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At a Glance
- Does it work? Possibly, a little. Small trials found longer or more efficient sleep with tart cherry juice, but the studies were small and short.
- Melatonin Tart cherries contain only nanograms of melatonin per gram, far less than a melatonin tablet. Other compounds may matter more.
- Dose used in studies 8 oz (240 mL) of juice or 1 oz (30 mL) of concentrate, twice a day, for 1–2 weeks.
- Who it was tested in Older adults with insomnia, healthy young adults and athletes. Not people with diagnosed sleep disorders such as sleep apnea.
- Best capsule for most people Zazzee USDA Organic Tart Cherry – 300 mg of organic 10:1 extract in one capsule.
The Short Answer: Tart cherry may modestly improve sleep, but the evidence comes from a handful of small trials. In healthy adults, 30 mL of concentrate twice a day for 7 days raised melatonin and increased total sleep time and sleep efficiency compared with placebo1. In 8 older adults with insomnia, juice twice a day for 2 weeks added 84 minutes of sleep3.
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A 2023 meta-analysis found better sleep time and efficiency when sleep was measured by devices, but not when people rated their own sleep5. Tart cherry isn’t a sleeping pill, and every trial used juice or concentrate, not capsules.
Ready to compare products? Our guide to the best tart cherry supplements checks 8 capsules and powders for extract dose, Montmorency sourcing and additives.
Every Tart Cherry Sleep Trial at a Glance
| Study | Who took part | What they took | How long | Sleep result | Melatonin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howatson 20121 | 20 healthy adults aged 18–40 | 30 mL concentrate twice a day | 7 days | Total sleep time and sleep efficiency improved vs. placebo | Higher |
| Pigeon 20102 | 15 older adults with insomnia | 8 oz juice blend twice a day | 2 weeks | Less time awake at night; no change in total sleep time vs. placebo | Not measured |
| Losso 20183 | 8 adults over 50 with insomnia | 240 mL juice twice a day | 2 weeks | 84 more minutes of sleep; better sleep efficiency | Not measured; tryptophan breakdown lower |
| 2022 field hockey trial4 | 19 elite female athletes | Tart cherry juice, 5 servings over 48 hours | 48 hours after hard exercise | More time in bed, less time awake, less movement | No change |
All four were small, and three were partly funded by the cherry industry or used a commercial juice. None tested capsules.
What Reviews Say
Two recent reviews pooled or summarized these trials:
- 2023 meta-analysis (8 studies): Tart cherry improved total sleep time and sleep efficiency measured by wrist devices or sleep labs. It didn’t improve sleep time or efficiency that people reported themselves5. The authors rated the studies as low to moderate quality, and the sleep time result varied a lot between studies5.
- 2025 systematic review (7 studies): Three studies found better sleep, such as longer sleep or falling asleep faster, and three found higher melatonin6. The authors called the evidence limited and inconsistent and asked for larger, better-designed trials6.
The overall picture is a modest, measurable effect in small groups of people, not a proven sleep treatment.
How Much Melatonin Is in Tart Cherries?
Very little. Fresh Montmorency tart cherries contain about 13.5 nanograms of melatonin per gram, and Balaton tart cherries about 2 nanograms per gram7.
To put that in perspective, a 1 mg melatonin tablet contains 1,000,000 nanograms. Getting that much from fresh Montmorency cherries would take roughly 74 kg (about 160 lb) of fruit. Concentrates and extracts are more concentrated than whole fruit, but labels rarely state their melatonin content.
That doesn’t mean the melatonin is irrelevant. In the Howatson trial, melatonin in urine rose after a week of concentrate1. But it suggests that other compounds are also involved.
It May Not Be Just Melatonin
Tart cherries are also rich in polyphenols, including anthocyanins and procyanidins. In the 2018 insomnia trial, tart cherry juice lowered the ratio of kynurenine to tryptophan in the blood3. In plain terms, less tryptophan was broken down, leaving more available to make serotonin and melatonin. The researchers linked this to procyanidin B-2, a compound in the juice3.
In the field hockey trial, sleep improved even though melatonin levels didn’t change4, which also points to effects beyond melatonin.
Our Top Tart Cherry Pick
Zazzee USDA Organic Tart Cherry
300 mg per capsule1 capsule a dayUSDA Organic
If you’d rather not drink sugary juice every evening, this is the simplest option. Each capsule gives 300 mg of organic 10:1 extract with no sweeteners, and it ranked #1 (BFN Score 9.6) in our guide to the best tart cherry supplements. Keep in mind that the sleep trials used juice or concentrate, and no capsule has been tested for sleep.
