Are you currently having trouble sleeping? Do you have noisy neighbours or live near a busy road? Do you want to get a good night’s sleep without the need to invest in an expensive soundproofing solution?
If the answer is yes to any of those questions, then I can help you.
I am often asked by visitors to the website if I have any advice on how to sleep in a noisy apartment, but without having to spend lots of money on soundproofing.
This guide will give you some great tips, many of which I used myself when I lived in a noisy apartment as a student.
There will be some small items you might want to purchase, all of which I used successfully when trying to drown out noise from the street below me, or to block out noise from the neighbors.
Quick Solutions You Could Try
Step 1: Buy A Pair of Earbuds or Earplugs
By far the cheapest solution and answer to the question is a pair of budget earbuds. They won’t completely kill the noise you hear in the apartment, but they can offer a lot of relief, and will help you sleep better.
You aren’t going to get total noise blackout, as even if you block the ear canal, noise will be conducted via the bones in your head. Without completely soundproofing the apartment, you are never going to get complete silence.
But, earbuds are certainly going to offer some form of soundproofing and in theory will help you to sleep better in your noisy apartment.
All earbuds on the market come with a NRR rating – this stands for Noise Reduction Rating. The better the earbuds, the better the NRR rating, so always shop for the best ones that you can afford.
Buy cheap, and you might buy again.
Spend a little more money, and you won’t regret it after all, you shouldn’t have to put a price on a good night’s sleep for your own health and sanity.
If you want something really cheap though, then take a look at the disposable Mack’s ear plugs for sleeping. You can buy a pack for under ten dollars, but needless to say, they are no where near as good as the more advanced Eargasm ear plugs from the previous paragraph.
Step 2: Build up Rapport with Your Noisy Neighbors
A solution that doesn’t involve spending any money is simply to talk to your neighboring apartment. Sometimes this can be far more effective than trying to learn how to block out noise from the neighbors.
Be polite and approach your neighbor with kindness is the best advice here. If this doesn’t work, then speak to your landlord of the agent running the apartment building to see what they can do.
And if you were interested, scientists completed a study in 2014 to discover where the noisiest places where in the United States – you can read that report here to see where your city or state registers on the noise scale.
Step 3: Buy a White Noise Machine (Sound Dohm)
Another tip which involves spending a little money is a white noise machine (also known as a sound dohm). These are sometime used in nurseries and baby’s rooms to help them sleep better, but do also work with adults who cannot get a good night’s sleep.
Sleep-aid white noise machines emit soothing sounds such as music, rain, wind, highway traffic and ocean waves (source: Wikipedia) – this is all mixed with white noise which is scientifically proven to aid sleep – I wrote another blog post about how white noise machines work for sleep.
As a result, you will be able to tune out and reduce the amount of sound you don’t want to hear in your noisy apartment, whether from neighbors or nearby street.
As with the ear plugs, you can pick them up cheaply on Amazon. I recommend the Marpac Sound Dohm. Combine this with ear buds, and you will soon start sleeping a lot better in your apartment.
Want to Find Out About Soundproofing an Apartment?
OK, so those are some very cheap solutions which will help you get a better night’s sleep in a noisy apartment, but there are some longer term, more practical solutions you could look at.
If you do want to explore options on how to soundproof your apartment, room, window, or door in a house, then please click here for various guides to soundproofing your home.
