Window AC Unit Noise Ratings

The manufacturer noise ratings of several window air conditioning units are listed below. It is difficult to make direct comparisons with between the manufacturer data because they do not provide detailed enough information. Sound pressure is the noise that a human perceives and it requires a noise in (db) and a distance to be described accurately, as well as some other factors.

The window ac manufacturers simply list a db value. The table below can be used for comparisons between different window air conditioners. Many manufacturers do not provide sound data for their units: Haier, Fedders, GE, and Amana. Typically, window ac units control to three different fan speeds and this represents the high, mid, and low noise levels. When looking for quiet air conditioners look for units with a sleep mode as this will be a mode of operation specifically targeted towards quiet operation.

Manufacturer	Model	BTU	Noise High	Noise Mid	Noise Low
Frigidaire	FAX052P7A	5,000	53	50	48
Frigidaire	FAA062P7A	6,000	55.3	52.1	51.1
Frigidaire	FRA065AT7	6,000	54.5	50.2	47.6
Frigidaire	FAA065P7A	6,000	55.3	52.1	51.1
Frigidaire	FRA086AT7	8,000	61.2	58.8	56.5
Frigidaire	FAA086P7A	8,000	61.2	58.8	56.5
Frigidaire	FRA106CT1	10,000	59.3	57.2	55.1
Frigidaire	FAC109S1A	10,000	58.3	55.7	53.1
Frigidaire	FAC102P1A	10,000	61.5	59.4	57.1
Frigidaire	FRA126CT1	12,000	61.2	57.6	51.7
Frigidaire	FAC124P1A	12,000	62.9	59.4	55.4
Frigidaire	FAM186R2A	18,500	59.6	56.4	53.3
Frigidaire	FAS226R2A	22,000	62.5	59.7	57.2
Frigidaire	FRA25EST2	25,000	62.5	59.7	57.2
Frigidaire	FAS256R2A	25,000	62.5	59.7	57.2
LG	LWA2DW1AF1	9,000	-	45	-
LG	LWA3EW2DD1	12,000	-	48	-
LG	LWA3DW3DD1	12,000	-	48	-
LG	LWA5FW1DF1	18,000	-	52	-
LG	LWA5VW3DT1	18,000	-	52	-
LG	LWA6EW1DF1	24,000	-	55	-
Sharp	AF-Q60PX	6,300	56	55	53
Sharp	AF-Q80PX	8,000	57	55	53
Sharp	AF-Q100PX	10,000	57	55	53
Sharp	AF-Q120PX	12,000	57	55	53
Soleus Air	KC-30H	9,700	58	-	53
Soleus Air	KC-35H	11,600	58	-	53
Sunpentown	WA-6591S	6,500	54	-	50
Sunpentown	WA-8291S	8,200	57	-	54
Sunpentown	WA-1091S	10,000	63	-	56

In general larger units are louder than smaller units. This becomes an effect of a space limitation. There is a limited size available to mount the unit (typical window sizes). So, to get more air conditioning capacity through the same amount of space a higher level of airflow is needed as well as a larger compressor. The higher level of airflow creates more noise and louder operation of the unit. This effect can be seen below in the figure of the air conditioner sound data. The trendline goes from 53 db to 58 db which may not seem like a large difference, but it is very much worth considering as explained later.

Window AC Noise vs. Cooling

The 5db difference turns out to be 1.75 times louder in terms of sound pressure. The 58 db unit is ~1.75 times higher in sound pressure. A plot of the difference in how many times higher the sound pressure of a window air conditioning unit is vs. the decibel (db) difference is plotted below. Noise of a window air unit is a very critical aspect when making a decision on which unit to purchase.

Window AC Sound Pressure