Noise Levels in Downtown Tempe, Tempe, AZ | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
55 dBA
Average noise across Downtown Tempe
Quiet office to normal conversation
3,885
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
46% of Downtown Tempe residents
99 dBA
Loudest residential point
Power saw
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Downtown Tempe 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 3,885 Downtown Tempe residents, or 45.9%, live above that level. By land area, 67.7% of Downtown Tempe is above 55 dBA.
32.3% below 55 dBA
67.7% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Downtown Tempe compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Downtown Tempe
Average noise levels for Downtown Tempe residents, grouped by direction from the center of Downtown Tempe. The highest population-weighted average is in northern Downtown Tempe; the lowest is in southeastern Downtown Tempe, where just 23% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, a third of the share in the loudest section.
Northern Downtown Tempe
77.2 dBA · Loud
City bus interior
Central Downtown Tempe
71.6 dBA · Loud
City bus interior
Western Downtown Tempe
59.1 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southern Downtown Tempe
54.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Southeastern Downtown Tempe
54.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northern Downtown Tempe sounds about 382% louder than in southeastern Downtown Tempe, a 22.7 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 do you need to be?
produces an estimated 99 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 normal conversation an arm’s length away.
At source
99 dBA
Power saw
165 ft
85 dBA
Food blender at arm’s length
330 ft
76 dBA
City bus interior
660 ft
68 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
¼ mile
60 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
½ mile
52 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 0% of Downtown Tempe sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 78% 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 Downtown Tempe. 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.
Airport Noise
Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX) sits west of Downtown Tempe. The U.S. Department of Transportation measures aviation noise around this airport directly, and the model uses those federal measurements rather than synthetic predictions.
Blocks under the approach and departure paths carry combined road-plus-aviation noise, with some exceeding 55 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Downtown Tempe, particularly to the east, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Downtown Tempe
The bar chart below shows the share of Downtown Tempe residents in each noise band. About 64% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 0% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Downtown Tempe Compares
Downtown Tempe sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Downtown Tempe's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Peterson, Bronze Boot, Cartwright, and West Phoenix.
Average noise level (dBA)
Downtown Tempe's 54.7 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Arizona as a whole averages 53.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Downtown Tempe because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 45.9% of Downtown Tempe residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's more than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 67.7% of Downtown Tempe's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Arizona average of 28.3% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Downtown Tempe
- 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 0% of Downtown Tempe is under tree cover (much lighter than most neighborhoods), 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.
- Airport noise is directional. Phoenix Sky Harbor International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the west. Neighborhoods to the east of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
