How to Reduce Noise in a Restaurant: Ceilings, Walls, Music

To reduce noise in a restaurant, add sound-absorbing surfaces, starting with the ceiling and then the walls closest to tables, so voices stop building on each other. Then turn background music down, keep seating within what the room can handle acoustically, and add soft furnishings. Hard ceilings, walls and floors, plus guests raising their voices, cause most restaurant noise.

Last reviewed: October 2026 by the Linegrain specification team.

Why are restaurants so loud?

Most noisy restaurants are not loud because of the kitchen or the music. They are loud because of the guests, and the room makes it worse.

Three things combine:

• Hard surfaces. Exposed concrete soffits, glass shopfronts, tiled floors, timber tables and plaster walls are popular, durable and easy to clean, but they reflect almost all of the sound that hits them. Each conversation keeps bouncing around the room long after it was spoken.
• The Lombard effect. People raise their voices automatically when background noise rises. In his paper on restaurant acoustics, acoustician Jens Holger Rindel describes the effect starting at a background level of about 45 dB, with speech rising by 0.5 to 0.7 dB for every 1 dB increase in noise (Rindel, Acoustics in Practice, 2019). Every table talks louder, which makes the room louder, which makes every table talk louder again.
• Too many people for the room. Rindel notes that a fully occupied restaurant typically exceeds its acoustic capacity by a factor of two or more. Packing in more covers raises noise faster than many operators expect.

Background music then sits on top. Turned up to compete with the crowd, it adds to the problem.

How loud are restaurants, and how loud is too loud?

Field measurements show how common the problem is. Gregory Scott of SoundPrint reported to the Acoustical Society of America that more than 1,800 Manhattan restaurants and bars were measured at least three times. Restaurants averaged 78 dBA and bars 81 dBA, and about 71% of restaurants and 90% of bars were rated as not conducive to conversation (Acoustical Society of America, 2017).

Laboratory work suggests guests notice much lower levels. In a study at the University of Illinois, participants listening to restaurant-type noise began to be disturbed above about 52 dB(A), their willingness to spend time and money in the venue dropped at around 51 to 53 dB(A), and vocal effort rose at twice the rate above about 57 dB(A). The author suggests keeping background noise below 50 to 55 dB(A) (Bottalico, Acoustical Society of America). The study used 28 college students in a controlled setting, so treat the exact numbers as indicative, but the direction is clear.

Does restaurant noise really cost customers?

Survey evidence says yes, especially for guests with hearing loss. Action on Hearing Loss (now RNID) surveyed 1,461 people for its Speak Easy report, almost three-quarters of whom had hearing loss, tinnitus or both. It found that:

• 79% had left a restaurant, café or pub early because of noise;
• 91% would not return to a venue if noise levels were too high;
• 76% would eat out more often if venues were quieter;
• 81% had difficulty holding a conversation because of environmental noise.

Because the sample leans towards people with hearing loss, these figures describe an important group of customers rather than every diner. Even so, the same report found that 84% of respondents without hearing loss said lower noise was important when choosing a restaurant.

How many guests can a room handle acoustically?

Rindel defines acoustic capacity as the maximum number of people in a room that still allows sufficient quality of conversation at 1 m. It can be approximated as N_max ≈ V / (20 T), where V is the room volume in m³ and T is the mid-frequency reverberation time in seconds of the furnished, unoccupied room. He also suggests that seating should not exceed acoustic capacity by more than 25% (Rindel, 2019).

Worked example: a 60-cover dining room

Take a dining room of 150 m² (about 1,615 ft²) with a 3.2 m ceiling, giving 480 m³, and 60 covers. Using Rindel’s approximation:

Reverberation time (worked example)	Acoustic capacity Nmax	60 covers vs capacity	Absorption needed (Sabine, m²)
1.2 s (hard finishes)	20 people	3.0 times capacity	64
0.8 s	30 people	2.0 times capacity	97
0.6 s	40 people	1.5 times capacity	129
0.5 s	48 people	1.25 times capacity (within Rindel’s 25% margin)	155

In this example, moving from 1.2 s to 0.5 s means adding roughly 90 m² of sound absorption, for instance by treating most of the 150 m² ceiling with high-absorption baffles, clouds or a slat ceiling with felt behind it, plus wall panels near seating. Real projects need octave-band calculations and the actual absorption data of the products, but the example shows why acoustic treatment and cover count have to be planned together.

Should you treat the ceiling or the walls?

