Behavioral, social and environmental factors, menopause, primary sleep disorders such as insomnia or obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS), and somatic and mental comorbidities increase with age and affect sleep in middle-aged and aged women. Objective sleep quality measured with polysomnography, is better preserved in aging women than in men. Women have better sleep efficiency, more slow wave sleep and less light sleep compared to men. However, subjective sleep quality is worse among women than in men and deteriorates even before menopause. Sleep complaints are encountered in majority of menopausal women. Discrepancy between objective and subjective sleep quality in women challenges our diagnostic methods. Insomnia is the most prevalent sleep disorder with female predominance. OSAS is less common in premenopausal women than in men of the same age. After menopause women lose the protection of female sex hormones and prevalence rate of OSAS approaches that of men. Of note, presentation of OSAS differs between genders resulting in underdiagnosis/misdiagnosis and undertreatment in women. Snoring, witnessed nocturnal apnoeas or unintentional falling asleep are less frequently reported by female than male OSAS patients, whereas women often report lack of energy, insomnia symptoms and moodiness. Women have less total upper airway collapse during sleep but frequently partial upper airway obstruction resulting in lower apnoea-hypopnoea indices (the number of apneas and hypopnoeas per hour of sleep) interpreted as mild sleep apnoea. However, the consequences of female OSAS are not milder than in males in terms of risk for cardiovascular and other comorbidities linked with OSAS. Prevalence of restless legs syndrome increases with age and is higher among women than in men.