Mumbai, India “Thanks to the major traffic and serious overpopulation, this is considered the noisiest city in the world with sound levels that can top over 100 decibels,” is how Sound Proof Cow describes Mumbai, India.
1. Dhaka (Bangladesh) – 119dB. In April 2022, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) named Bangladesh's capital the world's noisiest city. In 1999, the World Health Organisation published guidelines stating that noise levels above 70dB over a prolonged period can lead to a greater chance of hearing loss.
The highest noise pollution of 119 db has been recorded in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. At third place is Pakistan's capital Islamabad, where the noise pollution level has been recorded at 105 db.
Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad, famously known as 'brass city', has become the second noisiest city globally.
Top of our list of quietest places on Earth is the place described as “where sound goes to die”. This Microsoft research lab in the city of Redmond, Washington, is officially the quietest place on Earth, according to Guinness World Records.
Australia topped the list as the least polluted country in the world, with 7 cities in the top 25. Of the 25 least polluted cities in the world with the best air quality, Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Estonia) dominated the rankings with some of the cleanest air in the world in 2022.
Tokyo, Japan
It has a population of 35 million people. The noise pollution level of Tokyo is at 90 decibels and sometimes higher. The main source of noise in Tokyo is construction sites. The noise made by equipment in construction sites can be heard all over the city.
The UNEP report further found that Irbrid in Jordan at 60 decibels was the world's quietest city, followed by Lyon in France (69 dB), Madrid in Spain (69 dB), Sweden's capital Stockholm in (70 dB) and Belgrade in Serbia (70 dB).
With active populations, road traffic, industry, and construction, cities are expectedly noisy places.
In 2015, Microsoft built a room that is now officially designated in the Guinness Book of Records as the quietest place on Earth. Dubbed the anechoic chamber, it is located at the company's headquarters in Redmond, Washington.
Mumbai, India
Known as the entertainment, commercial fashion and financial capital of India, Mumbai's severe city traffic and overpopulation can lead to noise of over 100 decibels, and it has been declared the noisiest city in the world in previous studies.
Top 10 countries with the world's worst air pollution
Chad was the country with the worst air quality in the world in 2022. On average, Chad measured 18 times higher than the five microgram safety threshold, according to the World Health Organization's guidelines. All 10 are developing countries.
Australia air quality is generally among some of the cleanest in the world, although the country is vulnerable to short-term extreme pollution spikes which occur due to bushfires and dust storms.
The world's cleanest air is just across the Bass Strait. It's in North-Western Tasmania on the Cape Grim Peninsula where you can find the cleanest air on the planet, according to a measuring station on the cape.
Tasmania is widely known for having the cleanest air in the world – combine that with some of the best scenery, unique wildlife and its rich history, it makes this Australian destination a must-visit.
Wahroonga in New South Wales
The suburb of Wahroonga was named after the aboriginal word 'our home'. The area is one of the quietest places in Australia to live.
The room, known as the anechoic chamber, is located in the company's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, US. It took two years to build the room and it is completely soundproof from outside noise and any internal noise is completely silenced.
Steve Orfield explained: “what the chamber tends to do is it tends to scare people because when you get in the chamber, everything gets tremendously quiet. You feel like there's pressure on your ears – but it's actually pressure moving away from your ears.