Possums usually sleep in hidden, sheltered dens that keep them dark, dry, and safe from predators during the day.

Main places possums sleep

  • Hollow trees and tree hollows, including cavities in trunks and large branches.
  • Underground or ground-level shelters like abandoned burrows, rock crevices, brush piles, and under fallen logs.
  • Man‑made structures such as attics, roof cavities, barns, sheds, garages, and wall voids, especially in suburbs and cities.
  • Under decks, porches, and in crawl spaces or basements where it’s dark, quiet, and rarely disturbed.

Quick Scoop: how and why

  • Possums are mostly nocturnal, so they sleep during the day and move around at night to feed.
  • They pick sleeping spots that are:
    • Dark and well covered
    • Protected from predators and bad weather
    • Close to easy food and water (like fruit trees, compost, or garbage bins).

Urban vs wild possums

  • In wild or rural areas, you’re more likely to find them sleeping in tree hollows, caves, rock crevices, or old animal dens.
  • In towns and cities, they often switch to sleeping in attics, roofs, garages, and under porches because those places stay warm, dry, and relatively safe.

Simple example

If you see a possum in your yard at night, there’s a good chance it has been sleeping all day in a nearby tree hollow, under your deck, or up in your roof space, coming out only after dark to look for food.

TL;DR: Possums sleep during the day in dens such as hollow trees, burrows, rock crevices, brush piles, and, in urban areas, attics, roofs, sheds, and spaces under decks or porches—anywhere dark, quiet, and safe near food.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.