Noise Ordinances in Washington (2026)

Auburn treats yelling, shouting, whistling or singing on or near public streets as a public disturbance noise…

Bellevue's noise code sets quiet hours of 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and 10:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. on weekends…

Bellingham's noise ordinance bars sound that unreasonably disturbs others' peace and comfort, and specifically…

Benton County has no numeric curfew list; instead its noise exemptions do the work. Unamplified voices and lawn or…

Unincorporated Clark County has no single fixed "quiet hours," but yelling, shouting, whistling or singing near a…

Cowlitz County's noise code defines daytime as 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends, meaning…

Between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., Edmonds cuts the maximum permissible noise level by 10 dB(A) for residential…

Everett cuts its noise limits by 10 dB(A) for sound reaching residential District I properties between 10 p.m. and 7…

FWRC 7.10.020(3) bars yelling, shouting, whistling, or singing on or near public streets between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00…

Kennewick's noise ordinance sets a tighter nighttime standard between 8:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.: unreasonable noise that…

Kent tightens its noise limits at night rather than banning sound outright: KCC 8.05.100(1) cuts the maximum…

Unincorporated King County tightens its noise limits at night: allowed sound levels drop by 10 dB(A) from 10 p.m. to 7…

Kirkland bans yelling, shouting, hooting, whistling or singing near public streets, especially between eleven p.m. and…

Kitsap County Code § 10.28.040(b) cuts every environmental noise limit by 10 dBA between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. for…

Lakewood, Washington does not set a blanket citywide noise curfew, but its public-disturbance ordinance specifically…

Lynnwood, Washington enforces a 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. noise curfew: LMC 10.12.300(B)(7) bans yelling, shouting or…

Marysville has no blanket nighttime quiet-hours ordinance: its curfew targets yelling, shouting, or singing on or near…

Pasco enforces a 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. quiet period in residential districts, during which amplified sound, unamplified…

In unincorporated Pierce County, the noise limits in Pierce County Code 8.76.060 are reduced by 10 dBA for residential…

Port Townsend has no fixed nighttime noise curfew: PTMC 9.09.030 bans disturbing noise at any hour under a nuisance…

Certain noises like lawn equipment, blasting, and bells are only exempt from Puyallup's noise code between 7:00 a.m…

Between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays, and 10 p.m. to 9 a.m. on weekends and legal holidays, SMC 25.08.420 cuts…

Unincorporated Skagit County does not set one blanket quiet-hours window; instead SCC 9.50.040(2) bars specific…

Every maximum permissible sound level in unincorporated Snohomish County drops by 10 dB(A) at night in rural and…

Washington's Department of Ecology sets Spokane County's nighttime quiet hours under WAC 173-60-040: residential (Class…

Yelling, shouting or singing near a Tacoma street between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. is flagged as a public disturbance…

Thurston County caps outdoor sound at 45 dBA from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. at neighboring property, dropping from the 55 dBA…

Washington sets no universal statewide quiet hours, but WAC 173-60 lowers allowable residential noise by 10 dBA…

Washington's Department of Ecology noise regulation, WAC 173-60-040, sets Yakima County's quiet hours: between 10 p.m…

Unincorporated Grant County has no blanket nighttime noise curfew. Instead, § 6.24.050(b) exempts specific noises…

Washington's noise code exempts temporary construction sounds during daytime hours from EDNA limits, while night…

Auburn bars construction noise, including equipment, power tools and hammering, before 7:00 a.m. and after 10:00 p.m…

Construction noise in Bellevue is exempt from the noise code only between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. on weekdays and 8:00…

In residentially zoned areas, Bellingham bars motorized construction and industrial noise, including hammering…

Construction noise in unincorporated Benton County is exempt from WAC 173-60 limits while work is underway, but that…

In unincorporated Clark County, using lawn mowers, chain saws and other repair or ground-maintenance power equipment is…

