Noise ordinances › Fort Worth, TX

Fort Worth noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints

Last updated: September 20, 2026

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Quiet hours in Fort Worth

Night is 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for the decibel table: residential districts drop from 70 to 60 dBA, other non-industrial districts from 80 to 70 dBA (§ 23-8(c)(1)a–b). The "H" central business district, "PI" Panther Island and West 7th Village keep the same 80 / 70 dBA split Sunday through Thursday but on Friday and Saturday the 80 dBA daytime level runs until 2:00 a.m. the following day, with 70 dBA from 2:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. (c)(1)c. Where the ambient already exceeds the prescribed maximum, the limit is ambient plus 3 dBA by day and the existing ambient at night (c)(1)d. The reasonable-person subsection has its own clocks: musical instruments and radios are called out "particularly during the hours between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m." (d)(2)d; construction within 300 feet of an occupied residence is prohibited before 7:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. Monday–Friday and before 9:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday (d)(2)b; solid-waste haulers within 300 feet of residential zoning may not work before 6:00 a.m. or after 11:00 p.m. without a code-compliance waiver (d)(2)c; and an animal that barks or crows for ten minutes or longer is an offense at any hour (d)(2)a.

Decibel limits

Yes, since March 2021. § 23-8(c)(1) declares a public nuisance any activity that creates, on the complainant's bounding real property line, a sound level above: residential districts (one-, two- and multifamily) 70 dBA from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and 60 dBA from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.; all nonresidential and mixed-use districts except industrial, outside downtown and Panther Island, 80 / 70 dBA on the same clock; the "H" central business district, Panther Island and West 7th Village 80 / 70 dBA Sunday–Thursday and 80 dBA from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 70 dBA from 2:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.; and in any zoning where the ambient already exceeds those numbers, ambient + 3 dBA by day and the existing ambient at night. Activities originating in industrial zoning districts are outside the table. Method (c)(2): A-weighted, slow response, at least 30 seconds, measured from the complainant's property line, the violation judged on the highest reading in the period, ambient included; a residential complainant next to another district gets the residential numbers. The meter is optional: § 23-8(a)(2) says the section is designed "to allow the enforcement of noise regulations at times when and by persons for whom noise meters are not available," and (d)(1) makes unreasonable noise an offense with the note that "a decibel level shall not be required for the enforcement of this subsection."

What the ordinance actually says

§ 23-8(a)(2): "This section is designed to regulate noise by various alternative means in order to allow the enforcement of noise regulations at times when and by persons for whom noise meters are not available. A noise may be in violation of this section because it is disturbing to a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities or because it exceeds the decibel level restrictions provided below."

§ 23-8(c)(1)a: "All residential (one-, two- and multifamily) zoning districts. Daytime 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. = 70 dBA; Nighttime 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. = 60 dBA"

§ 23-8(c)(2): "Method of noise measurement. Noise measurements shall be a minimum of 30 seconds in duration. Decibel levels are measured from the complainant's property line. For residential districts adjacent to other districts (excluding industrial zoning districts), the residential decibel levels apply when measured from a residential complainant's property line. Violations will be determined based on the highest registered reading in that measurement period. All measurement levels will be inclusive of any ambient noise that exists at the time of the measurement."

§ 23-8(d)(1): "In addition to the other noise restrictions in this section, no person shall make, cause, suffer, allow or permit unreasonably loud noises in such a manner, or with such volume, intensity or duration, so as to disturb a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities. A decibel level shall not be required for the enforcement of this subsection."

§ 23-8(d)(2)b: "Construction work. Noise created by construction work within 300 feet of an occupied residential structure involving the erection, excavation, demolition, alteration, or repair of any building, structure, or flatwork before 7:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. is prohibited as follows: Before 7:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. Monday—Friday; Before 9:00 a.m. or after 8:00 p.m. Saturday—Sunday"

§ 23-8(d)(2)d: "Musical instruments. The playing of any radio, phonograph or other musical instrument in such manner or with such volume, particularly during the hours between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., as to annoy or disturb the quiet, comfort or repose of persons of ordinary sensibilities in any dwelling, hotel or other type of residence."

