If you want a good night’s sleep, you’ll probably want to stay away from Florida’s best-known coastal resort.
Miami has been considered the noisiest city in the country, according to an analysis of 24-hour average noise levels in 50 major U.S. cities.
Visitors can expect to hear sounds reaching 52 decibels (dB), equivalent to the hum of an industrial refrigerator, when trying to fall asleep.
Unsurprisingly, The City That Never Sleeps also made the top ten list, although Boston was considered more disturbing.
Chicago and Louisville in Kentucky were also guilty of sleep-killing noise.
The graph above shows the ten cities with the highest noise pollution at night.
Experts linked noise to traffic congestion in cities and also suggested that noise from construction sites could disrupt sleep.
For the report, produced by wellness company Pure CBD Now, researchers pulled data from the national ArcGIS database on noise pollution by city over a 24-hour period.
Noise pollution is measured by decibel meters placed at strategic points in cities, such as near traffic jams, which record dB levels throughout the night.
Forty-two cities included in the analysis had more nighttime noise than the World Health Organization’s recommended limit of 40 dB, equivalent to the sound of light rain.
Only eight cities had noise pollution levels below the WHO maximum.
These were: Raleigh, Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, Tucson, Jacksonville, Oklahoma City, Bakersfield and Virginia Beach.
Overall, all cities studied had an average noise level of 42 dB at night, or two dB above the level recommended by the WHO.
In the field, previous research has shown that noise levels range between 20 and 30 dB over a 24-hour period, equivalent to the sound of rustling leaves.
Experts warn that nighttime noises can cause people to wake up more and sleep worse
The CDC says everyone should sleep an average of seven to nine hours a night, although studies show that one in three Americans doesn’t get it.
Experts said Miami was probably the noisiest city because it suffers from significant traffic congestion. There were also above-average levels of construction work at the time of the study, which could also boost its ranking position.
New York City, despite being known as the “city that never sleeps,” came in third.
Experts say this may be due to the size of the city, which has many more quiet suburban places.
In Miami, on the other hand, the noise is much more concentrated.
At the other end of the scale, Virginia Beach was considered the quietest city.
Experts say this may be because residential buildings are more spread out and the city has more parks.
Anthony Bautista, CEO of Pure CBD Now, said the noise at night was disturbing people’s sleep.
“Urban areas tend to have higher noise pollution due to traffic, nightlife and other urban activities, which can disrupt sleep.”
“Rural areas or neighborhoods with lower population density can offer quieter environments that promote better sleep.”
| Range | City Status | Average noise level (dB) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 eleven 12 13 14 fifteen sixteen 17 18 19 twenty twenty-one 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 3. 4 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 — WHO Maximum — 43 44 454647484950 | Miami Florida Boston, Massachusetts New York, New York Chicago, Illinois Louisville, Kentucky Denver, Colorado San francisco California Minneapolis, Minnesota Long Beach, California Oakland, California Seattle, Washington Portland, Oregon Washington D.C. Arlington, Texas Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Fresno, California Los Angeles California Sacramento, California Memphis, Tennessee Houston Texas Dallas, Texas San Jose, California Charlotte, North Carolina Columbus, Ohio Milwaukee, Wisconsin Detroit, Michigan San Antonio, Texas Atlanta Georgia Indianapolis, Indiana Mesa, Arizona Baltimore, Maryland Wichita, Kansas Oklahoma San Diego, California Albuquerque, New Mexico Fort Worth, Texas Tampa, Florida Phoenix, Arizona Austin, Texas Kansas City, Missouri Omaha, Nebraska El Paso, Texas — WHO maximum noise level 40 dB — Raleigh, North Carolina Colorado Springs, Colorado Las Vegas, NevadaTucson, ArizonaJacksonville, FloridaOklahoma City, OklahomaBakersfield, CaliforniaVirginia Beach, Virginia | 52.31 49.28 48.93 48.18 47.95 46.86 46.58 46.05 45.81 45.59 44.98 44.75 44.66 44.66 44.3 44.05 43.96 43.69 43.36 42.97 42.89 42.62 42.6 42.54 42.53 42.43 42.36 42.19 41.94 41.87 41.82 41.6 41.37 41.18 41.02 40.85 40.84 40.67 40.65 40.61 40.11 40.07 —WHO maximum — 39.99 39.76 39.6239.5538.9638.6937.6936.7 |