In unincorporated Cowlitz County, construction sounds are exempt from the noise ordinance only between 7:00 a.m. and…

Edmonds allows construction noise only between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays under…

Everett exempts temporary construction-site noise from its Chapter 20.08 limits only between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. on…

FWRC 7.10.020(8) bars construction noise, including equipment, power tools, and hammering, between 8:00 p.m. and 7:00…

Unincorporated Franklin County exempts noise from home repair and maintenance projects only between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m…

In unincorporated Grant County, construction site noise is exempt from the county's noise chapter only from 7 a.m. to…

Kent's noise code exempts home maintenance and repair noise from its decibel limits only between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00…

Construction in unincorporated King County is permitted 7 AM to 10 PM weekdays and 9 AM to 8 PM weekends under KCC…

Construction and other development activity in Kirkland may only run 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m…

Kitsap County Code § 10.28.070 exempts construction-site sounds from the county's decibel limits and public disturbance…

Lakewood, Washington bars construction noise, including equipment, power tools and hammering, between 10:00 p.m. and…

Lynnwood confines construction noise, including excavation, demolition, alteration or repair of buildings, to 7:00 a.m…

Marysville Municipal Code § 6.76.060(11) makes construction work before 7:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. a public nuisance…

Pasco bans construction, excavation, demolition, or building alteration noise in residential districts between 10 p.m…

Unincorporated Pierce County exempts temporary construction-site noise from the Chapter 8.76 decibel limits during the…

Construction noise in Port Townsend is exempt from the noise ordinance only 7 a.m.-7 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m.-7 p.m…

Construction noise is exempt from Puyallup's noise code except between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., under PMC §…

RMC 4-4-030.C3 restricts residential construction to 7:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. weekdays and 9:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. weekends…

Sammamish limits construction activity and construction noise to 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekdays and 9:00 a.m. to…

Seattle SMC 25.08 limits construction equipment to 80 dBA measured at the receiving property line, with maximum-noise…

Construction equipment noise at a temporary construction site is exempt from Snohomish County's decibel limits during…

Unincorporated Spokane County exempts construction-site noise from its general noise-disturbance ban only between 7:00…

Spokane Valley's noise disturbance ordinance treats construction sound as unlawful outside a narrow window. Temporary…

Tacoma bars non-emergency construction and demolition work between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays (9 a.m. on…

Thurston County exempts construction-site noise from its public disturbance noise limits only between 7 a.m. and 10…

Yakima exempts construction noise from its public disturbance noise law only from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, and 8…

Washington exempts daytime construction noise from state limits, but that exemption disappears at night. In…

Auburn makes it unlawful for a dog, cat or other animal's owner or custodian to let the animal habitually howl, yelp…

Bellingham makes it a civil infraction, punishable by up to a $250 fine, to harbor or keep a dog whose frequent or…

Benton County's public nuisance noise ordinance expressly names continuous or repeated dog barking as a public nuisance…

A dog that barks, bays, cries or howls continuously for 10 minutes, or intermittently for a half hour or more, to the…

In unincorporated Cowlitz County, an animal that habitually barks, howls or yelps for 30 minutes or more between 9:00…

Edmonds City Code 5.05.115 makes it a public nuisance for an animal to bark, howl, yelp, or whine enough to disturb a…

Everett bans knowingly letting a pet's frequent, continuous or repetitive barking or noise unreasonably disturb the…

Unincorporated Grant County bans keeping or harboring any animal, including dogs, whose frequent or repetitive…

Kennewick makes it unlawful for an owner to let a dog or other animal bark, howl, or make noise that's audible off the…

Frequent, repetitive, or continuous barking or howling that disturbs a reasonable person's peace is a public…

In unincorporated King County, a pet making noise to an unreasonable degree that disturbs a person or neighborhood is a…

Kirkland declares a barking dog a public nuisance once the noise runs continuously for ten or more minutes or…

