Earplugs for Hearing Protection: What You Should Know

Noise-reduction earplugs can protect your ears from loud noises and reduce your risks of hearing loss

Sonya Collins,

AARP

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Published September 11, 2025

Orange Colored Ear Plugs with Curved Strap Reach to Ear for Ear Protection on Purple Background Directly above View.

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Key takeaways

People should use hearing protection when exposed to noise above 80 dBA.
The type of hearing protection you should use depends on the circumstances.
Consider the five C’s of hearing protection if you can't choose the right earplugs.
Look for the noise-reduction rating (NRR) on the package, too.

How’s your hearing? No matter how you answer that question, it’s never too late to protect it.

Some degree of hearing loss is a normal part of the aging process that most of us simply can’t avoid. But exposure to loud noise is also a major cause of hearing loss, and you often can avoid that.

One of the best ways to protect your hearing is to steer clear of loud sounds in the first place by moving away from the noise or lowering the volume when it’s in your control. When those aren’t possible, hearing protectors — such as earplugs or over-the-ear muffs — are good alternatives.

When to wear earplugs and why

Even a single loud noise, if it’s loud enough, can cause hearing loss. Many times, those types of sounds, like a sudden explosion, come from out of the blue, so it’s not possible to protect your ears against them. But if you know that you’re going to be in a place with loud noises, and that you won’t be able to (or won’t want to) move away from it, you need hearing protection.

But how loud is too loud? “Here’s my rule of thumb: If I'm arm’s length from another person and I am having to shout over the noise, it might be harmful noise,” says Patricia Johnson, an audiologist and associate professor in the Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences at UNC School of Medicine in Chapel Hill. “At the point that I’m actually in their ear, shouting into their ear, it’s definitely harmful.”

It’s in those settings that you should consider wearing earplugs or earmuffs. Some examples of when you need to safeguard your hearing include:

Attending sporting events, auto races, fireworks shows and concerts
Operating an all-terrain vehicle or machinery, like a tractor or lawnmower
Riding a motorcycle, dirt bike or snowmobile
Participating in band or orchestra rehearsals and performances
Working in an industrial, warehouse, landscaping or construction setting
Practicing shooting sports

Of course, considering whether to wear earplugs isn’t as black-and-white as whether or not you’re in a loud place.

“It’s probably going to depend on your needs in that situation,” Johnson says. She says to ask yourself a few questions, like: Am I listening to something else at the same time? Do I need to communicate at the same time?

Free Hearing Test

AARP members can take the National Hearing Test online or on their phones — for free. This 10-minute test can help you decide whether you need a more comprehensive hearing exam.

If you’re going to spend only a short time in a noisy environment and you need to carry on a conversation there, it might be OK to forgo the earplugs. But if you’ll be in the din for an extended period, use earplugs and pull them out briefly when you need to have a quick conversation.

Think of dangerous sound levels like dangerous amounts of sun: You can spend a little time exposed to them without getting hurt, but once you cross a certain threshold, they start to do damage.

Decibel levels for hearing protection

For laypeople, rules of thumb like whether you have to shout to be heard at arm’s length might make the most sense, but doctors and scientists measure loudness by more precise means — in decibels (dBA), which approximate the our ears hear them.).

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) sets the maximum safe noise level for an 8-hour workday at 85 dBA. The World Health Organization, though, recommends adults keep it at 80 dBA. If you’ll be in noise louder than that, or for longer than that, you’ll need hearing protection.

Hearing protection for those with hearing loss

People with hearing loss should be especially vigilant about using hearing protection.

“Everybody should use hearing protection, but for people with hearing loss, we want to preserve the hearing they already have,” says Paulina Kocon, an audiologist at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago.

That remaining hearing in people with hearing loss is more fragile than in someone with average hearing. In most people with hearing loss, the microscopic hairs in the inner ear that allow for hearing are bent, broken or altogether gone.

“If they’re hanging on for dear life,” Johnson says, “and then I’m exposed to noise, it may not take as much for them to fall all the way down. So I’m a little more vulnerable if I already have hearing loss.”

If you wear hearing aids, here’s what you should know.

Hearing Loop Technology

If you have telecoil-enabled hearing devices, the technology can improve the way you hear with just a touch of a button at spaces like theaters, community centers and sports arenas. It's called a hearing loop, and the system transmits audio signals from a microphone directly into hearing devices with telecoil technology, including hearing aids and cochlear implants. The telecoil eliminates the background noise so you can hear more clearly. Check out this video to see how it works.

