Noise Ordinances in Iowa (2026)

Iowa City enforces its noise ordinance and a well-known disorderly house rule aimed at loud student rentals near…

Ankeny sets a general 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. noise curfew under Code §§ 44.04 and 44.05, banning any 'noise disturbance,' a…

Cedar Rapids bans noisy lawn mowers, chain saws, and solid-waste hauling equipment between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. if the…

In the City of Council Bluffs, Night runs 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. and residential sound limits drop from 55 to 45 dBA…

Davenport's nighttime hours run 10 PM to 7 AM. Residential property-line limits are 55 dBA daytime and 45 dBA nighttime…

Des Moines residential zones face a stricter nighttime noise limit, 60 dBA and 50 dBC from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., under the…

Iowa City bars noise disturbances at all hours, not just at night. City code 6-4-2 makes it unlawful to cause plainly…

Unincorporated Polk County has no countywide decibel-based quiet-hours ordinance. Noise is handled as a nuisance and…

Sioux City's noise ordinance treats sound from musical instruments, engine repairs, model vehicles, and…

Construction noise in Ankeny is barred overnight under Code § 44.05(4): tools or equipment used for erecting…

In the City of Council Bluffs, construction, drilling and demolition tools cannot disturb residential neighbors between…

Construction tools are allowed daytime hours (7 AM to 10 PM) on weekdays and Saturdays. Nighttime, Sunday, and holiday…

Des Moines bans construction, drilling, and demolition noise between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. citywide, with narrow variances…

Dubuque restricts loud construction noise to 7:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. Monday through Friday and 9:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. on…

Construction equipment cannot run in Iowa City before 7:00 a.m. or after 10:00 p.m. without a permit from the city…

Construction noise from tools or equipment counts as a prohibited disturbance in Sioux City between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00…

In the City of Waterloo, Iowa, running construction, drilling or demolition tools that create noise across a…

In the City of West Des Moines, construction and demolition noise that would otherwise breach section 4-7-7's decibel…

In the City of Ames, Iowa, Sec. 3.115(2) of the Ames Municipal Code declares it a nuisance to let a dog, cat or other…

In the City of Ankeny, Iowa, City Code section 55.08 makes it unlawful for a dog owner to let the animal cause serious…

Cedar Rapids bans animal noise, including barking, that unreasonably disturbs the peace for more than 15 minutes in an…

In the City of Council Bluffs, CBMC 4.50.060 makes it unlawful to own or harbor an animal or bird that frequently or…

A dog that frequently or continuously barks so as to disturb neighbors across a residential property line violates…

Des Moines bans owning or keeping any animal or bird whose frequent, sustained sounds create a noise disturbance across…

Dubuque code defines excessive barking heard from the public right-of-way as a dog nuisance, and 7-6B-5 makes it…

Iowa City declares a noisy animal a public nuisance under City Code section 8-4-5(B): no owner may let an animal in…

In unincorporated Linn County, an owner or keeper who lets an animal disturb others with frequent or habitual howling…

Sioux City, Iowa bars owners from letting an animal bark or howl continuously for ten minutes, or intermittently for a…

In unincorporated Story County, a dog's prolonged or incessant howling, whining, or barking counts as a "nuisance"…

Waterloo bans letting a dog, cat or other animal cause serious annoyance through frequent, habitual barking, howling…

In the City of West Des Moines, a dog, cat or other animal that causes annoyance or disturbance to any person through…

In the City of Ankeny, Iowa, running motor-powered, muffler-equipped lawn and garden equipment between 9:00 p.m. and…

Des Moines exempts electric power tools and motor-powered, muffler-equipped lawn and garden equipment, leaf blowers…

Dubuque exempts lawn mowers, leaf blowers and other small garden tools from the general noise ban only if run within…

In the City of West Des Moines, the use of lawn and garden equipment and chain saws, which covers leaf blowers, is…

Davenport has no leaf-blower ban. Gas and electric blowers are legal, but Sec. 8.19.070(M) prohibits running yard tools…

Iowa City does not allow amplified sound in residential areas except at churches and schools, and its disorderly house…

