King County, WA Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound (2026)
Amplified music rules in King County, WA, also called sound permit, PA system, or live music ordinances, set decibel limits, time-of-day restrictions, and when permits are required.
Key Facts
- Audibility test
- Plainly audible 50 feet from source
- Applies to
- Unincorporated King County only
- First-offense fine
- Up to $125 civil infraction
- Enforced by
- Sheriff and Local Services director
- Nighttime cushion
- 10 dB(A) stricter 10pm-7am weekdays
Summary
Loud, repetitive band sessions and amplified outdoor music in unincorporated King County are unlawful "public disturbance noise" once the sound reaches a residential or rural property, with no fixed decibel test required to cite it.
Loud and raucous sound that emanates frequently, repetitively or continuously from any building, structure or property, including watercraft, located within a rural or residential district or on an adjoining body of water, such as sounds originating from a band session or social gathering;
6. Frequent, repetitive or continuous sound, including but not limited to impulsive or amplified sound such as emanates from an audio device, where the sound is plainly audible or can be felt at fifty feet or more from the source of sound, or three hundred feet or more if the source of sound is from a watercraft, when the sound is received in a residential or rural district. For the purposes of this subsection A.6, "plainly audible" means any sound that can be detected by unaided hearing faculties of normal acuity, including, but not limited to, being able to detect the rhythmic bass component of music coming from a sound amplifier regardless of whether the title, specific words or artist performing the song can be identified; and
7. Any sound out of doors that interferes with normal conversation at a distance of fifty feet or more from the source of the sound when the sound is received in a residential or rural district.
Full Breakdown
King County Code Section 12.86.410 makes it unlawful to cause sound that unreasonably disturbs the peace, comfort or repose of others, and specifically lists loud and raucous sound from a band session or social gathering that repeats into a rural or residential district, plus frequent or continuous amplified sound plainly audible 50 feet from an audio device (300 feet if from watercraft). The sheriff and Department of Local Services enforce it; no decibel meter is required to write a citation. It applies only in unincorporated King County, not inside Seattle, Bellevue, Kent, Renton, Auburn, Redmond or Kirkland, each of which enforces its own municipal noise code.
Violations & Fines
First violation in 12 months: civil infraction up to $125. Second: up to $250. Each later violation within 12 months doubles the prior fine, per K.C.C. 12.86.700; a third can trigger a prosecutor referral for an injunction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this rule cover a backyard concert in Seattle?
How loud does outdoor music have to be before it's illegal?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in King County
Compare King County to another location·View the Washington noise ordinances overview
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