Kitsap County treats chronic barking as a civil infraction, not a free-for-all: § 7.14.030(2)(A) bans letting an…

Lakewood treats habitual howling, yelping or barking that unreasonably disturbs a neighbor as a code violation under…

Lynnwood, Washington makes it a noise disturbance to own, keep, possess or harbor an animal that frequently or…

Marysville treats frequent, repetitive, or continuous animal noise that disturbs neighbors as a public nuisance, though…

A Pasco animal violates the noise ordinance if it can be heard continuously inside a structure off the owner's property…

In unincorporated Pierce County, PCC 8.72.090.A makes it a public disturbance noise for frequent, repetitive, or…

Port Townsend treats frequent or continuous barking, howling, yelping, or whining as a public disturbance noise under…

Renton bans keeping any dog, cat or other animal that habitually howls, yelps, barks or makes other frequent, long or…

Sammamish adopts King County's animal nuisance definition, naming a dog that 'howls, yelps, whines, barks or makes…

SMC 25.08.500.A makes loud, frequent, repetitive, or continuous animal noise an unlawful 'public disturbance noise' in…

Skagit County makes it unlawful for an owner to knowingly, recklessly or negligently let an animal make frequent…

Frequent, repetitive or continuous animal noise that disturbs neighbors in a rural or residential district is a public…

Unincorporated Spokane County makes it unlawful for a dog owner to let their dog howl, whine, or bark so as to…

Thurston County makes a "nuisance pet animal" a code violation: Section 9.10.030 defines the term as a pet that…

Whatcom County treats prolonged barking as a nuisance infraction: WCC 6.04.060(E) makes it unlawful for a dog's owner…

Yakima bans habitual dog barking, growling, yelping, howling or whining lasting 15 minutes or more once a verified…

In unincorporated Yakima County, keeping a dog that habitually barks, growls, yelps, howls or whines loudly enough to…

Franklin County has no countywide ordinance against a barking dog in a residential neighborhood: the general noise law…

A dog whose frequent, repetitive or continuous barking unreasonably disturbs a neighbor's peace, comfort or repose is a…

Spokane Valley's citywide noise ordinance specifically excludes dog barking from its coverage, pointing instead to the…

Auburn restricts noisy yard equipment, lawnmowers, powered hand tools and snow removal machines, used for homeowner…

Clark County has no leaf-blower-specific ban. Leaf blowers fall under the ground-maintenance power-equipment exemption…

Everett exempts noise from powered yard and maintenance equipment, including leaf blowers, from its nuisance noise…

Kirkland treats power equipment, including leaf blowers, as a public nuisance if operated before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m…

Lakewood, Washington restricts noise from lawnmowers, powered hand tools like leaf blowers, snow removal equipment and…

Lynnwood, Washington bars leaf blowers, saws, drills and other powered lawn and garden equipment used outdoors in…

Snohomish County has no daytime leaf-blower ban, but operating a leaf blower, saw, drill, sander, grinder, fan, garden…

Thurston County exempts yard maintenance equipment, including leaf blowers, from its noise limits only between 7 a.m…

Yakima County does not ban leaf blowers. Yard-maintenance sound is exempt from state noise limits during the day (7…

Running amplified music or sound equipment in Bellevue needs a development-services director permit filed at least a…

Kennewick treats amplified musical instruments, sound systems, and band or social-gathering noise as regulated nuisance…

Lynnwood bans loudspeakers and amplifiers outright in residential-zoned districts under LMC 10.12.300(D). Anywhere…

Tacoma parks require a permit for public address systems and musical acts; permitted bands and performers are capped at…

Thurston County requires a permit before holding any outdoor music festival outside city limits, with mandatory…

Auburn caps audio volume from vehicle stereos and portable audio equipment such as radios and CD players at whatever is…

Bellingham bans amplified and portable audio loud enough to be heard beyond 50 feet from its source, plus late-night…

