Miami Noise Ordinance: Limits, Quiet Hours & How to File a Complaint

How Miami decides what counts as too loud

Miami sets numeric caps that vary by land use, measured at the receiving property line, with an absolute ceiling regardless of zone.

Noise limits in Miami

What's specific to Miami

• Any sound at or above 110 dBA is prohibited regardless of zone or time.
• Music from a business between 11:00 PM and 7:00 AM must be inside a closed building and inaudible outside.
• Unnecessary noise within 100 ft of a hospital, or of a school during school hours, is separately prohibited.

What Miami residents most often report

• Music from bars and restaurants after 11:00 PM, which must be inside a closed building and inaudible outside.
• Construction and demolition in rapidly redeveloping neighbourhoods.
• Noise within 100 ft of a hospital, or of a school during school hours, which is separately prohibited regardless of level.

How to measure it in Miami

Find your land-use category first — the cap ranges from 60 dBA in single-family residential to 70 dBA in industrial, and reading against the wrong row is the most common mistake. Measure at your own property line. If you record 110 dBA or more, the zone stops mattering: that level is prohibited outright.

Record levels with the free online decibel meter, and log the date, start time and duration with each reading. A phone microphone is accurate to roughly ±2 dB and is not a calibrated instrument — enough to establish a pattern, not enough for an enforcement hearing.

Penalties in Miami

Code enforcement citations, with escalating fines and possible referral to the Code Enforcement Board.

How to file a noise complaint in Miami

Miami 311 for code enforcement; police non-emergency for immediate disturbances.

311 →

Noise ordinances in other metros

See all US metro noise ordinances or read how many decibels is too loud.