Davidson County Noise Ordinance: Decibel Limits, Hours & Exemptions

The Davidson County noise ordinance sits in Title 9 of the Metropolitan Code and uses two different tests depending on the source: a “plainly audible” standard for most amplified sound and a decibel measurement for commercial noise near homes. Nashville last amended these rules in 2023 to strengthen enforcement over downtown venues and short-term rentals.

The Two Standards Nashville Uses

Most cities set a single decibel cap for day and night. Nashville doesn’t. For amplified sound, the code asks whether the noise is “plainly audible,” meaning a person with normal hearing can clearly hear it even if the specific words or melody aren’t distinguishable. Bass reverberation counts.¹ An officer doesn’t need a sound meter. If they can hear it from the distance the code specifies, that’s enough for a citation.

Decibel limits apply separately to commercial and business noise measured near residential walls. Which rule governs depends on what’s making the noise and where it’s happening.

Amplified Sound at Homes and Apartments

Under Section 9.20.010, running any sound amplification equipment so that the sound is plainly audible from the property line of the nearest occupied residence is unlawful.² That covers stereos, televisions, instruments run through amplifiers, and any other device that produces or reproduces sound. There’s no time-of-day carve-out and no set decibel level. If your neighbor can hear it standing at their property line, the source is in violation.

Apartments and condos work differently because property lines aren’t obvious. In multifamily buildings, amplified sound can’t be plainly audible from inside another unit in the same building or from the boundary of the nearest residential property.² Shared-wall complaints are the most common, and this provision gives officers a workable basis to act.

A 2023 amendment closed a common loophole. Interior speakers placed within ten feet of an open exterior door or window can’t be aimed toward that opening.³ Bars and venues had been keeping music technically indoors while angling speakers to project through open doors onto sidewalks.

The 50-Foot Rule in Public

Anyone using amplified sound for personal purposes on public sidewalks, streets, or parks managed by the Board of Parks and Recreation runs into a separate limit: the sound can’t be plainly audible at fifty feet or more from the speaker.² This is the fifty-foot rule people often quote as if it applied everywhere. It doesn’t. It governs public rights-of-way and parks. Private residential noise is judged at the property line.

Commercial Decibel Limits and Overnight Hours

Businesses and commercial operations near residential neighborhoods face measured decibel limits instead of the audible test. Between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., no business activity can produce noise exceeding 70 dB(A), measured near the outside wall of any residential building in a residential zone, at four feet above the ground.⁴ Roughly the level of a vacuum cleaner heard from a few feet away.

Downtown gets more room. Businesses in the CC (Commercial Core) and CF (Commercial Fringe) zoning districts can reach 85 dB(A) during those same overnight hours, measured the same way.⁴ These districts cover downtown Nashville and the entertainment corridors around it, where louder ambient levels are expected. Eighty-five dB(A) is comparable to heavy city traffic.

Between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., commercial activity isn’t subject to those overnight decibel caps. The general “plainly audible” rules for amplified sound still apply at any hour.

Vehicle Exhaust

Vehicle noise has its own rule. Operating a motor vehicle whose exhaust sound is plainly audible at two hundred feet is unlawful, and here “plainly audible” means detection of the muffler or exhaust sound by unaided hearing.² Two hundred feet is roughly a city block. Aftermarket exhaust systems on motorcycles and cars are the usual targets.

Emergency and public safety vehicles, government-owned vehicles, and utility company vehicles producing unavoidable noise during job-related operation are exempt. So is any motor vehicle used in an authorized, permitted public activity.⁵

Construction Rules

Chapter 9.30 covers construction noise. The code defines construction equipment broadly to include pile drivers, jackhammers, bulldozers, concrete trucks, backhoes, compressors, and any similar machinery powered by fuel or electricity and used in building, repair, or demolition.¹

Several activities are exempt from Chapter 9.30:

Public infrastructure work, including road, highway, bridge, street, utility, and dredging projects, and vehicles transporting materials to and from those sites as long as they stay within the construction right-of-way or easement.
Emergency work needed to restore property to safe conditions after a disaster, restore public utilities, or protect people and property from imminent danger.
Transporting and unloading construction materials, other than blasting supplies, between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.¹

The 5:00 a.m. delivery exemption catches people off guard. Dump trucks and material drops arriving that early in a residential area can be perfectly legal. Actually operating heavy equipment at that hour is not covered by the same carve-out.

Who Else Is Exempt

Airport operations are entirely exempt under Section 9.10.030, reflecting the federal preemption over aircraft noise.¹ Beyond that:

Special events, mass gatherings, and activities authorized by Metro or its boards and commissions are exempt from the amplified sound rules.
Schools and universities conducting typical on-campus activities, including athletic events, performances, and student festivals, are exempt between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m.
Outdoor facilities owned by Metro Nashville or the State of Tennessee, and parks under the Board of Parks and Recreation, are exempt.
Facilities used for religious worship are exempt from the amplified sound provisions that apply to other uses in the same areas.¹

Short-Term Rentals and Downtown

The 2023 amendments went after two chronic problem areas. The Metro Council extended noise enforcement authority to the Department of Codes and Building Safety, letting that agency address noise from short-term rentals and commercial properties alongside police, and gave the Nashville Department of Transportation enforcement power over right-of-way violations.³

If you live near a short-term rental, this matters. Before 2023, STR noise complaints were largely handled by police answering individual calls. Codes and Building Safety involvement opens a permit-level path. Repeated noise problems at the same rental can turn into a compliance issue for the property’s operating permit rather than just another citation.

How to File a Noise Complaint

The main channel is hubNashville, the county’s 311 platform. You can file online through the hubNashville website under the “Noise Violations” request category.⁶ You can also call 311, or reach hubNashville at (615) 862-5000, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For noise from short-term rentals specifically, there’s a separate line at (615) 862-7368 (862-RENT) operating Monday through Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Include the exact address of the noise source, when it started, how long it has lasted, and what kind of sound it is: music, machinery, exhaust, or something else. Phone recordings help, especially for noise that stops before an officer arrives. Note whether the property is a short-term rental so the complaint routes correctly.

If the noise is happening right now and you need someone on-site, the Metro Nashville Police Department’s non-emergency line is faster. Reports through hubNashville create a tracking number and a formal record, which matters for documenting a pattern, but they may not produce a same-night visit. For a recurring problem at the same address, file through hubNashville every time. That’s the paper trail agencies use to escalate past individual warnings.

1
Belmont University. Metro Code Title 9 – Noise and Amplified Sound
2
Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. Ordinance No BL2008-259
3
Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, TN. BL2023-2106
4
Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. Ordinance No BL2008-306
5
Metro Government of Nashville and Davidson County, TN. Metro Government of Nashville and Davidson County Code of Ordinances – 12.32.010 – Horns and Warning Devices
6
hubNashville. Noise Violations