How noisy is your room? This free background noise test listens through your microphone for 10, 30 or 60 seconds and measures the room’s background noise level in dB(A). It tells you whether the room is quiet enough for sleeping, recording a podcast, teaching or video calls, shows whether the noise is low rumble, voices or hiss, and flags electrical hum. Nothing is recorded.
Background Noise Test
Stay quiet, press Start and let the test listen to your room. You'll see its background noise level in dB(A) and whether it is quiet enough for sleep, recording or calls.
Microphone off. Sound is analysed in your browser; nothing is recorded or uploaded.
Your result will appear here after the test.
- Background level (L90)
- –
- Average (Leq)
- –
- Loudest moment
- –
- Test time
- 00:00
| Use | Target average | Your room |
|---|---|---|
| Sleeping (bedroom) | ≤ 30 dB(A) | – |
| Recording voice, podcasts, singing | ≤ 35 dB(A) | – |
| Classroom (empty room) | ≤ 35 dB(A) | – |
| Video calls and focused work | ≤ 45 dB(A) | – |
Where the noise is
Microphone and calibration
Readings are estimates from your device microphone. Every microphone adds a little noise of its own, so very quiet rooms (below about 30 dB(A)) can read higher than they really are.
Related Tools
- Sound Decibel Meter
Measure any sound live, with average, maximum and peak dB.
- Microphone Test
Check your mic before a recording or call.
- Frequency Analyzer
See exactly which frequencies make up the noise.
- Decibel Chart
Compare your result with everyday sounds.
- Noise Exposure Calculator
Check how long loud noise is safe each day.
How to Run a Background Noise Test
- Place your phone or computer where the noise matters: at your desk for calls, by the microphone for recording, or by the bed for sleep.
- Switch off anything you would normally switch off, then stay silent. Don’t touch or move the device.
- Choose a test length (30 seconds suits most rooms; use 60 seconds if the noise comes and goes) and press Start test.
- Read the verdict, then check Where the noise is to find the source. Change one thing at a time and test again to see what helped.
What Your Results Mean
| Result | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Background level (L90) | The level the room stays above 90% of the time: its steady noise floor from fans, traffic, fridges and air conditioning. Short sounds don’t affect it. |
| Average (Leq) | The energy average of the whole test, including any passing noises. Room guidelines are usually given as an average like this, so the quiet-enough check uses it. |
| Loudest moment | The highest level during the test. If it is far above the background, something passed by or spoke; test again or find the source. |
All three are A-weighted, dB(A), which matches how people hear everyday noise; dB vs dBA explains why. Because decibels are logarithmic, a room at 45 dB(A) has about ten times the sound energy of one at 35 dB(A).
How Quiet Should a Room Be?
| Use | Target average | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Sleeping | 30 dB(A) or less | WHO guideline for bedrooms at night |
| Recording voice, podcasts, singing | 35 dB(A) or less | Keeps room noise well below your voice; lower is better |
| Classroom (empty) | 35 dB(A) or less | ANSI S12.60 and WHO guidance for learning spaces |
| Video calls and focused work | 45 dB(A) or less | Speech stays clear and tiring noise stays low |
More detail for each space: room noise levels, baby room noise, classroom noise levels, office noise levels and podcast room noise. If the noise comes from next door, see apartment noise complaint levels.
Low Rumble, Voices or Hiss? Find the Source
- Low rumble (20–250 Hz) comes from traffic, washing machines, air conditioning, fans and building services. It travels through walls and windows, so close them, move away from traffic-facing walls and add rugs and soft furnishings.
- Middle (250 Hz–2 kHz) is where voices, TVs and music sit. Close doors and move away from shared walls.
- High hiss (2–20 kHz) usually comes from computer fans, air vents and electronics. Move the microphone away from them or switch them off while you record.
- Electrical hum at 50 Hz or 60 Hz (and its multiples) comes from mains-powered equipment: fridges, lights, chargers, amplifiers or a ground loop in audio cables. The test tells you when it finds it.
Background Noise on Calls and Recordings
For calls, test from your usual seat with your usual microphone. Headset and laptop microphones pick up the room differently, so test each one you use. For recording, the room’s noise floor sets how clean your quiet passages can be: every 6 dB of noise you remove halves its sound pressure in your audio.
In recording software, the same idea appears as a noise floor in dBFS rather than dB SPL; dB vs dBFS explains how the two relate. Noise-suppression features in calling apps hide some background noise from other people but not from your recordings, so a quiet room still matters.
Accuracy and Limitations
Readings come from your device microphone, so they are estimates rather than certified measurements. Every microphone adds a little noise of its own, so very quiet rooms (below about 30 dB(A)) can read higher than they are, and phones may apply processing that browsers cannot switch off. Calibrating once against a real sound level meter improves accuracy; the offset is shared with the sound decibel meter on this device. Read more in online decibel meter accuracy and how to measure decibels.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good background noise level?
For sleep, aim for 30 dB(A) or less. For recording voice or podcasts, 35 dB(A) or less; for video calls and focused work, up to about 45 dB(A) is fine. A typical quiet home is 35–45 dB(A) during the day.
What is a noise floor?
The noise floor is the steady background level that remains when nothing is happening in the room. This test reports it as the background level (L90), the level exceeded 90% of the time.
Why does my silent room read 30–35 dB?
Rooms are rarely silent: fridges, ventilation and distant traffic add up. Your device’s microphone also has its own self-noise, which sets a lower limit on what it can measure.
Does the test record my audio?
No. Sound is analysed in your browser and is never recorded, stored or uploaded.