- Worcester has the noisiest neighbours, with a monthly average of 204 Google searches relating to noise complaints per 100,000 people
- Thousands are searching for the 11pm noise rule, which bans excessive noise overnight and can lead to fines or seized gear
- 450,000 noise complaints hit UK councils in 2022 as tolerance dropped and living spaces shrank
According to a new study, Worcester has the noisiest neighbours in the UK.
Acoustic experts DECIBEL investigated which UK areas have the noisiest neighbours. They did this by looking at the average monthly Google searches in 78 UK areas for over 100 keywords and terms, such as ‘noise complaint,’ ‘neighbour noise complaint,’ ‘council noise complaint,’ and ‘noise complaint police.’
These searches were compared to local populations to calculate the rate per 100,000 people. Each area was then ranked from the highest number of searches to the lowest.
UK areas with the noisiest neighbours – Top 10
| Rank | Area | Average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people |
| 1 | Worcester | 204 |
| 2 | Eastbourne | 184 |
| 3 | Blackpool | 176 |
| 4 | Ipswich | 172 |
| 5 | Wakefield | 171 |
| 6 | Reading | 170 |
| 7 | Portsmouth | 169 |
| 8 | Middlesbrough | 167 |
| 9 | Stockport | 166 |
| 10 | Dundee | 163 |
1. Worcester – 204 average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people
Worcester has the noisiest neighbours in the UK, with a monthly average of 204 Google searches per 100,000 people.
The joint most searched-for term in Worcester is ‘noise complaint,’ with an average of 11 monthly searches. The other most searched-for term in the city is ‘noisy neighbours law 11 PM.’
2. Eastbourne – 184 average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people
Eastbourne has the second-highest number of searches related to noisy neighbours, with a monthly average of 184 searches per 100,000 people.
The joint most searched-for terms in Eastbourne are ‘noisy neighbours law 11 PM’ and ‘noise complaint,’ which both have an average of 10 searches per month.
3. Blackpool – 176 average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people
The third UK area with the noisiest neighbours is Blackpool, with a monthly average of 176 searches per 100,000 people.
The most searched-for term in Blackpool is ‘noise complaint,’ with 22 searches on average per month. The second most searched-for term is ‘noisy neighbours law 11 PM,’ with an average of 17 searches per month.
4. Ipswich – 172 average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people
The fourth UK area with the noisiest neighbours is Ipswich, with a monthly average of 172 searches per 100,000 people.
The joint most searched-for terms in Ipswich are ‘noisy neighbours law 11 PM’ and ‘noise complaint,’ with an average of 16 searches per month.
5. Wakefield – 171 average monthly Google searches per 100,000 people
Wakefield is the UK city with the fifth highest number of Google searches relating to noisy neighbours, with 171 searches per 100,000 people.
The most searched-for term in Wakefield is ‘noise complaint,’ with an average of 17 searches per month. The second most searched-for term is ‘noisy neighbours law 11 PM,’ with an average of 15 searches per month.
PhD. Eng. Tsvetan Nedkov, Acoustic Engineer and Founder of DECIBEL, commented on the findings:
“Your home is a place for you to feel safe and relaxed, so when faced with noise disturbances such as noisy neighbours, it can cause stress and even anxiety.
“According to Direct Line Group, there were nearly 450,000 noise complaints to councils across the UK in 2022. The high number of complaints can be attributed to both a lower tolerance for noisy neighbours and a growing population living in smaller vicinities, causing tension within communities.”