Benton County has no decibel meter for amplified music; instead BCC 6A.15.040 bans any public nuisance noise, amplified…

Outdoor music, live bands and PA systems fall under Clark County's public disturbance noise rule: loud or raucous…

In unincorporated Cowlitz County, CCC § 10.25.040(A)(6) bars sound amplifiers on public streets for commercial…

Edmonds bans loud, repetitive amplified music and sound-equipment noise that disturbs neighbors under ECC 5.30.130(C)…

Everett bars frequent, repetitive or continuous sound from audio equipment, musical instruments, band sessions and…

Federal Way bars using a radio, loudspeaker, musical instrument, or any device that reproduces sound audible more than…

Playing a radio, car stereo, musical instrument or amplifier in a residential area of unincorporated Franklin County so…

Unincorporated Grant County treats frequent, repetitive or continuous sounds from musical instruments, TVs, stereos…

Loud, repetitive band sessions and amplified outdoor music in unincorporated King County are unlawful "public…

Kirkland bans musical instruments, band sessions and audio sound systems in buildings or on watercraft when they…

In unincorporated Kitsap County, sound amplifiers, band sessions, tavern music and portable audio equipment count as…

Lakewood, Washington bans amplified sound, loudspeakers, music or other audio equipment played loud enough to carry…

Marysville Municipal Code § 6.76.060(5) makes it a public nuisance to run a sound amplifier or similar device on public…

Pasco bars amplified music, sound amplifiers, and similar devices from being audible in a residential district between…

In unincorporated Pierce County, outdoor amplified music, band sessions, and social-gathering noise are barred by PCC…

Port Townsend treats loud outdoor music and amplified sound as a public disturbance noise violation, enforced complaint…

Puyallup bars business sound amplifiers, loudspeakers, and pagers from being audible beyond the property line. Under…

Renton bans sound amplifiers used on public streets for commercial advertising, and separately makes loud or raucous…

Sammamish Municipal Code § 8.15.020 makes it a public nuisance to run audio equipment, radios, tape players or public…

Outdoor concerts and amplified performances on Seattle public property are capped at a 95 dB(A) one-minute average…

Unincorporated Skagit County bans audio systems, radios, amplifiers and speakers from being audible more than 150 feet…

Amplified music heard inside a neighbor's home, or outdoors 75 feet or more from its source in a commercial, rural or…

Unincorporated Spokane County outlaws sounds from a radio, television, musical instrument or sound amplifier that annoy…

Spokane Valley treats a radio, musical instrument, or sound amplifier that repeatedly or continuously disturbs a…

Whatcom County has no fixed decibel or curfew limit for amplified sound. WCC § 9.40.010 instead bans any loud or…

Yakima limits amplified outdoor music and entertainment at permitted special events to the hours of 10 a.m. to 10 p.m…

Amplified music in unincorporated Yakima County must stay within WAC 173-60 property-line noise limits (55 dBA day, 45…

Aircraft noise in Washington is preempted by federal aviation law, and the state expressly excludes aircraft in flight…

Grant County's Airport Safety Overlay (ASO) zoning district restricts new buildings and outdoor uses near Grant County…

Renton bans new noise-sensitive uses inside the 65 DNL noise contour around Renton Municipal Airport and requires…

Bellingham requires aircraft flying over the city to stay above 1,000 feet, a rule adopted specifically to minimize…

Lakewood, Washington requires extra sound insulation in new buildings inside the Clear Zone and Air Corridor 1/2…

New homes and other residential structures built inside Fairchild Air Force Base's Military Influence Area 3/4 must…

Development in Yakima's airport overlay Zone 4A must record a deed declaration acknowledging aircraft noise, vibration…

Franklin County's noise ordinance exempts aircraft-in-flight and airport flight-operation sounds outright under §…

Pasco requires a recorded disclosure statement on plats near the Tri-Cities Airport warning buyers of aircraft noise…