Dose and Timing for Sleep
The three longer sleep trials all used two servings a day:
- Concentrate: 30 mL, within 30 minutes of waking and 30 minutes before the evening meal1.
- Juice: 8 oz (240 mL) in the morning and 1–2 hours before bed23.
Benefits were measured after 1–2 weeks of daily use123, so give it at least that long. Our guide to the best time to take tart cherry covers timing in detail, and how much tart cherry extract to take daily covers doses by form.
If you prefer capsules, know that none has been tested for sleep. See tart cherry juice vs. capsules for the trade-offs.
Tart Cherry vs Melatonin Supplements
The two aren’t interchangeable:
- Melatonin supplements deliver a known, much larger dose of melatonin directly.
- Tart cherry contains a tiny amount of melatonin plus polyphenols that may affect tryptophan and inflammation37.
There’s no study comparing them head to head, and none testing them together. If you’re considering both, or already take melatonin, ask your doctor or pharmacist first.
Who Should Be Careful
- People with diabetes: tart cherry juice has about 25 g of natural sugar per cup8, and sleep studies used two servings a day.
- People with kidney disease: juice has about 400 mg of potassium per cup8.
- People with ongoing insomnia: trouble sleeping that lasts weeks deserves a medical check. One insomnia trial found that 3 of 11 people screened actually had sleep apnea3.
- People taking sedatives or sleep medicines: check with your doctor before adding a supplement.
Our guide to tart cherry extract side effects covers this in more detail.
Final Verdict
Tart cherry may modestly improve sleep. Small trials found longer or more efficient sleep after 1–2 weeks of juice or concentrate twice a day, and a meta-analysis confirmed better sleep time and efficiency on device measures, though not in how people rated their own sleep. The melatonin in tart cherries is tiny, so other compounds, such as those affecting tryptophan, may be part of the effect.
If you want to try it, use juice or concentrate twice a day for at least 2 weeks. If you’d rather take a capsule, Zazzee USDA Organic Tart Cherry gives 300 mg of organic extract in one capsule, though no capsule has been tested for sleep. Compare all 8 picks in the best tart cherry supplements.
Important: This guide is for general information and isn’t medical advice. If you have trouble sleeping most nights for several weeks, talk to your doctor, since conditions such as sleep apnea need proper diagnosis and treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does tart cherry juice really contain melatonin?
Yes, but very little. Fresh Montmorency tart cherries contain about 13.5 nanograms per gram7, while a 1 mg melatonin tablet contains 1,000,000 nanograms.
Does tart cherry help you sleep?
How long does tart cherry take to work for sleep?
Should I take tart cherry in the morning or at night?
Can I take tart cherry with melatonin?
No study has tested them together. Ask your doctor or pharmacist before combining them, especially if you take other sleep medicines.
Do tart cherry capsules work for sleep?
Sources & History
References
- Effect of Tart Cherry Juice (Prunus cerasus) on Melatonin Levels and Enhanced Sleep Quality — European Journal of Nutrition, 2012
- Effects of a Tart Cherry Juice Beverage on the Sleep of Older Adults with Insomnia: A Pilot Study — Journal of Medicinal Food, 2010
- Pilot Study of the Tart Cherry Juice for the Treatment of Insomnia and Investigation of Mechanisms — American Journal of Therapeutics, 2018
- Effects of Short-Term Intake of Montmorency Tart Cherry Juice on Sleep Quality after Intermittent Exercise in Elite Female Field Hockey Players: A Randomized Controlled Trial — International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
- Too Sour to be True? Tart Cherries (Prunus cerasus) and Sleep: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis — Current Sleep Medicine Reports, 2023
- The Effect of Tart Cherry on Sleep Quality and Sleep Disorders: A Systematic Review — Food Science & Nutrition, 2025
- Detection and Quantification of the Antioxidant Melatonin in Montmorency and Balaton Tart Cherries — Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2001
- Juice, Tart Cherry, from Concentrate, Shelf-Stable (FDC ID 2727589) — USDA FoodData Central
Update history
- Rewrote with a table of tart cherry sleep trials, the 2023 meta-analysis and 2025 systematic review, measured melatonin content of tart cherries and the tryptophan finding from the 2018 insomnia trial; corrected the timing used in studies and the description of the 2012 study registration (healthy adults, not older adults); removed unsourced claims about melatonin in juice vs. extracts and blood clotting. September 3, 2026 – Previous version.
