Hypnotic (also called soporific) drugs are a class of psychoactives whose primary function is to induce sleep and to be used in the treatment of insomnia and in surgical anesthesia. When used in anesthesia to produce and maintain unconsciousness, "sleep" is metaphorical and there are no regular sleep stages or cyclical natural states when used in anesthesia; patients rarely recover from anesthesia feeling refreshed and with renewed energy. Because drugs in this class generally produce dose-dependent effects, ranging from anxiolysis to production of unconsciousness, they are often referred to collectively as sedative-hypnotic drugs. Hypnotic drugs are regularly prescribed for insomnia and other sleep disorders, with over 95% of insomnia patients being prescribed hypnotics in some countries. However, since many hypnotic drugs are habit-forming, a physician may instead recommend alternative sleeping patterns, sleep hygiene, and exercise before prescribing medication for sleep, due to a large number of factors known to disturb the human sleep pattern. Hypnotic medication when prescribed should be used for the shortest period of time possible.

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