Bellevue's noise ordinance flatly exempts sounds from aircraft in flight, so flight noise over the city, whether from…

Cowlitz County's noise code does not restrict aircraft: CCC § 10.25.050(A)(1) exempts 'sounds that originate from…

Edmonds' noise control ordinance exempts sounds from aircraft in flight from the city's maximum permissible sound level…

Everett's noise ordinance does not regulate aircraft noise. EMC 20.08.100(A)(1) exempts noise from aircraft in flight…

Kent's noise code completely exempts aircraft noise from regulation: sound from aircraft in flight and sound…

In unincorporated King County, noise from aircraft and helicopters in flight, plus airport flight operations, is fully…

Lynnwood exempts aircraft noise from its environmental noise limits. Sounds from aircraft in flight and airport sounds…

Aircraft noise is exempt from Pierce County's noise code. PCC 8.76.070.D.2 exempts sounds from aircraft in flight and…

Puyallup's noise code doesn't regulate aircraft. PMC § 6.16.060(1)(a) exempts 'noise originating from aircraft in…

Aircraft noise gets a blanket pass under Snohomish County's noise ordinance: SCC 10.01.050(1)(a) exempts all sounds…

Aircraft noise is carved out of Spokane Valley's residential noise-nuisance rule entirely. SVMC § 7.05.040(K)(2)(c)…

Tacoma's noise ordinance exempts aircraft operations outright: helicopter and airplane noise isn't subject to the…

Industrial sources in Washington must comply with EDNA limits set by WAC 173-60, with the receiving residential zone…

Auburn caps operational noise from battery energy storage systems (BESS) measured at the property line by zone: 60…

Bellevue caps sound crossing a property line at 55 to 70 dBA depending on the noise source's and receiving property's…

Bellingham caps mechanical equipment noise at 55 decibels near property lines in residential single and multi-family…

Benton County's only local decibel standard is tied to home occupation permits: BCC 11.49.030(e) caps noise from a…

Industrial noise reaching a Clark County residence is capped by WAC 173-60-040 at 60 dBA (45 dBA drop does not apply to…

Edmonds caps sound at the property line using a district-to-district table: noise crossing from a residential source…

Everett limits noise from District III industrial and agricultural zones (AG, LI, HI, WRM) to 60 dB(A) reaching…

FWRC 7.10.050 adopts the state's maximum environmental noise levels under the Noise Control Act, Chapter 70.107 RCW and…

Kennewick's EDNA noise table caps industrial-zone sound crossing a property line at 70 dBA between industrial parcels…

Kent caps noise crossing onto a neighbor's property using a zone-based table: KCC 8.05.090 sets limits from 55 dBA…

Unincorporated King County limits industrial-source sound to 70 dB(A) reaching other industrial land, tapering to 65…

Kitsap County Code § 10.28.040 sets numeric decibel ceilings by Environmental Designation for Noise Abatement (EDNA)…

Lakewood, Washington's only numeric decibel standard for residential noise applies specifically to home occupations run…

Lynnwood caps environmental noise at the receiving property line using an EDNA classification system: 55 to 70 dBA…

Marysville sorts every property into three noise zones, called EDNA classes, under Marysville Municipal Code §…

Pasco caps outdoor noise by matching the EDNA (Environmental Designation for Noise Abatement) class of the source to…

For most industrial noise, Pierce County defers to the State. PCC 8.72.120.D states that, apart from motor vehicles…

Port Townsend adopts Washington's WAC 173-60 environmental noise limits, setting decibel ceilings that vary by zone…

Renton sets its numeric decibel ceilings by adopting the state's environmental noise rules wholesale: the zone-based…

Seattle sets numeric exterior noise limits by zoning district under SMC 25.08.410 Table A, ranging from 55 dB(A)…

Industrial-source noise received on residential property in unincorporated Snohomish County is capped at 60 dB(A)…

Industrial and commercial noise reaching homes in Spokane County is governed by WAC 173-60. An industrial (Class C)…

