Dishwashers are a staple in most homes and are increasingly energy-efficient to the point where they actually use less water than washing dishes manually if you can believe it. New washing and drying technology gets dishes spotless with less work on your part.
They’ve also gotten quieter over the years. In the past, dishwashers could be quite loud and not just the pump draining the water. The splash of water against the insides of the machine and on the dishes produced a loud sound too.
As a kid I actually assumed the loudness was good. The louder the water sound, the cleaner the dishes, right?
Is this true, though?
The noise that a dishwasher makes has no correlation to how well it washes dishes. Better dishwasher design with more insulation and quieter pumps have reduced the sound of dishwashers to as low as 38 decibels compared to older dishwashers that often hit 60 dB or more. But new washing and detergent technologies means more effective washing than before.
I decided to take a closer look at dishwasher technology to see how much sound it makes compared to other home appliances, what factors determine how loud a dishwasher is and whether or not an extra quiet dishwasher is worth the cost.
What is a decibel and how does it measure sound?
Decibel (dB) is the unit of measurement for sound. You may also see the acronym dBA which is an adjusted measurement that accounts for the fact that the human ear doesn’t respond equally to all frequencies.
Plus some sounds (nails on a chalkboard) are generally more annoying than other sounds (birds chirping).
It should be noted that the decibel scale is logarithmic and increases by a power of 10 each time. A 10 dB increase in sound is 10x louder but a 20 dB increase is 100x louder. Our ears hear logarithmically but sound is distorted in the ear as it gets louder.
So how do current dishwasher stack up in terms of the noise they make during operation?
What is the decibel level of a quiet dishwasher?
An extra quiet dishwasher produces sound as low as 38 dB but you’ll pay for it. The most popular regular built-in dishwashers from quality brands run from $400 – $800 and with a decibel level up to 59 dB easy to find. Comparable extra quiet models cost $750 – $1400 so you are paying several hundred dollars more for the silence.
Bosch, Miele, GE, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air are brands who produce dishwasher models rated at 38 dB – 39 dB. It was Bosch that introduced the concept of super-quiet dishwashers back in the early 2000s that led to rival companies trying to meet and beat this quiet level of operation.
Back in the day, average dishwashers were in the 60 dB – 70 dB range so newer models are quieter than before.
But for the average person, these are just numbers and don’t really mean much without context. And unless you’re standing or sitting next to your dishwasher you might not actually care how loud it is.
And as we’ll see below, the level of noise emitted in no way determines how well the dishwasher cleans. That’s not to say that the noise level shouldn’t be a factor in your purchase, however.
Let’s take a look at how the sound of dishwashers compare to other noises around the house.
How loud is a dishwasher compared to other things in my home?
A typical home appliance tends to fall in the 40 dB – 60 dB range although as we’ll see below, there are a number of popular ones that are much louder.
Generally speaking, a sound up to 70 dB – the average sound level for a television – is safe for human ears but as the level of sound increases, extended exposure to higher levels can damage your hearing.
And if your dishwasher happens to be near a tv or an area you’d like to be quiet, it can be annoying if you’re trying to concentrate, have a quiet conversation or listen to something with a running dishwasher in the background.
With that in mind, here are some decibel ranges for various popular sounds around the house including home appliances and how they compare to an extra quiet, quiet and older model dishwasher.
| Household sounds | Average decibel (dB) level |
| Regular breathing | 10 dB |
| Whisper (within 5′) | 30 dB |
| Dishwasher (extra quiet) | 38 dB – 39dB |
| Dishwasher (quiet) | 40 dB – 49dB |
| Washing machine | 50 dB – 75 dB |
| Dishwasher (older brands) | 55 dB – 70dB |
| Clothing dryer | 60 dB – 70 dB |
| TV | 70 dB |
| Lawnmower | 65 dB – 95 dB |
| Electric mixer | 80 dB – 90 dB |
| Snowblower | 105 dB |
| Leaf blower | 110 dB |
What factors determine how loud a dishwasher is?
The amount of sound produced by your dishwasher is impacted by a number of factors including:
- Level of insulation built into the dishwasher.
- Sound of the water being pumped into the dishwasher.
- Sound of the water hitting the insides of the dishwasher.
- The speed(s) offered by the dishwasher, some of which have variable speeds to lower the sound.
- The movement of dishes and cutlery in the dishwasher as they’re being cleaned.
- The sounds of cutlery hitting each other or hitting the spinning wash arms in some cases.
- The sound of the pump removing water at the end of each cycle.
- The actual design of the dishwasher and its parts including the use of quieter pumps.
What factors determine how well a dishwasher cleans dishes?
Modern built-in dishwashers from known brands are similar in terms of cleaning ability but that certainly doesn’t mean they are equal. Then again, your habits regarding how you stack your dishwasher are also relevant.
Your dishwasher will clean dishes better if you do the following:
- Use soft water either from a whole house water softener or through a water softener built into your dishwasher (more likely in Europe). If you have each, it’s best to use both of them.
- Remove food and rinse dirty dishes first if specified in your owner’s manual.
- Take advantage of the settings on your model including longer washes, higher temperature washes, and extra clean zones if warranted.
- Properly pack your dishwasher and don’t overload it.
- Have an adequate water supply with hot enough water. (Check the water valve underneath you sink to ensure it’s open enough and that your water heater has the correct temperature).
- Use a quality detergent and rinse aid.
- Clean the filter to ensure it isn’t clogged. (This link discusses several dishwasher topics including cleaning the filter.). Many people simply don’t know this is even something you need to do.
- Clean the inside of the dishwasher including rubber seals from time to time if needed and use the built-in cleaning cycle if your model has one. Also a necessary maintenance task.
As you can see, none of these factors mentions the sound of your dishwasher in any way.
Is an extra quiet dishwasher worth purchasing?
You can purchase extra quiet dishwashers from manufacturers such as Samsung, KitchenAid, GE and Bosch in the 38 dB – 39 dB range for $750 – $1400 depending on whether or not the unit is on sale.
So the units range widely in price but then again you also need to fit find a dishwasher that fits your space and suits what you need in terms of its features.
If you want to spend several hundred extra dollars on this extra quiet feature, it might be worth it to you. Again, the benefit to you is the slightly lower sound that is emits, and nothing more.
It’s generally accepted that a dishwasher that is rated at 45 dB or less is considered “virtually silent” and compares to the quiet din in a library in terms of noise. A dishwasher in the 45 dB – 50 dB range isn’t much louder to the human ear and compares to the sound of rain falling.
In every case, the level of sound produced by the dishwasher isn’t a determining factor in how well your dishes are cleaned.
Summary
Over time, the sound produced by a dishwasher when in operation has gotten progressively quieter with better designs and more insulation to muffle the noise. While extra quiet dishwasher in the 38 dB and 39 dB range are increasingly available from different manufacturers, the cost may increase up to several hundred dollars over similar, slightly louder brands.
Many other dishwasher models in the 40 dB+ range clean dishes just as well if not better since sound is not known to impact the quality of washing. Your household might be happy with saving money and purchasing a slightly louder dishwasher that in the scheme of things, won’t negatively impact the loudness in your house to any large degree.
In the end, your dishwasher habits as described above will determine how well your machine cleans your dishes, not the level of sound it produces.