Noise Levels in Oakland, Chicago, IL | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
56 dBA
Average noise across Oakland
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
3,410
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
61% of Oakland residents
85 dBA
Loudest residential point
Food blender at arm’s length
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Oakland 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 3,410 Oakland residents, or 61.3%, live above that level. By land area, 57.0% of Oakland is above 55 dBA.
43.0% below 55 dBA
57.0% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Oakland compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of Oakland
Average noise levels for Oakland residents, grouped by direction from the center of Oakland. The highest population-weighted average is in northern Oakland; the lowest is in western Oakland, where just 25% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about half the share in the loudest section.
Northern Oakland
72.5 dBA · Loud
City bus interior
Southeastern Oakland
60.7 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
Southern Oakland
54.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Northwestern Oakland
53.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
Western Oakland
53.6 dBA · Moderate-loud
Quiet office to normal conversation
To the human ear, noise in northern Oakland sounds about 271% louder than in western Oakland, a 18.9 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 Lake Shore Dr do you need to be?
Lake Shore Dr 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
55 dBA
Quiet office to normal conversation
330 ft
47 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
39 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 2% of Oakland sits under tree canopy (much lighter than most neighborhoods) and roughly 73% 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 Oakland. 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
Chicago Midway International (MDW) sits west of Oakland. 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 Oakland, 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 Oakland
The bar chart below shows the share of Oakland residents in each noise band. About 40% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 15% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Oakland Compares
Oakland sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Oakland's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Avalon Highlands, Pilsen, Bronzeville, and Ducktown.
Average noise level (dBA)
Oakland's 56.1 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Illinois as a whole averages 52.6 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Oakland because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 61.3% of Oakland 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, 57.0% of Oakland's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Illinois average of 29.2% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Oakland
- 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 Lake Shore Dr 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 2% of Oakland 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. Chicago Midway International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the west. Neighborhoods to the east of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
