Noise Levels in Dumbo, Brooklyn, NY | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
65 dBA
Average noise across Dumbo
Busy restaurant
9,644
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
100% of Dumbo residents
83 dBA
Loudest residential point
Food blender at arm’s length
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Dumbo 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 9,644 Dumbo residents, or 99.9%, live above that level. By land area, 97.3% of Dumbo is above 55 dBA.
2.7% below 55 dBA
97.3% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Dumbo compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Dumbo
Average noise levels for Dumbo residents, grouped by direction from the center of Dumbo. The highest population-weighted average is in western Dumbo; the lowest is in central Dumbo, where just 95% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, roughly the same as the share in the loudest section.
Western Dumbo
71.3 dBA · Loud
City bus interior
Southeastern Dumbo
67.7 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
Central Dumbo
67.3 dBA · Loud
Highway traffic 50 ft away
To the human ear, noise in western Dumbo sounds about 32% louder than in central Dumbo, a 4.0 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 Bklyn/queens Exp do you need to be?
Bklyn/queens Exp produces an estimated 78 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
78 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
63 dBA
Busy restaurant
330 ft
55 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
660 ft
47 dBA
Quiet office
¼ mile
38 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 7% of Dumbo sits under tree canopy (lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 77% 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.
-->
Airport Noise
Laguardia (LGA) sits northeast of Dumbo. 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 75 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Dumbo, particularly to the southwest, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Dumbo
The bar chart below shows the share of Dumbo residents in each noise band. About 0% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 93% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Dumbo Compares
Dumbo sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how Dumbo's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Tribeca, Soho, Broadway Junction, and Battery Park.
Average noise level (dBA)
Dumbo's 65.4 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. New York as a whole averages 55.4 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Dumbo because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 99.9% of Dumbo 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, 97.3% of Dumbo's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a New York average of 30.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Dumbo
- 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 Bklyn/queens Exp 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 7% of Dumbo is under tree cover (lighter than most neighborhoods), and the dominant land cover is high-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. Laguardia's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the northeast. Neighborhoods to the southwest of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
