Human Hearing Range: Understanding Hertz & Sound Perception

The audible hearing range is the frequency that any particular animal can hear. Audible hearing ranges vary among different species of animals and can be measured in hertz.

Humans

• The audible hearing range for humans is generally between 20 hertz and 20,000 hertz. This means that the average human can hear most sounds in that frequency range.

Other Mammals

• Compared with many other mammals, humans have a relatively small audible hearing range. For example, the audible hearing range for dogs has a maximum of 60,000 hertz.

Hearing Loss

• Hearing loss occurs naturally in humans as they age. Damage to the ear or brain can cause hearing loss that reduces the audible hearing range.

Audiograms

• Audible hearing range can be measured using an audiogram. Audiograms can help show a person's specific hearing range and show the effects of hearing loss.

Age

• Age is a significant indicator of a person's specific audible hearing range. In general, the audible hearing range continues to decline as age increases.