Before setting out to soundproof a ceiling because of loud neighbors, start by determining what kind of noises are bothering you. If you want to reduce noise from upstairs floors, a good place to start is understanding the difference between impact noises and airborne noises.

The most common type of impact noise is footsteps. Footsteps are actually the most common type of unwanted noise in multi-family residences. The reason is that many buildings do not have appropriate IIC ratings to stop impact noise (due to a variety of factors), and this particular type of noise is loud and inconsistent in a way that is very distracting to us humans. It breaks through the background and draws our attention.

After impact noise, the next more common noise complaint is, "My upstairs neighbor is so loud, I can hear every conversation!" People talking is airborne noise, and it can penetrate through or flank around your floor/ceiling. You either don’t have enough density to block the sound, or there’s some sort of air gap allowing the sound to easily travel from room to room.

After you identify the type of noise you need to stop, the next step if to determine if you’re even allowed to start soundproofing your ceiling to deal with upstairs apartment noise.

If you live in an apartment complex and you constantly hear noise from the upstairs apartment, you’ll need permission from the building’s owner before doing any soundproofing construction. If you live in a shared or duplex home owned by a single person, you’ll probably have better luck. Honestly, your best chance is to convince the building’s owner soundproofing is worth the investment, and then have them pay for the materials and labor.

If you live in a condo and deal with a loud upstairs neighbor, you should check your with your HOA on how these types of issues are handled. Some HOA guidelines specify requirements on how soundproof tile floors or any other floor assembly needs to be. It’s possible your floor-ceiling assembly is below the expected IIC or STC rating (typically an IIC rating must be 50 or even 55).

Whether there are soundproofing standards or not, if you own the condo you will be able to soundproof between floors to stop the noise coming through.

How to Soundproof for impact noise

You basically have two options if you want to reduce footsteps and other forms of impact noise that are disturbing your peace and quiet:

1. 1.  Use Sound Isolation Clips on the Ceiling side
   2.  Use Rubber Underlayment on the Floor side

OPTION 2: Install Sound Isolation Clips

OPTION 2: Install Rubber Floor underlayment

There are far more ways that you can tackle airborne noise if you’re hearing the TV or your noisy upstairs neighbors talking to each other. Most of the strategies revolve around the basic strategies of sealing up the room to make it airtight or adding mass to your barrier.

The quickest and most efficient way to to soundproof an existing ceiling for airborne noise is to use Green Glue. It's non-toxic and excellent for use between building materials such as drywall. Using it between your current ceiling and a new layer of 5/8” drywall will substantially increase the STC rating of the overall assembly, and doesn’t require any demo work. Use two tubes of Green Glue for every 4x8 sheet of drywall.

Other options to soundproof a ceiling for airborne noise include a rubber underlayment on the floor above (UnderBlock again) or removing the existing ceiling and installing soundproofing materials. While you can install mass loaded vinyl directly on the joists of the ceiling, we steer most residential customers away from that because the install is challenging (MLV is heavy!). The best performing option is a a sound isolation clip system (RSIC clips), which is our preferred route because it also is the only way to effectively stop impact noise. If you do not have insulation filling the cavity, you should add it because going from no insulation in a floor-ceiling assembly to one with insulation increases the STC rating by 5-7 points.

As with any other soundproofing project, you'll want to use an acoustical sealant; you always wants to seal any gaps when dealing with noise upstairs. Apply the sealant around the perimeter of your ceiling, and anywhere you see gaps or seams, such as around light fixtures.

All of the options that we mentioned are excellent to reduce airborne noise from loud upstairs neighbors, but only the RSIC clips and UnderBlock rubber underlayment for impact noise. Remember that the path for these two types of noise is different and you’ll be in good shape!