North Charleston, SC Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Commercial, Sunday to Thursday daytime
- 75 dB from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
- Commercial, Sunday to Thursday night
- 65 dB from 7:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. next day
- Commercial, Friday and Saturday
- 80 dB until 9:00 p.m., then 65 dB until 2:00 a.m.
- Commercial, unlisted days and times
- 60 dB under paragraph (5)
- Residential amplified sound
- 60 dB in listed daytime hours, 55 dB at any other time
- Outdoor seating and bar areas
- No music after 11:00 p.m.
- Repeat offenders
- Three citations in 12 months suspends the business license for 12 months
Summary
North Charleston caps amplified sound from restaurants, bars, nightclubs, micro-breweries and event venues at 60 to 80 decibels depending on the day and hour, measured at the complaining neighbor's residential property line. Homes face a 60 dB daytime and 55 dB nighttime limit on sound amplification equipment. Three citations in twelve months suspend a business license for a year.
(c) Amplified sound generated by commercial establishments. Except in accordance with a permit issued by the City of North Charleston, it shall be unlawful for any commercial establishment — including but not limited to a micro-brewery, restaurant, bar, nightclub, lounge, or event venue — to tolerate, permit, operate or allow on premise the operation of sound amplification equipment or live music other than during the times listed below or that creates sound registering in excess of: (1) 75 dB Sunday through Thursday between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.; (2) 65 dB Sunday through Thursday between 7:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. the following day; (3) 80 dB Friday or Saturday between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.; or (4) 65 dB Friday or Saturday between 9:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. the following day. (5) 60 dB for all days/times not specifically listed above. No music is permitted in outdoor seating and or outdoor bar areas after 11:00 p.m. Sound levels shall be measured at the property line of the complainant's residentially zoned or occupied property.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 75).
Full Breakdown
Section 13-126 of the North Charleston Code of Ordinances sets numeric sound limits in subsections (b) and (c). Subsection (c) governs commercial establishments. It names micro-breweries, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, lounges and event venues, and states that the list is not exclusive. Unless the business operates under a permit issued by the City of North Charleston, it cannot run sound amplification equipment or live music outside the listed time windows or above the listed levels. Sunday through Thursday the ceiling is 75 dB from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and 65 dB from 7:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. the following day. On Friday and Saturday it rises to 80 dB from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and drops to 65 dB from 9:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. the following day. Every day or time not specifically listed carries a 60 dB limit under paragraph (5). Outdoor seating and outdoor bar areas get one more rule: no music at all after 11:00 p.m.
Measurement decides most disputes. Levels are read at the property line of the complainant's residentially zoned or occupied property, and where several units share one parcel the reading can be taken from any point inside the complainant's unit. Subsection (f) requires a sound level meter used according to the manufacturer's instructions, and no one other than the operators can stand within ten feet of the meter during the sample period. Readings are taken while the suspect noise is actually playing, and interfering with a measurement, by sound or otherwise, is itself unlawful.
Subsection (b) protects homes. Sound amplification equipment cannot register 60 dB or more between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, or between 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. on Friday or Saturday, and the limit falls to 55 dB at any other time. Subsection (e) excludes radios, televisions, keyboards and similar devices designed and operated for personal use, or used entirely within a building and not designed to convey sound beyond the immediate audience. Subsection (a) separately bars unreasonably loud and disturbing noise at any time of day, and it names gas powered lawn mowers and leaf blowers used within 300 feet of a residence between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. The section was last amended by Ord. No. 2025-012 on March 20, 2025.
Violations & Fines
Subsection (d) attaches the business consequence. A commercial establishment that receives three or more citations for violations within a twelve-month period is deemed a business nuisance, which automatically suspends its business license and blocks renewal for twelve months after the suspension. Section 13-1 makes anyone who aids, encourages or advises another person to break the code guilty of the same offense as the principal. Section 13-126 itself prints no fine amount.
Frequently Asked Questions
How loud can a North Charleston bar be on a Saturday night?
Where does the city measure the sound?
What happens to a business that keeps getting citations?
Do the decibel limits apply to a stereo at my home?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in North Charleston
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Decibel Limits in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Charleston County handle decibel limits.