Lower Merion, PA Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound (2026)
Amplified music rules in Lower Merion, PA, also called sound permit, PA system, or live music ordinances, set decibel limits, time-of-day restrictions, and when permits are required.
Key Facts
- Residential daytime limit
- 65 dBA continuous, 75 dBA impulsive
- Residential nighttime limit
- 50 dBA continuous, 60 dBA impulsive
- Event/concert curfew
- 10 p.m. Sun-Thu, 11 p.m. Fri-Sat
- Fine per offense
- $100 to $1,000 (Sec. 105-7.B)
- Reinspection fee
- $75 after 2nd call in 60 days
- Enforcing agency
- Building and Planning Department
- Voice exemption
- Unamplified voice only (Sec. 105-6.A(8))
Summary
Lower Merion Township caps sound reaching a residential property at 65 dBA continuous (75 dBA impulsive) by day and 50 dBA (60 dBA impulsive) at night under Code Chapter 105, with higher nonresidential caps. Amplified sound and equipment get no exemption, only the unamplified human voice does, so live music and loudspeakers must stay within these limits and daily curfew hours.
§ 105-3. Maximum permissible sound pressure levels. ... A. No person or equipment shall create or cause, or permit the creation of, sound having an equivalent continuous sound pressure level received by a residential property that exceeds five decibels above background level or the limits set forth in the chart below. ... ... § 105-6. Exemptions. A. The following activities are exempt from the provisions of this chapter, subject to compliance with any restrictions listed below: ... (5) Concerts, block parties, graduations, wedding receptions, religious ceremonies, sporting or recreational activities, carnivals, festivals, or other performances or similar activities (public or private) shall be exempt, provided that: ... (a) Such activities ... do not produce sound at the property line in excess of the sound levels set forth in § 105-3; and (b) Such exemption shall not apply from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. the following day, Sunday through Thursday, or from 11:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the following day on Friday and Saturday and federal holidays.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 105, Noise and Exterior Lighting, makes it unlawful under Section 105-2 to produce noise exceeding the limits fixed in Section 105-3: sound reaching a residential property cannot exceed 65 dBA continuous or 75 dBA impulsive from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., or 50 dBA continuous/60 dBA impulsive from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.; nonresidential receiving property is capped at 70/75 dBA daytime and 55/65 dBA nighttime. Measurements are taken on the receiving property within 10 feet of the property line nearest the source, at least 5 feet from any sound-reflecting structure and 3 feet above ground, per Section 105-4.
Section 105-6.A(8) exempts only the unamplified human voice, leaving any amplified voice, speaker, PA system or sound-enhancement device fully subject to the Section 105-3 chart. A separate exemption in Section 105-6.A(5) covers concerts, block parties, wedding receptions, carnivals and similar performances only if they stay within the Section 105-3 sound levels at the property line and end by 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday or 11 p.m. Friday, Saturday and federal holidays; outside those hours the exemption does not apply at all, regardless of volume. The Building and Planning Department's Director enforces the chapter and can grant limited-duration exceptions to other listed exemptions, appealable under Township Code Chapter 5.
Violations & Fines
Failing to comply with Chapter 105 carries a fine of $100 to $1,000 per offense under Section 105-7.B; once the Director or a summons has put a person on notice, each additional day the violation continues is a separate offense with its own fine. If the Building and Planning Department is called to the same property two or more times within any sixty-day period and confirms a violation, Section 105-7.A adds a $75 reinspection fee for each inspection after the first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I play amplified music at an outdoor event in Lower Merion Township?
Is talking or singing outside exempt from the noise ordinance?
What happens if my amplified music violates the noise ordinance?
Where does the Township measure sound levels for a complaint?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lower Merion
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