Noise Levels in Midtown, Milwaukee, WI | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
60 dBA
Average noise across Midtown
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
4,426
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
88% of Midtown residents
70 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Midtown 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 4,426 Midtown residents, or 88.5%, live above that level. By land area, 91.0% of Midtown is above 55 dBA.
9.0% below 55 dBA
91.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Midtown compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Midtown
Average noise levels for Midtown residents, grouped by direction from the center of Midtown. The highest population-weighted average is in northwestern Midtown; the lowest is in southeastern Midtown, where just 74% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, three-quarters of the share in the loudest section.
Northwestern Midtown
62.6 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Northern Midtown
62.5 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Northeastern Midtown
60.4 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southern Midtown
60.3 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southeastern Midtown
57.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
To the human ear, noise in northwestern Midtown sounds about 42% louder than in southeastern Midtown, a 5.1 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 70 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
70 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
56 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
330 ft
48 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
40 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 10% of Midtown sits under tree canopy (lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 64% 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
General Mitchell International (MKE) sits south of Midtown. 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 65 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of Midtown, 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 Midtown
The bar chart below shows the share of Midtown residents in each noise band. About 3% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 36% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Midtown Compares
Midtown sits the highest among the peer group. Below: how Midtown's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Sherman Park, Juneau Town, Saint Joseph, and Washington Heights.
Average noise level (dBA)
Midtown's 59.5 dBA pop-weighted average is the highest among the peer group. Wisconsin as a whole averages 53.0 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Midtown because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 88.5% of Midtown 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, 91.0% of Midtown's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Wisconsin average of 29.6% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Midtown
- 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 10% of Midtown is under tree cover (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. General Mitchell International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