Usually both, in that order. Rindel’s paper puts it simply: the ceiling is the obvious surface, but often parts of the walls must also be included.

Ceiling treatment

The ceiling is the largest surface free of furniture, it is out of reach of guests and staff, and it sits directly above the conversations you want to absorb. Options include:

• Wood slat ceilings with acoustic felt or mineral wool behind them, which keep a warm timber look. See the wood slat acoustic ceiling panel.
• Baffles hung in rows, ideal for high or exposed ceilings and for working around ducts and lighting. See PET acoustic ceiling baffles.
• Clouds over table groups, useful where the ceiling must stay mostly visible.
• Wood wool panels for an industrial look and a hard-wearing surface.

Our guide to acoustic panels on ceilings compares these options in more detail.

Wall treatment

Walls matter most next to seating, where reflections return straight to diners’ ears, and on long hard walls that face each other. Good locations are behind banquettes, along booth backs, on the wall opposite a glass frontage and in corners. Slat panels give a timber feature wall that absorbs through the felt in the gaps; felt panels and printed art panels can hide absorption in plain sight, an option the Speak Easy report also mentions. Keep wall panels at seated head height and above, where they are most effective and less exposed to chairs and bags.

Floors, furniture and soft finishes

Smaller measures add up. The Speak Easy report suggests carpets, curtains, tablecloths and rubber caps on chair legs. Upholstered banquettes and chairs add absorption where people sit; rugs in waiting areas help; heavy curtains at a glazed frontage absorb sound and cut reflections from the glass.

Surface	Options	Strengths	Watch-outs
Ceiling	Slat ceiling, baffles, clouds, wood wool	Largest area, out of reach, high absorption	Coordinate with lighting, sprinklers, ventilation
Walls near seating	Slat panels, felt panels, art panels	Treat reflections at ear height; strong design feature	Protect lower edges; check cleaning needs
Furniture	Upholstered banquettes, booth backs	Absorption right where guests sit	Wear and cleaning
Floor and textiles	Rugs, curtains, tablecloths, chair caps	Low cost, quick to add	Limited effect on their own

What operational changes reduce restaurant noise?

• Turn the music down. In the Speak Easy survey, 92% of respondents put reducing background music among their top three changes. Rindel suggests background music should not exceed about 60 dB for satisfactory conversation.
• Create quieter zones. Seat tables away from doors, the kitchen pass and bar, and keep one area free of speakers. Train staff to offer those tables to guests who ask.
• Space tables. Fewer, better-spaced covers in the busiest hours keep the room closer to its acoustic capacity.
• Keep lighting good. Many people with hearing loss lip-read; dim lighting makes noisy rooms harder still.

What else should you check before installing panels?

• Fire classification: restaurant linings must meet the lining class for their location; see our guide to fire rated acoustic panels.
• Cleaning and grease: keep felt away from kitchens and food preparation; choose lacquered timber or wipeable faces near service areas.
• Services coordination: agree baffle layouts with lighting, sprinkler and ventilation designers early.
• Measure before and after: a reverberation measurement by an acoustician, or at least consistent sound level readings at busy times, shows whether the treatment worked.

If you want the background on how slat panels absorb sound, read do acoustic slat panels work. For a feature wall in a dining room, the smoked oak acoustic slat panel suits hospitality interiors.

FAQ

What is a comfortable noise level in a restaurant?

Research at the University of Illinois found diners started to be disturbed above about 52 dB(A) and suggested keeping background noise below 50 to 55 dB(A). Busy restaurants often run far higher; measurements in Manhattan averaged 78 dBA.

Will acoustic panels make my restaurant quiet?

They reduce reverberation, so conversations stop building into a roar and guests do not need to raise their voices as much. The room will still sound lively when it is full, but speech becomes easier at the table. Treat the ceiling first for the biggest effect.

Is it better to put acoustic panels on the ceiling or the walls?

Start with the ceiling, because it is the largest free surface and sits above the conversations. Add wall panels next to seating and on hard walls facing each other. Most noisy restaurants need some of both.

How much acoustic treatment does a restaurant need?

It depends on volume, finishes and covers. In our worked example, a 480 m³ dining room with 60 covers needed about 90 m² of extra absorption to bring reverberation from 1.2 s to 0.5 s. An acoustician can calculate it for your room.

Planning a quieter dining room? Send us your floor plan, ceiling height and cover count and we will propose ceiling and wall treatment to quote. Request a quote.