What Is the Normal Hearing Range?
On an audiogram, the higher your results appear on the graph, the closer they are to the normal hearing range.
- Normal hearing means you can detect very soft sounds—those 25 decibels (dB) or quieter. For perspective, that’s about the volume of rustling leaves or a whisper.
Hearing Ranges Explained
Hearing ability is generally categorized as follows:
- Normal hearing: Able to hear sounds at 25 dB or below
- Mild hearing loss: Can hear sounds between 25–40 dB, but may miss softer ones
- Moderate hearing loss: Difficulty hearing sounds between 41–65 dB
- Severe hearing loss: Trouble hearing sounds between 66–90 dB
- Profound hearing loss: Can only hear sounds louder than 90 dB (about as loud as a lawnmower)
Why This Matters
Hearing loss usually doesn’t affect all frequencies equally.
- For example, you might hear low tones normally but struggle with higher-pitched sounds like birdsong or parts of speech.
- Even if some areas of your hearing are “normal,” difficulty in certain frequency ranges can still affect daily communication and quality of life.