Noise Levels in Mack South, Cincinnati, OH | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map

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 292 Mack South residents, or 9.5%, live above that level. By land area, 6.2% of Mack South is above 55 dBA.

See how noise in Mack South compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.

Noise by Part of Mack South

Average noise levels for Mack South residents, grouped by direction from the center of Mack South. The highest population-weighted average is in northeastern Mack South; the lowest is in western Mack South, where just 8% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in the loudest section.

To the human ear, noise in northeastern Mack South sounds about 21% louder than in western Mack South, a 2.7 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.

Airport Noise

Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International (CVG) sits south of Mack South. The U.S. Department of Transportation models aviation noise around this airport from federal traffic data, 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 45 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Mack South, particularly to the north, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.

How Noise Is Distributed Across Mack South

The bar chart below shows the share of Mack South residents in each noise band. About 100% 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 Mack South Compares

Mack South sits the lowest among the peer group. Below: how Mack South's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Sayler Park, Monfort Heights South, Corryville, and monfort-heights-east-cincinnati-oh.

Average noise level (dBA)

Mack South's 49.3 dBA pop-weighted average is the lowest among the peer group. Ohio as a whole averages 51.1 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Mack South because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.

Share of residents above 55 dBA

About 9.5% of Mack South residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's fewer than any of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 6.2% of Mack South's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Ohio average of 26.4% and a national average of 28.1%.

What This Means if You're Moving to Mack South

• 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 Van Blaricum Rd 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 33% of Mack South is under tree cover (much heavier than most neighborhoods), 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.
• Airport noise is directional. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.

Sources & Methodology