First, your hearing aids won’t hurt you. There are safeguards in place so that the devices will top out and won’t deliver sound that’s past a certain volume. But, Johnson explains, that doesn’t mean that your hearing aids are protecting you. Noise can damage your ears even if you can’t hear it.

If you’re in a noisy situation where you don’t need to hear — mowing the lawn, shooting at the firing range — remove your hearing aids and use hearing protectors instead.

If, on the other hand, you’re attending a concert, Johnson says it all depends on the type of music and the severity of your hearing loss. "A symphony concert is low risk, and an attendee could keep their hearing aids in place," she says. "A rock concert is high risk, and many hard-of-hearing individuals should remove their aids and wear earplugs instead. Chances are the music is still loud enough to hear and feel the music."

She reiterates, though, that it's a difficult balance to strike in these situations. So if you're unsure about whether to wear earplugs or hearing aids to a concert, talk to your doctor or audiologist first.

How to choose earplugs for hearing protection

All earplugs are not the same. Choose based on what you want to use them for, such as sleeping, going to concerts or using power tools.

“The power tool plugs break down those harmful frequencies more so than the concert ear plugs,” Kocon says. “But it doesn’t make music sound good. So if you wore them to a concert, it might feel like you’re not getting any of the bass or the feeling of the sound.”

Over-the-counter earplugs available for purchase in drug stores or online are labeled with their intended use.

You might use premolded earplugs at a concert or movie, for example, when you still want to enjoy the sound. They lower the volume across all frequencies without distorting the sound — just like turning down the volume.

When you want to block out as much sound as possible, you’ll have better luck with formable foam earplugs. You roll them or squish them and place them deep in your ear. Then they expand to fill the ear and block out sound. Formable foam earplugs are meant for one or two uses.

If you find yourself using earplugs more regularly, you might want one of the many reusable earplugs on the market, such as Loop Earplugs, Eargasm or Curvd. Reusable earplugs are having a moment right now. They come in stylish colors and prints and sleek shapes.

Each of these brands makes earplugs for multiple purposes, including:

Loop Earplugs: Sleep, noise cancellation, background noise, concerts and more
Eargasm: Concerts, motorcycles, sleep and more
Curvd: Concerts, sleep, background noise and more

“Traditional hearing protection is not very sexy,” Johnson says. “It’s kind of clunky and very industrial-looking, so kudos to Loop for creating a more attractive product that people want to wear. The best hearing protection is the one you want to wear.”

You can also see an audiologist for reusable earplugs custom made for your purposes and your ears.

The 5 C’s of hearing protection

Still not sure how to choose the right earplug? Consider the 5 C’s of hearing protection:

Comfort: You’re more likely to use them every time you should if they’re comfortable in your ears.
Compatibility: Make sure they’re compatible with the situation. You’re not going to wear over-the-ear muffs to the symphony, for example.
Convenience: Go with something that’s easy for you to put in and take out and carry around.
Communication: If you’re using earplugs in settings where you’ll also need to talk, make sure you choose a product that will allow for that.
Cost: Yes, cost is a consideration, but sometimes a higher-costing product, like a reusable or a custom-made earplug, will save you in the long run.

How much hearing protection do earplugs provide?

If you insert them correctly based on the instructions on the package or from your audiologist, earplugs will provide enough noise protection for their intended setting.

Look for the noise-reduction rating (NRR) on the package. The highest rating for earplugs is 33. To be clear, this isn’t the number of decibels the product can reduce the sound. The number of decibels you’ll cut the noise by equals (NRR-7)/2. So earplugs rated 33 will cut the racket by 13 decibels. When even 13 decibels is not enough reduction, you can wear earmuffs over earplugs.

Take hearing protection seriously. You’ve only got these two ears. Make them last.

“We’re in a louder and louder world all the time,” Kocon says. “Noise exposure will lead to hearing loss.”

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Sonya Collins is an award-winning health and medical journalist. Her work has appeared in Fortune and Scientific American and on WebMD.com.

Tricia Ashby is a doctor of audiology and the director of audiology practices at the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. She was previously an assistant clinical professor focused on didactic teaching and clinical supervision.