Noise Levels in North Berkeley, Berkeley, CA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
54 dBA
Average noise across North Berkeley
Quiet office to normal conversation
5,577
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
43% of North Berkeley residents
68 dBA
Loudest residential point
Highway traffic 50 ft away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across North Berkeley 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 5,577 North Berkeley residents, or 43.4%, live above that level. By land area, 37.4% of North Berkeley is above 55 dBA.
62.6% below 55 dBA
37.4% above 55 dBA
See how noise in North Berkeley compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of North Berkeley
Average noise levels for North Berkeley residents, grouped by direction from the center of North Berkeley. The highest population-weighted average is in southwestern North Berkeley; the lowest is in eastern North Berkeley, where just 30% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Southwestern North Berkeley
61.5 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Western North Berkeley
56.8 dBA · Moderate-loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Northwestern North Berkeley
54.5 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northern North Berkeley
52.9 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
Eastern North Berkeley
52.5 dBA · Moderate
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in southwestern North Berkeley sounds about 87% louder than in eastern North Berkeley, a 9.0 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 do you need to be?
produces an estimated 68 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
68 dBA
Highway traffic 50 ft away
165 ft
55 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
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 16% of North Berkeley sits under tree canopy (about average for neighborhoods) and roughly 58% 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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Airport Noise
San Francisco Bay Oakland International (OAK) sits south of North Berkeley. 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 North Berkeley, 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 North Berkeley
The bar chart below shows the share of North Berkeley residents in each noise band. About 62% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 6% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How North Berkeley Compares
North Berkeley sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how North Berkeley's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Berkeley Hills, SouthWest Berkeley, Gold Coast, and South Berkeley.
Average noise level (dBA)
North Berkeley's 53.7 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 North Berkeley because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 43.4% of North Berkeley 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, 37.4% of North Berkeley'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 North Berkeley
- 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 16% of North Berkeley is under tree cover (about average for 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. San Francisco Bay Oakland International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the south. Neighborhoods to the north of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