Tacoma caps how much a continuous sound can raise noise above the existing ambient level at a neighboring property: 10…

Thurston County caps industrial and commercial noise at the property line using Washington's state EDNA noise classes…

WCC § 20.80.620 bars any development in unincorporated Whatcom County from exceeding the maximum environmental noise…

Yakima's public disturbance noise ordinance skips decibel meters: YMC § 6.04.180 instead bans sound that is "plainly…

Tacoma bans motor vehicle compression ('Jake') brakes citywide except in genuine emergencies, and separately caps…

Bellingham makes it unlawful to run a car stereo audible beyond 50 feet or to use compression engine brakes (Jake…

Unincorporated Kitsap County bans unmuffled engine compression ("Jake") brakes outright and treats a car stereo audible…

Loud car stereos and unmuffled engine noise are a public nuisance in Sammamish. City code bars motor-vehicle audio or…

Yakima outlaws unnecessarily loud vehicle noise from sudden starts, stops, exhaust or a bad muffler, and separately…

Auburn bans frequent or continuous horn and siren sounds except danger warnings, disruptive engine starting, repair…

Bellevue treats a car stereo audible 75 feet away or across a property line as a noise disturbance under Chapter 9.18…

Frequent horn honking, and frequent engine noise from starting, operating, repairing or testing motor vehicles in a…

Unincorporated Cowlitz County requires every motor vehicle to run a working muffler at all times and bans cutout or…

Edmonds bans operating a motor vehicle whose exhaust exceeds the sound levels for its vehicle category, tested at 20…

Everett requires every motor vehicle on a public highway to run a working muffler and exhaust system at all times, bans…

Federal Way bans excessive vehicle noise under FWRC 7.10.020: unnecessary horn or siren blasts, revving or repairing an…

In unincorporated Franklin County, a car stereo, portable audio device, sound amplifier, whistle or internal-combustion…

In unincorporated Grant County, § 6.24.020 bans motor vehicles without a working muffler and stereo systems audible…

Kennewick requires working mufflers, bans amplified exhaust and audible car stereos beyond 50 feet, and restricts jake…

Kent outlaws motor vehicle sound systems loud enough to be heard 50 feet away, a $150 traffic infraction under KCC…

In unincorporated King County it is unlawful to drive, or let anyone else drive, a motor vehicle on public highways…

Kirkland's public disturbance ordinance bans frequent or continuous vehicle horns and sirens except as safety warnings…

Lakewood, Washington's noise ordinance makes three kinds of vehicle sound a public disturbance: repeated repair or…

Lynnwood, Washington requires every motor vehicle exhaust to run through a working muffler and bans stereo or radio…

Marysville Municipal Code § 6.76.070(1) bars operating a motor vehicle on any public highway in violation of the state…

Pasco bans car stereo sound audible more than 75 feet from the vehicle and exhaust noise from any engine lacking a…

In unincorporated Pierce County, PCC 8.72.090.H makes it unlawful for a car or vessel sound system to be clearly heard…

Car stereos audible past 50 feet from a moving vehicle and unmuffled compression (engine) brakes are both banned in…

Puyallup requires every motor vehicle on public highways to carry a working exhaust system and muffler that prevents…

Renton regulates vehicle exhaust and stereo noise through two tracks: it adopts the state's WAC motor vehicle noise…

Seattle requires every motor vehicle to run a working muffler that prevents excessive or unusual noise, and bars…

Snohomish County treats unmuffled exhaust, frequent engine testing near homes, and loud car stereos or horns as public…

Motor-vehicle noise in Spokane County is governed by statewide standards in WAC 173-62, not the county noise ordinance…

Spokane Valley draws a hard line on car stereo noise: SVMC § 9.30.050 bans any vehicle audio system, tape deck, radio…

Thurston County requires every motor vehicle on a county highway to run a muffler in good working order at all times…