Noise complaint logger
A free noise complaint logger that runs in your browser. Choose a session length and a decibel threshold, leave your device in the room, and get a timestamped list of every loud event with its peak and average level — ready to download as a CSV or print for a landlord, council or neighbour. No audio is recorded; only times and levels are kept, on your device.
Built by Nayeem, Software Developer of SoundLevelTest.com
Published:
How to log noise for a complaint
- Check your room's normal background level with the sound level test, then set the threshold about 10 dB higher.
- Place the device where you are disturbed — usually the bedroom — away from fans and fridges.
- Plug it in, keep this tab in front and start the log when the noise usually begins.
- Add a short note: room, windows open or closed, and what the noise is.
- Repeat on several nights. A pattern over days is far more persuasive than a single session.
- Download each CSV and keep it with a written diary of how the noise affected you.
Questions people ask
What does the noise complaint logger do?
It listens through your device microphone for a set time and writes down every moment the sound level stays above a threshold you choose. Each event gets a start time, end time, duration, peak level and average level. When the session ends you can download the log as a CSV file or print it to keep alongside your own notes.
Does it record audio of my neighbours?
No. The page never records, stores or uploads sound. It only calculates a level number ten times a second in your browser and keeps the times and levels of loud events on your device. Close the tab and everything is gone unless you downloaded the CSV.
Can I use this log as evidence for a noise complaint?
It can support a complaint as a personal diary showing when noise happened and roughly how loud it was, but it is not a calibrated measurement. Councils, landlords and courts usually rely on their own officers or certified equipment. Use the log to show a pattern and to justify asking them to measure properly.
What threshold should I set?
Start around 10 dB above the normal background level in your room, which you can check with the live reading before you begin. In a quiet bedroom that is often 45 to 55 dB; in a living room, 60 to 70 dB. Too low a threshold logs every passing car, too high a threshold misses real disturbances.
How is an event counted?
An event starts when the level reaches your threshold and must stay there for at least one second, so a single door click is ignored. It ends after two seconds below the threshold, which keeps a burst of barking or a loud song as one entry instead of dozens. The peak and energy-average level are calculated for that event only.
What is the Leq average shown on the screen?
Leq is the equivalent continuous sound level: the steady level that would contain the same sound energy as the varying noise over the session. It is the standard way noise is averaged, and loud bursts raise it far more than a simple arithmetic average would, which matches how disturbing intermittent noise feels.
Will it keep logging if my screen turns off?
Where the browser supports it, the page asks the device to keep the screen awake while logging. Some phones still pause microphones in background tabs, so keep the page in front, plug the device in and turn off battery-saver mode for long sessions.
How accurate are the decibel readings?
They are estimates. Phone and laptop microphones apply their own processing, and browsers report signal level rather than calibrated sound pressure. Readings are most useful between roughly 40 and 105 dB and for comparing one night with another on the same device. Apply a calibration offset on the main meter for better absolute values.
Noise rules differ by place
Quiet hours, permitted levels and how they are measured are set by local laws, tenancy agreements and building rules, and they vary widely between cities and countries. This page does not give legal advice and does not tell you whether a noise is unlawful. Check your local authority's noise guidance or your lease, and contact them if the log shows a regular problem. For general health context see how loud is too loud.
What this tool cannot do
It cannot tell where a sound came from, identify what made it, or produce a certified measurement. Phone microphones under-read deep bass such as music thumping through a wall, so low frequency noise can feel worse than the numbers suggest. Our measurement methodology explains these limits in detail.