In the City of Ames, Iowa, anyone wanting relief from the Chapter 16 noise limits to run amplified sound, such as a…

In the City of Ankeny, Iowa, any sound equipment plainly audible from a public right-of-way needs a City Clerk-issued…

Sioux City makes it unlawful to run sound equipment that is plainly audible at a property line without a City-issued…

In the City of West Des Moines, section 4-7-11 requires a permit from the city clerk before anyone may use a…

Playing a radio, TV, stereo, or other amplified sound equipment loud enough to create a "noise disturbance" - exceeding…

In the City of Council Bluffs, CBMC 4.50.060 bars radios, TVs and musical instruments from creating a noise disturbance…

Amplified music, radios, and PA systems cannot create a noise disturbance across a property line at night or exceed the…

Des Moines requires a sound permit for amplified music or speech that creates a noise disturbance, capping most outdoor…

Dubuque bars outdoor music or amplified noise overnight under City Code Section 6-5-1(M): the cutoff is 10:00 P.M…

Amplified sound in Iowa City's City Plaza requires a title 10 permit, and amplified sound anywhere else that keeps…

Outdoor amphitheaters and stadiums in unincorporated Linn County must sit at least 500 feet from residentially zoned…

Outdoor events in unincorporated Polk County must meet the Polk County Noise Ordinance and obtain a sound permit if…

Story County doesn't set a countywide decibel limit for amplified sound, but any special event in the unincorporated…

City Code § 4-5-4(A) in the City of Waterloo, Iowa bars operating a radio, television, musical instrument or similar…

Sioux City's Airport Protection overlay district can require an avigation easement near Siouxland Gateway Airport…

Aircraft-in-flight noise is regulated federally by the FAA, not by Polk County. The county's zoning code references a…

Iowa Code 657.11 grants animal feeding operations broad immunity from public and private nuisance suits, including…

Large gas-fired power plants and nuclear facilities in unincorporated Linn County can't exceed 55 dBA near homes (65…

In the City of Ames, Iowa, sound measured at the property line or right-of-way is capped by neighborhood type under…

In the City of Ankeny, Iowa, permitted sound equipment cannot exceed 70 dB in residential areas by day (65 dB after 8…

Council Bluffs sets numeric decibel ceilings by the zoning of the receiving property and the time of day. A source in a…

Des Moines caps outdoor sound at the receiving property's boundary: 60 dBA daytime and 50 dBA nighttime in residential…

Johnson County's zoning code sets numeric decibel caps only for specific conditional uses, not general residential…

Industrial and utility uses in unincorporated Polk County must keep noise from being excessive at the lot line, and…

City Code § 4-5-3, Table II sets maximum sound levels in the City of Waterloo, Iowa by zone and time of day: 80 dBA…

West Des Moines caps unamplified and amplified sound at the receiving property line under section 4-7-7 of the Noise…

Sioux City Municipal Code § 8.68.050(2) bars operating a motor vehicle stereo in a public place or on a public…

In the City of Ames, Iowa, a motor vehicle operated on the public right-of-way cannot emit more than 75 decibels…

Ankeny's noise ordinance names three specific vehicle sounds as prohibited noise disturbances: a car stereo audible…

Black Hawk County bans loud engine or compression brakes on any vehicle operated within the county under its Engine…

Cedar Rapids caps car stereo or amplifier noise from a vehicle at 86 dBA measured 25 feet away, and separately bans…

Council Bluffs caps drive-by vehicle sound by class and speed zone and separately requires every motor vehicle and…

Des Moines caps car-stereo noise at 50 feet by day and 25 feet at night, and sets drive-by dBA limits by vehicle class…

Dubuque bans sounding a vehicle horn for any unnecessary or unreasonable period except as a danger warning, and…

Iowa City bans playing a car stereo loud enough to be heard 50 feet away, or across a property line, for more than 30…

Linn County requires all-terrain vehicles and off-road utility vehicles operating on county-designated roadways to…

In the City of Waterloo, Iowa, every motor vehicle and motorcycle on a public right of way must run within the Table I…

Section 4-7-9 of the West Des Moines Noise Control Regulations bars amplified sound from a motor vehicle, moving or…