Noise pollution map of Los Angeles County

Updated 25 October 2026

Modeled estimates for general information only — not measurements, not a guarantee, and not for legal, medical or real-estate decisions.

A noise pollution map, also called a sound pollution map, shows how loud places are, usually as colors that stand for decibel levels. Quiet LA is a free one for Los Angeles County: modeled road and train noise for day, evening, night and 24-hour (CNEL) levels, plus an optional aircraft estimate, with an address search. It is a model, not a measurement.

Open the noise pollution map of Los Angeles

What is a noise pollution map?

People search for a “noise pollution map” or a “sound pollution map” to mean the same thing: a map of how much outdoor sound there is, place by place. Such maps are made in two ways. A measured map collects readings from sound meters or phones. A modeled map calculates the sound from the things that make it, such as traffic counts, rail lines and airport flight paths, and checks the result against measurements. A county-wide map almost always has to be modeled, because no one can put a meter on every street.

Quiet LA is a modeled map. Its colors and numbers are estimates of outdoor sound, not readings. Other maps cover parts of Los Angeles in other ways; see Los Angeles noise maps compared.

How is the Quiet LA noise map made?

The model is NoiseModelling 6 with the CNOSSOS-EU method. For every street it takes how many vehicles pass, how fast they go and how many are trucks, then calculates how the sound spreads over the ground, around buildings and past freeway sound walls. Trains on the Ventura and Valley main lines are added, with horns at crossings outside quiet zones. Aircraft are an estimate derived from the official noise contours of nine airports.

Levels are taken outdoors, 4 m up and 2 m out from a building wall, or 1.5 m above open ground. The model was compared with 564 public measurements around the county; about 160 had a 24-hour value and a usable map position, and on average the model is within about 0.5 dB of them. At a single spot the estimate is typically about 6 dB off, higher or lower. Figures from the map data release of 14 October 2026, 14:09 UTC. The full method is on How it’s made and Sources & methods.

What do the layers on the map mean?

The map adds up sources, and each one has its own switch or guide. Roads and trains are always in the colors; aircraft and sirens are estimates you can switch on and off.

Helicopters, individual overflights, construction, events, nightlife and neighbors are not modeled. See helicopter noise for who to contact.

What are examples of noise pollution in Los Angeles?

These are the everyday sources of outdoor sound in Los Angeles County, with what the map does with each. The shares are shares of the modeled building-façade points in the county (14 October 2026 release), not of all the sound anyone hears.

• Roads and freeways. In the model, road traffic is the largest contribution to the 24-hour level at 96.1% of the points. See freeway and road noise, the traffic noise map and the 405, 101, I-10, 110, I-5 and 710 guides.
• Trains and train horns. Rail is the largest modeled contribution at 0.6% of the points, with horns at crossings outside quiet zones. See train and rail noise and train horn noise.
• Aircraft. Aircraft is the largest modeled contribution at 3.3% of the points, as an estimate derived from official airport contours in the 24 h view only. See airport noise in Los Angeles County and LAX and aircraft noise.
• Sirens. An optional estimate of Los Angeles Fire Department fire and ambulance responses, City of Los Angeles only. See siren noise.
• Construction (not modeled). The map does not include it. For construction hours and who to call, see the Los Angeles noise ordinance and construction hours and who to call about noise.
• Nightlife (not modeled). The map does not include it, nor events or neighbors. For who handles a complaint, see who to call about noise.

What do Day, Evening, Night and 24 h mean on a noise map?

• Day is 7 am to 7 pm, Evening is 7 to 10 pm and Night is 10 pm to 7 am. Each is an average sound level (LAeq) in decibels for that period.
• 24 h is CNEL, the Community Noise Equivalent Level: an average over the whole day with evening counted 5 dB higher and night 10 dB higher than day. Aircraft are part of this view only.

Switch between the four with the period buttons to see how the same street changes through the day. For the metric in detail, see what CNEL means; for the decibel scale, see what 45, 55 and 65 dB mean.

How do I look up the noise at an address?

1. Open the map and type a street address in the search box.
2. Choose the matching suggestion; the map selects the building.
3. Read the modeled levels in the place panel, then switch the period to compare Day, Evening, Night and 24 h.

The steps in more detail are in the address lookup guide. The address search runs in your browser against the County’s public GIS service; Quiet LA does not receive the address.

What can a noise pollution map not tell you?

• What you will hear on a given night. The numbers are averages over a period, not the level of one sound.
• Indoor levels. Windows, floors and insulation change what you hear inside.
• Whether any rule is met. The map does not judge a sound against an ordinance; see the Los Angeles noise ordinance.
• A computed level for land with no freeway or major road within 3 km. That land shows the lowest color; that is an assumption, not a computed value. Other blank areas are not modeled yet, and blank never means quiet.
• A professional noise survey. For measurements at one site, see noise surveys and noise assessments.

A map like this is context, not proof. See Limits for what it can and cannot be used for.