Noise ordinances › Richmond, VA

Richmond noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints

Last updated: October 5, 2026

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Quiet hours in Richmond

11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. is the night band in Sec. 11-37: the limit drops from 65 to 55 dBA at houses and duplexes (a), inside apartment and condominium units (b), inside an occupied place of worship during posted services (d) and at signed health care facilities (e); restaurants and other establishments serving food or beverages drop from 80 to 75 dBA, or from 65 to 55 dBA if adjacent to residentially zoned property (h); and musical instruments or sound devices played outside an enclosed structure (subsection headed "Buskers," worded to cover any person) drop from 75 to 65 dBA at ten feet (i). Schools have a single 65 dBA limit that applies while classes or other educational activities are occurring (c). The exemptions in Sec. 11-36 carry their own hours: construction, repair, maintenance, remodeling, demolition, grading and similar work on real property is exempt between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., and at other hours only when the Chief Administrative Officer or a designee has expressly authorized it in writing for worker health or safety or for federal or state funding requirements (8); domestic power tools such as power lawn mowers, chain saws and weed eaters used for lawn care, leaf removal, gardening, tree work or landscaping are exempt only between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. and only with a standard muffler or sound dissipating device (9); and refuse collection and sanitation services are exempt between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. unless authorized in writing for other hours (10). Outside those windows the activities are not banned outright; they lose the exemption and must meet the Sec. 11-37 limits. The code sets no separate weekend or holiday hours.

Decibel limits

Yes. Sec. 11-37, in dBA, measured "at the place where sound is perceived to constitute a violation of this article and not at the place where it originates" (11-32): (a) houses and duplexes, from any point on the property, 65 dBA from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. and 55 dBA from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.; (b) apartment and condominium units (not hotels, motels or lodginghouses), measured inside the unit at least four feet from the wall, ceiling or floor nearest the source with the doors and windows to the receiving area closed, 65 / 55 dBA; (c) schools, from any point on the property where classes or other educational activities are occurring, 65 dBA; (d) places of worship, measured inside while occupied and while services are occurring, 65 / 55 dBA, but only if at least one sign visible from the adjacent streets and sidewalks gives notice that services are occurring; (e) health care facilities, including hospitals, physicians' offices, clinics and surgical centers but not residential or convalescent homes, from any point on the property, 65 / 55 dBA, but only if a "Health Care Facility Quiet Zone" sign is posted; (h) restaurants and other establishments serving food or beverages, measured from any public right-of-way or private property, 80 dBA by day and 75 dBA at night, or 65 / 55 dBA if the establishment is adjacent to residentially zoned property; (i) under the heading "Buskers," but worded to cover any person who plays a musical instrument or operates any device emitting sound outside an enclosed structure, 75 dBA by day and 65 dBA at night, measured ten feet from the instrument or device. Two rules use audibility instead of a meter: a radio, horn or other electronic device on or in a parked or otherwise stopped motor vehicle may not be plainly audible 50 feet or more from the vehicle (f), and the animal rule in (g) (quoted below). Article II does not define "plainly audible" and contains no general unreasonable-noise or disturbance rule; the Chief of Police sets the standards for testing and validating the meters (11-35). Since Ord. No. 2024-194 there is no decibel limit for vehicles moving on a public right-of-way.

What the ordinance actually says

Sec. 11-37(a): "No person shall operate a device or otherwise create sound which, when measured from any point on a property containing a house or a duplex, exceeds 65 dBA between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. or 55 dBA between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m."

Sec. 11-37(b): "No person shall operate a device or otherwise create sound which, when measured from inside an apartment unit or condominium unit, but not including hotels, motels or lodginghouses, and measured at a point at least four feet from the wall, ceiling, or floor nearest the sound source, with doors and windows to the receiving area closed, exceeds 65 dBA between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. or 55 dBA between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m."

Sec. 11-34: "A report of an alleged violation of any of the provisions defined in Section 11-37 shall only be initiated by a call for service to the Department of Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response or other verbal complaint made by a complainant to a police officer."

Sec. 11-37(g): "No person shall allow any animal or bird to create sound such that it is plainly audible inside the confines of another person's dwelling unit, house, or apartment at least once a minute for ten consecutive minutes or 50 feet or more from the animal or bird."

Sec. 11-38(a)(2): "The second violation of this article committed by such person within seven days of the first violation shall be punished by a civil penalty in the amount of $200.00."

Sec. 11-38(a)(3): "The third and any subsequent violation of this article committed by such person within 14 days of the first violation shall be punished by a civil penalty in the amount of $500.00."

Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (Code of the City of Richmond, Virginia, 2026 (the "Richmond Code"), Chapter 11 "Environment," Article II "Sound Control," Secs. 11-32 (definitions), 11-33 (declaration of findings and policy), 11-34 (administration and enforcement), 11-35 (testing of metering devices), 11-36 (exemptions), 11-37 (violations) and 11-38 (penalties) (Code 2020, §§ 11-32 to 11-38; Ord. No. 2022-219, § 3, 11-14-2022; Secs. 11-34, 11-37 and 11-38 amended by Ord. No. 2024-194, § 1, 7-22-2024; Sec. 11-36 amended by Ord. No. 2024-094, § 1, 9-9-2024); with Secs. 4-1 and 4-244 (animals as a public nuisance), 6-422, 6-456 and 6-485 (peddlers and vendors), 8-342 (Festival Park) and 24-229 (sidewalk cafes). The 2026 recodification kept the 2020 section numbers. Text read on Municode (the City's code host; "Recodification codified through Ordinance No. 2025-207, adopted October 14, 2025") on 2026-10-05.). Verified against the live code on 2026-10-05. 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 Richmond

Call the police non-emergency line. Under Sec. 11-34 the Chief of Police enforces and administers the sound control program, and a report of a violation "shall only be initiated by a call for service to the Department of Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response or other verbal complaint made by a complainant to a police officer." The Department of Emergency Communications page on rva.gov says it "answers and dispatches all 911 and non-emergency calls for the City of Richmond" and lists phone (804) 646-5100, and the Richmond Police Department's Contact Us page says "The Richmond Police Non-Emergency Number is (804) 646-5100"; use 911 for emergencies. The code does not list RVA311 (3-1-1 or 804-646-7000, rva311.com or the RVA311 app; call center Monday-Thursday 8:00 am to 7:00 pm and Friday 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, closed weekends and City holidays) as a way to start a sound complaint. An officer who finds a violation may serve a notice of violation; if the person operating the source cannot be identified, any owner, tenant, resident or manager physically present who has dominion and control over it may be charged; and the civil penalty must be paid within 15 days of receiving the notice, failing which the City may file a warrant in debt in the General District Court (11-38(c)). Sources: https://www.rva.gov/911, https://www.rva.gov/police/contact-us and https://www.rva.gov/citizen-service-and-response/about-rva-311.

Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Richmond. 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) Civil penalties, by the hour: $100 for a first violation, $200 for a second within seven days of the first, and $500 for a third or later within 14 days of the first; each hour of a continuing violation is a separate offense; an admission of liability or no-contest plea is not evidence of a criminal violation (11-38). (2) A complainant is required: the text lets a report start only from a call to the Department of Emergency Communications or a verbal complaint to an officer (11-34). (3) Ord. No. 2024-194 (7-22-2024) deleted the former decibel limits for motor vehicles and motorcycles on a public right-of-way (76 to 90 dBA at 50 feet, by vehicle class and speed limit), and narrowed the plainly-audible rule for vehicle radios, horns and other electronic devices, which had applied to any motor vehicle, to parked or otherwise stopped vehicles; it also added the rule that a report must start with a call for service or a verbal complaint to an officer (11-34), and replaced the old in-person or mail appearance procedure with payment within 15 days. (4) Quiet zones need signs: the place-of-worship limit applies only while services are occurring and a sign says so, and the health care limit only where a "Health Care Facility Quiet Zone" sign is posted (11-37(d), (e)). (5) Apartment and condominium readings are taken inside the complaining unit with windows and doors closed; hotels, motels and lodginghouses are excluded (11-37(b)). (6) Exemptions (11-36): emergency warnings, emergency work and emergency vehicle signals; activities under a permit issued under Sec. 27-417 for marathons, public assemblies, demonstrations and parades; aircraft, trains and motor carriers operating under federal law; school and college bands, athletics and other school-sanctioned activities on school grounds; bells and carillons; construction and power tools from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; refuse collection from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.; lawfully permitted fireworks; activities on grounds operated or regulated by the Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities; and sound from business on industrial property, as Code of Virginia § 15.2-980 requires (added by Ord. No. 2024-094, the only amendment to Sec. 11-36 since 2022; the 2022 text exempted refuse collection from 5:00 a.m., the current text from 7:00 a.m.). (7) Animals are also covered by Chapter 4: an animal that "Barks, whines, howls, or makes other annoying noises in an excessive, continuous, or untimely fashion" is a public nuisance (4-1), and an owner may be summoned to General District Court, which can order the animal confined, euthanized or removed, or the nuisance otherwise abated; failing to exercise proper care and control to prevent an animal from becoming a public nuisance is a Class 2 misdemeanor, and a second or later conviction a Class 1 misdemeanor (4-244). (8) The 2026 recodification kept the 2020 section numbers, and references to the 2020 Code on City forms, notices and signs are deemed to reference the successor provisions (1-1(b)). (9) Other sound rules sit outside Article II: peddlers may not cry goods within 300 feet of a hospital, a school building or a place of worship while services are being held (6-422); sidewalk vendors may not use a loudspeaker, public address system, radio, sound amplifier or similar device to attract attention (6-456(b)(13), 6-485(7)); sidewalk cafes may not have televisions, other electronic audio or visual devices or means of producing amplified sound (24-229(c)); and in Festival Park radios and other amplified sound are allowed only through headphones that no one else can hear, except at events approved or sponsored by the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority or the City (8-342).

Document it before you report it

Richmond's limits are measured numbers, so a reading is direct evidence of how loud it really is. Take a quick reading with the free online decibel meter — it runs in your browser and records nothing — and check how loud your block is on the Richmond noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.