About SoundMeter

Our mission

SoundMeter exists because noise measurement shouldn't require expensive hardware or complicated software. We believe everyone — teachers, remote workers, podcasters, parents, musicians, and renters — deserves a quick, free, and honest way to answer a simple question: how loud is it here?

We built a browser-based tool that gives you that answer in seconds. No app download, no account creation, no subscription. Open the page, click start, and see your noise level. That's it.

Who we are

We're a small team of audio engineers and web developers based in India, with combined experience in digital signal processing, acoustics, and front-end development. Our backgrounds span:

  • Audio engineering — Digital signal processing, FFT analysis, microphone characterization, and audio pipeline design
  • Acoustics — Environmental noise assessment, room acoustics, hearing safety standards (OSHA, NIOSH, WHO guidelines)
  • Web development — Modern browser APIs (Web Audio API, getUserMedia), static site architecture, performance optimization
  • Education — Making technical concepts accessible to non-specialists through clear writing and interactive tools

We're not a venture-backed startup. SoundMeter is an independent project built because the existing online meters were broken — they all used default browser audio processing that made readings unreliable. We fixed that one specific problem and built everything else around it.

What makes SoundMeter different

When we tested other online sound meters, we found a consistent problem: they all showed similar readings regardless of actual noise level. A quiet bedroom and a noisy kitchen would both read around 50-55 dB. The reason? Browsers apply automatic gain control (AGC) by default, compressing the audio signal before measurement.

Our tool explicitly disables AGC, noise suppression, and echo cancellation via the getUserMedia API. This gives you raw, unprocessed audio from your microphone — the only way to get an honest dB reading from a browser.

Beyond that core fix, we built a comprehensive suite of tools:

  • Sound Meter — General-purpose dB measurement with waveform, spectrum, and session statistics
  • Noise Meter — Ambient noise monitoring with event logging and ordinance comparison
  • Sound Level Meter — Professional-style measurement with Leq, percentiles, and dose calculation
  • Frequency Analyzer — Real-time FFT spectrum with spectrogram and band energy analysis
  • Microphone Test — Hardware diagnostics with quality grading, SNR, and frequency response
  • Speaker Test — Tone generator, stereo channel verification, and frequency sweep
  • Background Noise Test — 60-second environment assessment for calls and recording
  • Classroom Noise Meter — Large-display projector mode for schools
  • Noise Exposure Calculator — NIOSH-based safe duration calculator
  • Decibel Examples — Interactive tool exploring 20-150 dB with real-world references

Our content philosophy

We write educational content because noise measurement is confusing without context. What does "72 dB" actually mean? Is it safe? How long can you be exposed? What's making that noise?

Our blog and guides answer these questions with practical, evidence-based information. We cite authoritative sources — OSHA, NIOSH/CDC, and WHO — and we're honest about limitations. When a browser-based meter isn't sufficient, we say so clearly.

Privacy commitment

Audio never leaves your device. There's no server receiving your microphone data. No accounts, no uploads, no cloud processing. The site is static HTML served from a CDN. You can verify this yourself by checking the Network tab in your browser's DevTools during measurement — you'll see zero outbound audio data.

We use Google Analytics to understand which tools and pages are most useful (page views only, no personal data). Read our full privacy policy.

Technical transparency

We document how everything works:

  • Methodology — How we capture, process, and calculate dB readings
  • Accuracy — Honest test results comparing our tool to calibrated equipment
  • Changelog — Every update documented transparently

Contact

Have a question, bug report, or suggestion? We'd love to hear from you.

  • Email: hello@onlinesoundmeter.com
  • Purpose: Bug reports, feature requests, accuracy questions, collaboration inquiries
  • Response time: Usually within 48 hours

SoundMeter is an independent project. We are not affiliated with any hardware manufacturer, acoustic consulting firm, or regulatory body. Our recommendations are based on publicly available standards (OSHA, NIOSH, WHO) and our own testing.