Noise Levels in 94513, CA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
52 dBA
Average noise across 94513
Quiet office to normal conversation
17,542
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
30% of 94513 residents
101 dBA
Loudest residential point
Power saw
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across 94513 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 17,542 94513 residents, or 30.0%, live above that level. By land area, 28.1% of 94513 is above 55 dBA.
71.9% below 55 dBA
28.1% above 55 dBA
See how noise in 94513 compares to similar-sized zip codes.
Noise by Part of 94513
Average noise levels for 94513 residents, grouped by direction from the center of 94513. The highest population-weighted average is in northwestern 94513; the lowest is in southwestern 94513, where just 18% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.
Northwestern 94513
57.2 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Western 94513
57.0 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southern 94513
53.1 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northeastern 94513
51.7 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southwestern 94513
51.5 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northwestern 94513 sounds about 48% louder than in southwestern 94513, a 5.7 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 State Rte 4 do you need to be?
State Rte 4 produces an estimated 75 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 soft rainfall.
At source
75 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
60 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
330 ft
52 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
660 ft
43 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 4% of 94513 sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most zip codes) and roughly 50% 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 94513. 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 94513
The bar chart below shows the share of 94513 residents in each noise band. About 74% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 3% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How 94513 Compares
94513 sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how 94513's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with 94509, 94531, 94561, and 94568.
Average noise level (dBA)
94513's 52.5 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. California as a whole averages 54.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than 94513 because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 30.0% of 94513 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, 28.1% of 94513's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a California average of 36.0% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to 94513
- 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 State Rte 4 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 4% of 94513 is under tree cover (much lighter than most zip codes), and the dominant land cover is medium-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.
