Noise Ordinances in Rochester, NY (2026)
8 verified noise ordinances for Rochester, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Quiet Hours
Rochester's excessive-noise law makes it a violation for sound to carry beyond your property line between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m., or to carry 50 feet beyond the line during the day, with the owner and person in control of the premises or vehicle both liable, under Municipal Code § 75-4.
Rochester Nighttime Noise Curfew: 10 PM-8 AM
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code § 75-4A
No person shall make, continue, cause, or suffer or permit to be made or continued, and the owner and the person in control of a motor vehicle and the person in control of a premises shall not suffer nor permit to be made or continued, any excessive noise. It shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section if noise emanating from any source, including, but not limited to, voices or...
Construction Hours
Rochester bars noisy construction between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., every day of the week, under City Code § 75-10A. Contractors can seek a variance from the Commissioner of Neighborhood and Business Development for hardship or public-interest reasons, and true emergency repairs may proceed without one for up to 72 hours while a variance application is filed.
Rochester NY Construction Noise Curfew: 10 PM to 7 AM
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code § 75-10A
A. No person shall engage in or permit any person to be engaged in construction activities which create excessive noise at the property limits of the construction site between the hours of 10:00 p.m. of one day and 7:00 a.m. of the following day on any day of the week, except as is permitted in Subsections B and C hereof.
Barking Dogs
Rochester bans howling or barking that runs continually and carries beyond the property line for more than 5 minutes overnight (10 p.m. to 8 a.m.) or more than 15 minutes during the day, or shorter bursts repeated on 5+ occasions in 10 days if two separate properties complain.
Rochester Barking Dog Noise Limits: 5/15-Minute Rule
Some RestrictionsCode of the City of Rochester § 31-5(A)(1)
No person shall keep or harbor a dog which howls or barks in violation of this section. It shall constitute a violation of this section if the howling or barking occurs continually and is audible beyond the property line of the premises on which the dog is located: (a) For more than five minutes between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.; (b) For more than 15 minutes between the hours of 8:0...
Leaf Blower Rules
Rochester exempts lawn mowers, hedge trimmers, leaf blowers, chain saws, tillers, mulchers and chippers from its excessive-noise curfew only between 8:00 a.m. and sunset; run one outside that window and it falls back under the general prohibition on noise audible beyond the property line, per Municipal Code § 75-4B(5).
Rochester Leaf Blower Noise Exemption Hours
Light RestrictionsRochester City Code § 75-4B(5)
The provisions of this section shall not apply to noise emanating from the following: ... (5) Lawn mowers, hedge trimmers, leaf blowers, chain saws, tillers, mulchers, chippers and other devices used for the care and maintenance of lawns, yards and vegetation, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and sunset.
Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound
Rochester's noise code treats amplified sound as a violation once it crosses fixed distance-and-time thresholds rather than a flat decibel cap. Under City Code § 75-12, a radio, stereo or musical instrument audible beyond your property line between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., or 50 feet away between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., is presumptive evidence of a violation, with separate exemptions for permitted festivals and parades.
Rochester NY Amplified Sound Distance and Time Limits
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code § 75-12A
A. No person shall use or operate or suffer or permit to be used or operated...any radio, television, stereo, compact disc player, musical instrument or other machine or device for the producing, reproducing or amplification of sound with louder volume than is necessary for convenient hearing for the person or persons who are voluntary listeners thereto. It shall be prima facie evidence of a vi...
Aircraft Noise
Rochester runs any height variance or special permit inside its O-A Overlay Airport District through a Monroe County review that expressly weighs changes in aircraft noise contours, and the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Commission cannot approve the application unless the applicant proves it will not raise noise levels in the city.
Rochester Airport Overlay District Aircraft Noise Review
Significant RestrictionsRochester City Code § 120-102(A)(3), (C)(3)
The application shall be referred to the Monroe County Department of Planning and Development for review and approval by said Department, the Monroe County Department of Public Works, the Monroe County Law Department, the manager of airport operations and the airport operator, if other than Monroe County, pursuant to procedures established in § 120-188. The review shall include the impact of th...
Decibel Limits
Rochester's only numeric decibel standard in the Zoning Code applies to public utility facilities, not to noise generally. Section 120-144H caps utility noise at 66 decibels by day and 45 decibels at night, measured at the lot line of any adjoining residential or planned development property. The City's general noise law elsewhere uses distance and time-of-day audibility tests instead of a dB meter.
Rochester NY Utility Noise Limit: 66/45 Decibels
Some RestrictionsRochester City Code § 120-144H
The level of noise emanating from such use shall not exceed 66 decibels (dB) by day and 45 dB by night measured at any lot line which is also the lot line of a property in a residential or planned development zoning district, or a permitted or specially permitted residential use in any other zoning district, if the residential use was established prior to the establishment of the utility.
Vehicle Noise
Rochester City Code § 75-9 bars operating any motor vehicle that emits more than 80 dB(A), measured 25 feet from the vehicle's path on public streets or at the property line on private property. Offending vehicles get towed.
Rochester Motor Vehicle Noise Limit: 80 dB(A) Cap
Some RestrictionsCode of the City of Rochester, NY § 75-9 (Motor vehicles)
No person shall operate or cause to be operated any motor vehicle in such a manner that the sound level emitted therefrom exceeds eighty (80) dB(A) either: (1) At a distance of twenty-five (25) feet or more from the path of the vehicle when operated on a public street or sidewalk or in a public park or other public place; or (2) At or beyond the property line when operated on private property. ...
Looking for Monroe County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Rochester city rules.
Noise Ordinances in Monroe County →