Home / Guides / How to document noise from neighbors

How to document noise from neighbors

Updated 2026-10-17

When you complain about a neighbor, the first question from a landlord, an HOA board or a city noise office is usually some version of "how often, and when?" A record you kept at the time answers that better than memory. It also keeps you honest with yourself about whether the problem is nightly or once a month.

This guide covers what to write down, what decibel readings from a phone can and can't do, the rules around recordings, and how to turn separate nights into a pattern.

What to log each time

City complaint forms ask for the same handful of things. El Paso's City Attorney noise complaint form, for example, asks for a log with the date, each time the noise was unreasonable, the type of noise and how long it lasted. Portland's Noise Program asks for a description of the noise, what it sounds like, and the dates and times it happened.

For each incident, write down:

The date and start time. Write the actual time, like 11:40 p.m., not "late."
When it stopped, or how long it lasted.
What it was: bass from a stereo, barking, footsteps, a party, a power tool.
Where you heard it, such as the bedroom or the yard. Some city rules depend on this. Oklahoma City's music rule, for one, is about sound that is plainly audible inside another home.
How it affected you. It woke you at 2 a.m., couldn't take a work call, a child couldn't sleep.
What you did about it: knocked, texted the neighbor, called the non-emergency line, emailed the landlord. Keep copies of anything written.

Write entries when the noise happens, or as soon as you can after. A log filled in from memory a week later is easy to question.

Timestamps

A clear time on each entry does two jobs. It shows whether the noise falls inside the hours a local rule covers, since many cities have rules that only apply at night. And it lets someone else see the pattern in a few seconds. Our city pages list the hours that apply where you live, along with links to the code itself.

Phone photos, screenshots and app logs carry their own timestamps, which helps. If you also keep a paper log, use the same clock for both.

Decibel readings: useful, with limits

A sound meter app gives you a number to put next to "loud," and that is worth having. It helps you describe the noise, compare one night to another, and see whether it's anywhere near a city's decibel limit. But a phone reading is not an official measurement.

Portland's Noise Program says this directly on its documentation page: smartphone readings "may not be as accurate as those taken with a certified and calibrated sound level meter," and the program "is unable [to] use smartphone readings for official purposes." Other codes build the meter into the rule. Oklahoma City requires a Type 2 or better sound level meter, calibrated before and after measurements (§ 34-6(b)). Boston's code says police responding to a complaint verify the noise "by use of the sound level meter" described in the code (§ 16-26.6(B)).

So treat your readings as supporting detail, not proof. If you take them, Portland's guide has sensible steps:

Use the A-weighted setting (dBA), which is what most city limits use.
Stand at least 5 feet from walls and windows, away from other sounds.
Hold the phone at arm's length at ear height, or use a tripod, with the microphone uncovered.
Don't set the phone on a table, which can change the reading.
Measure for about 5 minutes and note the highest level (LAmax).

Also keep in mind where a city measures. Many decibel limits are measured at the property line, and some cities measure at the property making the noise. A reading from your bedroom may not match how the city would measure. Each of our city pages says where the limit applies.

Vibration

Some noise is felt more than heard: bass through the floor, a washing machine on a shared wall, heavy footsteps. A few codes cover this. El Paso bans vibration that a person can feel "without instruments" on an affected property when it unreasonably disturbs their sleep or peace (§ 9.40.040). Write down vibration the same way you log sound: when, how long, and what it felt like.

Recordings

A short audio or video clip can show what you mean in a way a log can't. El Paso's form asks for recordings with a noise complaint. Before you record, though, know that recording laws exist, and that they are mainly written about conversations.

Federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(d)) says it is not unlawful for a person to intercept an oral communication if they are a party to it, or if one party has consented, unless it's done to commit a crime or a tort.
Some states require everyone's consent. California Penal Code § 632, for example, bans recording a "confidential communication" without the consent of all parties. The law defines that as a conversation where someone reasonably expects it to stay among the people in it, and it excludes situations where people "may reasonably expect" to be overheard or recorded.

Music or barking coming through your wall isn't a conversation. If a recording would capture people talking, especially a private conversation, the consent rules may apply, and they vary by state. We haven't reviewed every state's law. If you're unsure, record only the noise you can hear from your own home, keep clips short, and ask a local attorney or legal aid office before recording anything that includes voices.

Building a pattern

One loud night rarely gets anyone to act. Ten nights over three weeks usually does. Portland's guide says intermittent noise that only happens "occasionally without a pattern" usually can't be investigated, and asks for records kept over 15 days when you follow up on a report. El Paso's form asks for a log kept for 48 continuous hours.

To show a pattern:

Keep logging even on quiet nights, or note that nothing happened. Gaps look like missing data.
Summarize at the end: "Noise after 11 p.m. on 9 of the last 14 nights, most often Thursday through Saturday."
Ask neighbors who hear the same noise to keep their own logs. El Paso's form suggests this, since otherwise it may come down to your word against theirs.
Keep everything in one place, with copies of messages to the neighbor, landlord or HOA.

Using your log in a complaint

Once you have a few weeks of entries, you can attach them to a letter. Our guide to writing a noise complaint letter has templates for a neighbor, a landlord and an HOA. If the noise is from the unit above you, see what you can do about an upstairs neighbor stomping.

The Noisy Neighbor iPhone app is built for this kind of record. It has a decibel meter and a vibration detector, logs each incident with the date, time, length and an estimated level, and exports a PDF report or a complaint letter you can send. Its readings are estimates like any phone's, so pair them with the notes above.

Write a complaint letter · Incident log · Quiet hours in 60 cities

Sources

More guides

Look up your city's noise rules

Not legal advice. Rules depend on your city, your lease and your HOA's documents.