music did not appear to harm reading comprehension, according to the authors.
Does music help you study?
For reading-heavy studying, probably not. At best, the right kind of music does little harm.
The key is words. Your brain processes the language in song lyrics, and that competes with the language on the page.
Carnegie Mellon University’s study-skills advice reflects this. It suggests that if you work best with background noise, you “listen to music without lyrics”.
That doesn’t mean all music is bad for every kind of work. But for reading, memorising and understanding text, silence or instrumental music is the safer bet.
What the main review found
The study
The biggest look at the question is a 2018 meta-analysis in Perspectives on Psychological Science. Researchers at Bournemouth University in the UK pooled 65 studies of background sound during reading.
They compared reading with background noise, speech or music against reading in silence.
Every kind of sound had a small cost
The authors found that “background noise, speech, and music all have a small but reliably detrimental effect on reading performance”.
| Background sound | Effect on reading comprehension |
|---|---|
| Speech | Small drop (g = −0.26) |
| Music | Small drop (g = −0.19) |
| Noise | Small drop (g = −0.17) |
| Any sound, overall | Small drop (g = −0.21) |
The numbers are effect sizes. Anything around 0.2 is considered small, so the effect is real but modest.
Lyrics are the problem
The most useful finding was about lyrics. There was a 95% probability that music with lyrics was more distracting than music without lyrics.
Songs with lyrics were about as distracting as intelligible speech. In other words, studying with a pop song on is a bit like studying while someone talks nearby.
Background music slightly lowered reading comprehension across 65 studies. Songs with lyrics were as distracting as speech, while instrumental music seemed to do little harm.
Speed held up
Interestingly, reading speed barely changed across the 13 studies that measured it. The cost showed up in understanding, not in how fast people read.
Adults and children alike
The disruption to reading comprehension “did not generally differ between adults and children”. So the advice applies to students of all ages.
The newest studies
Lyrics and habits
A 2024 experiment in Frontiers in Psychology tested 90 Chinese college students. They read while listening to Mandarin pop, English pop or nothing.
Reading comprehension was worse with music with lyrics than with no music.
But people who didn’t usually listen to music while reading were hit harder than habitual listeners.
The researchers didn’t measure the students’ English skills or working memory, which could also shape how distracting music feels.
Your own playlist
A 2023 study in Scientific Reports let 100 students in Hong Kong read with their own chosen background music, or in silence.
There was no clear difference in how well they understood the passages. But the music group took longer to read.
Students who often used background music while studying seemed to cope with it more easily.
Music without words
A small 2025 study in Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications tested 34 young adults on attention and word tasks. Unfamiliar instrumental music improved some measures of attention control and word fluency.
But a high-energy piece made the attention task feel more effortful. And these weren’t study tasks, so it’s a hint rather than proof.
Why the result needs caution
Mostly reading tests
The main review looked at reading, not every kind of studying. Maths problems, flashcards or creative work weren’t the focus.
Many experiments used short reading tasks in a lab, not hours of real revision.
Observational pooling
The authors note that their comparisons between types of sound are “only observational in nature”. They call for direct experiments to confirm them.
Some of their more detailed analyses rested on a small number of studies.
People differ
Habitual listeners seem less affected, and personal choice of music may matter. So the average effect won’t fit everyone.
What earlier research found
The “Mozart effect”
You may have heard that listening to Mozart makes you smarter. A 2001 study in Psychological Science found the effect disappeared once mood and arousal were taken into account.
The authors called it “an artifact of arousal and mood”. In other words, music can lift your mood and energy, which may briefly help, but there’s nothing special about Mozart.
An earlier overview
A 2011 meta-analysis in Psychology of Music found that background music, overall, had no clear effect across many kinds of tasks. But it disturbed reading and had small harmful effects on memory.
It also found music lifted mood and helped performance in sports. The tempo of the music tended to set the pace of what people were doing.
Music and attention in ADHD
A 2024 study of 76 boys, 34 with ADHD, tested attention with and without music. Both groups made fewer errors with music, and music didn’t interfere with attention.
It was an attention test, not a study session, and only included boys.
The full meta-analysis
You can read the 2018 Perspectives on Psychological Science review in full. It’s open access.
How it fits together
Music can help mood and energy, and it may suit some people’s attention. But when the task involves language, lyrics compete for the same brain resources.
How much should you trust this?
Promising. A large meta-analysis and newer experiments agree on the role of lyrics. But the effects are small and mostly measured in short reading tasks.
What makes it convincing
- The main review pooled 65 studies.
- The finding on lyrics is consistent across studies and with newer experiments.
- It fits a clear explanation: lyrics compete with the language you’re reading.
What makes me cautious
- Effects are small, so music won’t wreck your grades.
- Most studies used short reading tasks, not real revision sessions.
- Habitual listeners and self-chosen music may change the picture.
- Few studies looked at maths or other non-reading tasks.
| The evidence shows | The evidence does not show |
|---|---|
| Background music slightly lowers reading comprehension | That music ruins studying |
| Lyrics are as distracting as speech | That all music is distracting |
| Instrumental music seems to do little harm to reading | That instrumental music improves learning |
| Habitual listeners are less affected | That everyone should study in silence |
What this means for you
- Studying text? Skip the lyrics. Choose instrumental music or silence for reading and memorising.
- If music helps your mood, keep it instrumental. The review’s authors suggest music without lyrics to avoid the disruption.
- Notice how long tasks take. In one study, music slowed reading down even when understanding held up.
- Be most careful with reading. That’s where the evidence of harm is clearest; other tasks are less studied.
- Remove other distractions too. Carnegie Mellon’s advice starts with clearing your study space of distractions.
The Carnegie Mellon guide to your study environment has practical tips on setting up a space to focus.
In this short World Science Festival video, a neuroscientist explains how music affects the brain:
What we still don’t know
- Does music affect maths or problem-solving? Most studies focused on reading.
- What about long study sessions? Lab tasks are short.
- Does tempo or volume matter? These haven’t been tested as well as lyrics.
- Can you train yourself to tune music out? Habitual listeners seem less affected, but it’s unclear why.
- Who benefits most? Results for people with ADHD are early and mixed.
My take: lose the lyrics, not necessarily the music
What I like about this research is how practical it is. The difference between lyrics and instrumental music is clear and easy to act on.
I’m less convinced by claims that any music “boosts” learning. The best evidence shows small costs, not gains.
If silence feels unbearable, I’d switch to instrumental music for reading-heavy work. Save your favourite songs for the commute.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-02
Covers: Whether background music helps or hurts studying, the effect of lyrics, newer experiments, and practical tips
Evidence: Promising — a large meta-analysis and newer studies agree, but effects are small and mostly from reading tasks
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