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The loudest cities in Utah, ranked by noise exposure
4 Utah cities make the measured federal noise ranking. Provo leads with 7% of residents above 60 dB of road, rail and aviation noise, while half the state's ranked cities fall at or below 4.8%.
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| Utah # | City | US # | ≥60 dB | ≥70 dB | 45–60 dB | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Provo | 52 | 7% | 1.3% | 34.1% | 102,249 |
| 2 | Salt Lake City | 88 | 5.7% | 1.3% | 48.2% | 207,852 |
| 3 | West Valley City | 207 | 3.8% | 0.6% | 46.3% | 131,315 |
| 4 | West Jordan | 216 | 3.6% | 0.5% | 47.4% | 116,570 |
Utah's 4 ranked cities are home to 557,986 residents. By share above 60 dB the field reads Provo (7%), Salt Lake City (5.7%), West Valley City (3.8%), West Jordan (3.6%), ending at West Jordan (3.6%). The median lands at 4.8%, and 0 of 4 sit above the 10% line. Provo carries the state's worst severe exposure — 1.3% of residents above 70 dB, the hearing-risk threshold — while Salt Lake City, the largest at 207,852 people, ranks #88 nationally at 5.7%. Behind Provo's headline 7%, 1.3% of its residents are in the severe 70 dB+ band and 34.1% in the moderate 45–60 dB range.
Each figure is a transparent aggregation of the 2020 federal noise map and Census population — no estimation, and no credit for sirens, industry or crowds. Open any Utah city below for its full census-tract map, then measure your own street with the free live meter.
Which Utah cities are the noisiest?
By this federal data the noisiest Utah cities are the same as the loudest, since "noisiest" here means measured road, rail and aviation exposure: Provo, Salt Lake City, West Valley City top the list, led by Provo at 7%. The full ranking is in the table above.
Utah noise: the numbers
- 4 Utah cities of 100,000+ residents are in the ranking — 25th-most of any state.
- Loudest: Provo at 7% of residents above 60 dB (national #52 of 297).
- Highest severe exposure: Provo, 1.3% of residents above 70 dB.
- Median Utah city: 4.8% above 60 dB; 0 of 4 clear 10%.
- Combined population of the 4: 557,986 (ACS 2016–2020).
How this ranking is measured
These are the same federal measurements behind the national ranking of all 297 US cities — the BTS 2020 National Transportation Noise Map (road + rail + aviation) overlaid with Census ACS 2016–2020 population at census-tract level, with no estimation by us. Full methodology and the free CSV/JSON are on that page. It counts transportation noise only: sirens, construction and nightlife are outside the model.
How loud is your street?
Rankings describe city averages — your block is its own story. Check it with the free online decibel meter, or open any city above for its full census-tract noise map.