How loud is the loudest shout?
Guinness World Records lists the loudest shout by an individual (female) at 105.9 dB (C-weighted), by Brenda Willison, the town crier of Newmarket, in Fordham, UK, on 9 September 2026. The page does not give the measurement distance.
- Level
- 105.9 dBC maxC-weighted maximum sound level
- Daily limit
- About 3 min 50 s a dayNIOSH, at the loud end
What the numbers mean
How it was measured. Guinness World Records, loudest shout by an individual (female): 105.9 dB, C-weighted. Distance not stated on the page. Guinness measures the separate scream record as a C-weighted peak level; its page currently shows no holder.
Brenda Willison is the town crier for Newmarket, a job built on projecting the voice outdoors. She set the record of 105.9 dB (C-weighted) in Fordham on 9 September 2026.
Guinness keeps shouting and screaming as separate records. For the scream record it defines a scream as a loud, unintelligible high-pitched vocal sound and measures it as a C-weighted peak sound pressure level to the nearest 0.5 dB(C); that record page does not currently show a holder.
How long is safe?
NIOSH recommends no more than 3 min 50 s a day at 105.9 dBA. OSHA's legal limit is 53 min. This is a maximum, so a time limit based on it is a worst case. This level is not A-weighted, so the times are approximate: low-pitched sound measures lower in dBA.
| Level | NIOSH limit (85 dBA, 3 dB rule) | OSHA limit (90 dBA, 5 dB rule) | UK/EU 80 dB(A) action value reached after | UK/EU 85 dB(A) action value reached after |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 105.9 dBC max | 3 min 50 s | 53 min | 1 min 14 s | 3 min 54 s |
Times are for a whole day’s exposure, with the rest of the day quiet. The workplace limits were written for adults at work, not for children. Work out a mixed day with the noise dose calculator.
Protecting your hearing
Shouting next to someone's ear is the risk here: keep an arm's length away, and sound level falls quickly with distance.
Earplug and earmuff ratings (NRR in the US, SNR in the UK and EU) are lab figures; real-world protection is usually lower. How to read the ratings.
Compared with sounds nearby
Using midpoints of each range. Energy multiplies by 10 every 10 dB; perceived loudness roughly doubles (why).
- Loudest burp (world record) (108–112.4 dBC max): it has about 2.7× the sound energy of this and sounds about 1.3× as loud.
Questions
What is the loudest shout ever recorded?
Guinness World Records lists 105.9 dB (C-weighted) for the loudest shout by an individual (female), by town crier Brenda Willison in 2026.
How does Guinness measure the loudest scream?
As a C-weighted peak sound pressure level, to the nearest 0.5 dB(C).
Sources
- Loudest shout (individual), Guinness World Records. Supports: 105.9 dB(C).
The loudest shout by an individual (female) is 105.9 dB (C-weighted) and was achieved by Brenda Willison (UK), in Fordham, UK, on 9 September 2026
Checked 2026-11-02. - Loudest scream (individual), Guinness World Records. Supports: Scream record method.
This record is measured by the peak SPL (sound pressure level) reached in decibels, expressed as a C-weighted Peak Sound Pressure Level, to the nearest 0.5 dB(C)
Checked 2026-11-02.
This page is general information, not medical advice. If you have ringing in your ears, muffled hearing or any change in your hearing, see an audiologist or your doctor.