§ 23-8(g)(2)–(3): "An offense under this section is punishable by a fine of not more than $500. Each occurrence of a violation, or, in the case of multiple violations, each day a violation occurs or continues, constitutes a separate offense and may be punished separately."

Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (Fort Worth Code of Ordinances, Chapter 23 "Offenses and Miscellaneous Provisions," § 23-8 "Noise": (a) general provisions, (b) definitions ("unreasonable noise," "bounding real property line," "sound level"), (c) restrictions on decibel levels (the zoning-district table and the 30-second measurement rule), (d) noise prohibited (the reasonable-person standard and its listed forms: animals, construction work, solid waste collection, musical instruments, horns, vehicles), (e) exemptions, (f) enforcement, (g) penalties. Derived from 1964 Code § 27-18; Ord. 8767 (1983), Ord. 15608 (2003), Ord. 20191-05-2012, and Ord. 24752-03-2021 (passed 3-23-2021, eff. 3-31-2021), which added the decibel table. Text read on American Legal Publishing (the City's code host) on 2026-09-20; the City's own April 2, 2024 council briefing "Noise Ordinance Update" (fortworthtexas.gov) restates the same table.). Verified against the live code on 2026-09-20. Ordinances get amended — before acting on a specific provision, check the linked official code. This page is a plain-language summary, not legal advice.

How to file a noise complaint in Fort Worth

Per the City's MyFW app guide (fortworthtexas.gov, "Reporting a Noise Disturbance is as easy as 1-2-3"): add a new request in the My Fort Worth app, fill in the fields, and under "Police" select "Loud Music/Party – Noise Disturbance," adding the party's location and your details under Reporter so officers can follow up. Fort Worth Police Department non-emergency line: 817-392-4222 (emergencies 9-1-1). § 23-8(f) puts enforcement "primarily" with the police department and the code compliance department; the 2024 council briefing describes officers giving a verbal warning first and citing if the violator can be located, and notes that construction noise and solid-waste timing complaints run through code compliance (which also grants the waste-hauler waivers under (d)(2)c). Animal noise complaints go to Code Compliance's animal services (fortworthtexas.gov, "Animal Noise Complaint").

Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Fort Worth. For the general playbook — documenting the problem, talking to a landlord or HOA, when 311 beats 911 — see the noise complaints guide.

Worth knowing

(1) The table is measured with the ambient included and judged on the single highest reading in a 30-second window, so one peak at the fence line is a violation; there is no averaging and no ambient subtraction, except that where the ambient is already over the limit the standard becomes ambient + 3 dBA by day and ambient itself at night (c)(1)d. (2) Fort Worth's residential numbers (70 / 60 dBA) are high next to coastal cities' 50 / 45, but the reasonable-person clause needs no meter at all, and the City's 2024 briefing says most of the 17,000-odd loud-music calls a year end in a warning rather than a citation. (3) Entertainment districts get a later night: downtown, Panther Island and West 7th stay at 80 dBA until 2:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights, and amplifiers at Panther Island venues of 1,000 or more are exempt outright (e)(4). (4) Industrial zoning is outside the decibel table entirely; a residential complainant next to a factory has only the reasonable-person route. (5) Construction hours are counted from an occupied residence within 300 feet, with a 9:00 a.m. weekend start, and solid-waste trucks near homes are held to 6:00 a.m.–11:00 p.m. unless code compliance waives it. (6) The animal rule is time-based: ten minutes of frequent, repetitive or continuous barking or crowing is the offense (d)(2)a. (7) Exemptions cover school and public property (as the owner permits), permitted outdoor events, government functions, airport, rail and road traffic, permitted gas drilling, HVAC and property maintenance, and Texas Motor Speedway (e). (8) Violations are Class C misdemeanors of up to $500 per occurrence or per day and are also declared nuisances abatable by injunction (g); the Texas Penal Code's disorderly-conduct offense for unreasonable noise (§ 42.01(a)(5)) runs alongside, and police may charge either.

Document it before you report it

Fort Worth's limits are measured numbers, so a reading is direct evidence of how loud it really is. Take a reading right here: the meter below runs in your browser and records nothing, and stopping it saves a dated report. Check how loud your block is on the Fort Worth noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.