Skip to main content

Noise Ordinances in Southborough, MA (2026)

5 verified noise ordinances for Southborough, Massachusetts, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.

Verified from official government sources

Quiet Hours

Southborough prohibits yelling, shouting, whistling, singing, playing music or making loud noises that annoy or disturb the reasonable quiet, comfort or repose of identified persons between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. The rule is § 130-4(A), enforced by the Police Department with escalating fines.

Southborough Nighttime Quiet Hours Bylaw

Some Restrictions

Southborough Code § 130-4(A)

The following activities are prohibited if they generate an unreasonable disturbance: A. Yelling, shouting, whistling, singing, playing music or the making of any loud noises so as to annoy or disturb the reasonable quiet, comfort or repose of identified persons is prohibited between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.

Construction Hours

Southborough's noise bylaw allows contracted work noise from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekdays and 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays, and not on Sundays or Holidays. Homeowner work noise is allowed 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekdays. New construction and demolition work has the tightest window.

Southborough Construction and Contractor Noise Hours

Some Restrictions

Southborough Code § 130-3(B), (C)

B. Homeowner work noise standards. Noise associated with Homeowner work is allowed between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. on weekdays, 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, and Holidays. C. Contracted work noise standards. (1) Noise associated with Contracted Work is allowed between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. on weekdays and 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Saturdays. Contracted Work shall not be allowed...

Barking Dogs

Southborough treats a noisy animal as a bylaw violation when its unreasonably loud and disruptive sound lasts more than 20 minutes intermittently, defined as an average of two vocalizations or more per minute. The Police Department enforces Chapter 130, starting with a warning and then fines of $50, $100 and $300 within 180-day windows.

Barking Dog Noise Rules in Southborough

Some Restrictions

Southborough Code §§ 130-4(H), 130-6

The following activities are prohibited if they generate an unreasonable disturbance: ... H. Unreasonably loud and disruptive noise emitted by a domesticated animal for a duration of more than 20 minutes intermittently, defined as an average of two vocalizations or more per minute in that period. A domesticated animal includes any animal that a person owns, controls, or otherwise cares for. ......

Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound

Any Southborough establishment licensed for entertainment amplified by microphone, amplifier or the like is subject to the noise bylaw, and that entertainment should not be distinctly audible beyond the establishment's property boundaries. Section 130-4(F) sets the standard, and the Police Department enforces it.

Southborough Amplified Entertainment Noise Rule

Some Restrictions

Southborough Code § 130-4(F); § 130-2

DISTINCTLY AUDIBLE Any sound that can be understood by a person using his or her unaided hearing faculties. For example, if music is playing, the words or instrumentation is discernable; or if a conversation is occurring, the words and context of a conversation can be understood. ... The following activities are prohibited if they generate an unreasonable disturbance: ... F. Any establishment g...

Vehicle Noise

Southborough's noise bylaw prohibits operating a motor vehicle in the Town in violation of MGL c. 90, § 16, the state provision on harsh, objectionable, or unreasonable noises. The prohibition sits in § 130-4(C) of the Code, and the Police Department enforces it with a fine ladder that starts at a warning.

Southborough Vehicle Noise Bylaw (Chapter 130)

Some Restrictions

Southborough Code § 130-4(C)

The following activities are prohibited if they generate an unreasonable disturbance: ... C. Motor vehicles operating within the Town of Southborough in violation of MGL c. 90, § 16 which addresses harsh, objectionable, or unreasonable noises.