Does valerian beat placebo for sleep?

No — the evidence doesn't establish that valerian beats placebo for sleep. The 2025 German AWMF insomnia guideline reviewed the available studies and found at most a small advantage over placebo in low-quality meta-analyses, and on that basis advises against recommending valerian for insomnia 2. The EMA registers it as a traditional herbal medicine for sleep disorders, but that registration rests on long-standing use, not clinical trials 1 — so it's a mark of heritage, not proven efficacy.

The proposed mechanism (valerenic acid acting on GABA-A receptors) is plausible but hasn't translated into a demonstrated clinical effect 1.

If you're looking for a sleep supplement with a clearer evidence base, melatonin has an EU-authorised claim for reducing time to fall asleep, and L-theanine has low-certainty trial data showing small improvements in subjective sleep quality.