Noise Levels in 77437, TX | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
48 dBA
Average noise across 77437
Quiet office
1,846
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
15% of 77437 residents
83 dBA
Loudest residential point
Food blender at arm’s length
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across 77437 at 100-meter resolution, combining road, aviation, and rail sources. Green areas measure below 45 dBA. Orange and red exceed the EPA's 55 dBA outdoor threshold linked to long-term health effects. Use the layer toggles to view each source on its own or all together.
What the numbers sound like
- 30 dBAWhisper
- 40 dBASoft rainfall
- 45 dBAQuiet suburban street at night
- 50 dBAQuiet office
- 55 dBAEPA outdoor threshold: light traffic 100 ft away
- 60 dBANormal conversation an arm's length away
- 65 dBABusy restaurant
- 70 dBAHighway traffic 50 ft away
- 80 dBACity bus interior
Population Above the EPA Outdoor Threshold
The EPA's 55 dBA outdoor reference level is a common benchmark for residential noise exposure, especially for activity interference, annoyance, and long-term community noise concerns. About 1,846 77437 residents, or 15.3%, live above that level. By land area, 17.0% of 77437 is above 55 dBA.
83.0% below 55 dBA
17.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in 77437 compares to similar-sized zip codes.
Noise by Part of 77437
Average noise levels for 77437 residents, grouped by direction from the center of 77437. The highest population-weighted average is in southern 77437; the lowest is in northern 77437, where just 6% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Southern 77437
56.1 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northeastern 77437
54.3 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southwestern 77437
52.9 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern 77437
49.3 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
Northern 77437
46.2 dBA · Mostly quiet
Quiet office
To the human ear, noise in southern 77437 sounds about 99% louder than in northern 77437, a 9.9 dBA gap. Every 10 dBA roughly doubles perceived loudness. Within any of these directions, two homes a quarter mile apart can still differ by 10 or more dBA depending on how close they sit to a major highway.
How far back from do you need to be?
produces an estimated 83 dBA at its loudest centerline points. Noise drops logarithmically with distance, with the exact rate depending on what's between you and the road. Tree cover, walls, terrain, and pavement type all matter. At roughly a quarter mile back, traffic fades into the noise level of a quiet suburban street at night.
At source
83 dBA
Food blender at arm’s length
165 ft
69 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
330 ft
61 dBA
Busy restaurant
660 ft
53 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
¼ mile
45 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
½ mile
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 9% of 77437 sits under tree canopy (lighter than most zip codes) and roughly 20% is impervious surface like pavement and rooftops. Both are folded into the per-place decay rate above. Heavier canopy pulls noise down faster with distance; impervious surfaces slow the drop.
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Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of 77437. For most blocks the rail-only contribution is small. Combined road-plus-rail noise rarely exceeds road noise on its own. The exceptions are the handful of blocks within roughly a quarter mile of the right-of-way during pass-through hours.
Use the Rail toggle on the map above to isolate rail's contribution from road and aviation.
How Noise Is Distributed Across 77437
The bar chart below shows the share of 77437 residents in each noise band. About 81% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 7% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How 77437 Compares
77437 sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how 77437's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with 77488, 77414, 77461, and 77474.
Average noise level (dBA)
77437's 47.5 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Texas as a whole averages 50.8 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than 77437 because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 15.3% of 77437 residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's in the middle of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 17.0% of 77437's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Texas average of 22.8% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to 77437
- Distance from highways matters more than the neighborhood name. Two homes in the same zip code can differ by 20 dBA if one sits 100 meters from and the other 500 meters away. The model captures this at 100-meter resolution, so noise exposure changes block by block.
- Tree canopy can help reduce modeled noise exposure. Roughly 9% of 77437 is under tree cover (lighter than most zip codes), and the dominant land cover is low-intensity developed land. Both are measured from federal USDA Forest Service and USGS satellite imagery at 30-meter resolution. Streets with 60% or higher canopy show 3 to 5 dBA lower noise than comparable streets with bare ground or pavement, which is why the per-place decay rate above already accounts for it.
