COST GUIDES
Soundproofing a room cost: 2026 UK prices
Updated 07/26
Wondering how much soundproofing a room or house costs to cut out neighbour noise or build a home cinema? You're in the right place.
Get 2026 soundproofing prices based on the surfaces you're treating, the method used, and the room size. We also offer tips on finding a reliable soundproofing specialist for a job done right.
Fast Facts
Creating a 25m2 insulated stud wall in front of an existing wall costs about £4,200 (materials and labour)
Looking to soundproof an entire room? The total cost for four 25m2 walls and a 10m2 floor is around £11,050 - £20,650 (materials and labour)
How much does it cost to soundproof a room in the UK?
| Soundproof room costs | Materials | Labour | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Create an insulated stud wall in front of existing wall (25m squared) | £2,400 | £1,800 | £4,200 |
| Add acoustic plasterboard with batons to existing wall (25m squared) | £900 | £1,700 | £2,600 |
| Insulate existing stud wall (25m squared) | £700 | £1,100 | £1,800 |
| Add soundproof flooring (10m squared) | £1,200 | £900 | £2,100 |
| Last updated: July 2026 Our costs are ballpark averages - get a local tradesperson to quote now | |||
Data verified by our professional estimators
Estimators are CIOB & RICS members
Creating a 25m2 insulated stud wall in front of existing wall costs about £4,200 (materials and labour).
However, costs can start to climb depending on:
The room or property size
The surfaces being treated
If you need to build a stud wall first
If soundproof flooring is needed
Let's take a closer look, starting with soundproofing costs by project size and project.
Soundproofing cost: By size and project
1. What's the cost of soundproofing a semi-detached house?
Soundproofing a full semi-detached house costs around £30,000. That figure covers all the main rooms: lounge, bedrooms, hallway, and sometimes the kitchen.
However, before going ahead with the project, speak to your local soundproofing contractor to determine whether you really need to soundproof the whole house.
Sometimes, only certain rooms or parts of the house need to be soundproofed to address noise issues, which will help to reduce the costs.
2. Cost to soundproof a second-floor bedroom
Soundproofing a second-floor bedroom costs between £9,300 and £18,900.
Surprised by the cost? Remember, all three surfaces typically need treatment: the ceiling (noise from above), the floor (impact noise travelling down), and all four walls.
3. Cost to soundproof a lounge
Soundproofing a lounge in a semi-detached house costs around £4,200 if new stud walls need to be created.
However, if you just need to insulate the existing stud wall, it could be as little as £700.
4. Cost to soundproof a floor
Acoustic underlay is the entry-level option for floor soundproofing. It reduces impact noise (footsteps) but won't fully block airborne sound.
A floating floor system, where the floor is built on an isolated base, gives much better results, especially in flats where noise from below is a concern.
The cost to add soundproof flooring to a 10m² room is around £900 and £1,200 for materials and labour combined.
Our floor insulation costs has more information. But for an exact soundproofing cost, you're always best off speaking to a soundproofing specialist directly.
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Soundproofing cost: job estimator tool
Not quite ready to contact a tradesperson, but keen to learn more about the costs? Try our free interactive cost calculator for an instant estimate based on your room or property's exact configurations.
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Hourly rates for your soundproof room cost
As a guide, you can expect to pay around £35 to £40 per hour, or about £300 per day – based on a two-person team with local trades.
If you choose a dedicated specialist soundproofing engineer (the kind used for home studios or high-spec residential projects), the cost is typically higher at about £500 per day. They may also sometimes price by m² (materials billed separately).
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What affects the cost of soundproofing a room?
The biggest factors that can affect the cost of soundproofing a room include:
The size of the room
Which surfaces are you treating (walls, floor, ceiling, or all three?)
The materials you choose (mineral wool, acoustic plasterboard or foam?)
If a stud wall needs to be built first (acoustic plasterboard on an existing wall costs far less than building a new insulated stud wall)
The age and construction of your property (solid brick walls need different treatment from timber-frame or plasterboard partitions)
Knowing how much cavity wall insulation costs is also useful, as the two jobs are sometimes done together.
Types of soundproofing materials
The material you choose is one of the biggest factors in the final cost. Here are the three most common types used for UK residential soundproofing:
1. Acoustic plasterboard
Acoustic plasterboard is a denser, heavier version of standard plasterboard designed to reduce airborne sound transmission. You can add it to an existing wall without building a full stud wall, and it's available from builders' merchants nationwide:
Best for: Retrofitting existing walls or ceilings to reduce noise between walls in bedrooms, home offices and party walls
Installation: It's used on walls and ceilings, either screwed directly to the structure or mounted on batons to create a small air gap. It needs professional fitting for best results: gaps, joints and edges all need careful sealing, or the performance drops
Cost: Materials typically cost more per m² than standard plasterboard, but the labour saving over a full stud-wall build is significant
2. Acoustic panels
Acoustic panels don't block sound travelling between rooms. Instead, they control how sound behaves within a space. Many soundproofing jobs involve both: the walls are treated for sound isolation, and acoustic panels are added inside to control the room's acoustic character:
Best for: Home studios, cinemas, or rooms where hard surfaces create an echoey effect or reverberation in the room
Installation: Acoustic panels are foam or fabric panels fixed to walls or ceilings
Cost: Budget-friendly multi-packs are available, but for professional-grade thicker acoustic slabs, you'll pay a lot more
3. Acoustic roll
Acoustic rolls (mineral wool or acoustic insulation roll) are incorporated into the wall build rather than a surface treatment:
Best for: New builds, renovations, and loft conversions
Installation: Used inside stud walls, floor joists, and ceiling cavities. When a specialist builds a new stud wall or opens up an existing cavity, acoustic roll is what fills the void and absorbs sound before it can transmit through the structure
Cost: Prices vary depending on the thickness and coverage
Ways of soundproofing a room
There are several methods for soundproofing a room:
Adding mass: Extra layers of dense material (acoustic plasterboard, mass-loaded vinyl) make it harder for sound to pass through
Acoustic plasterboard: Denser than standard plasterboard; can be added to existing walls or ceilings without a full rebuild
Stud walls with acoustic roll: A new wall built in front of the existing one, packed with mineral wool insulation
Resilient bars: Metal channels that decouple the surface from the structure, reducing vibration transfer
Acoustic panels: Foam or fabric panels that reduce echo inside a room (not the same as structural soundproofing)
Room within a room: The most thorough option, where walls, floor and ceiling are all decoupled from the main structure; but also the most expensive
For the best results on a full room, your specialist will often combine more than one method.
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Is soundproofing a room worth it?
If you're losing sleep or struggling to work from home because of noise disruption, soundproofing can be a game-changer. However, it doesn't come cheap.
Let's weigh up the pros and cons:
Pros of soundproofing
Cons of soundproofing
Can you soundproof a room yourself?
You can pick up soundproofing foam panel packs fairly cheaply at various DIY stores or online, if you don't mind how they look in a room.
There are also plenty of additional steps you can take to stop noise travelling around the home, as our soundproofing your home guide below explores.
Soundproofing walls, rooms, ceilings and floors
Soundproofing is a means of reducing sound from travelling. As a form of energy, sound can travel in two ways – through the air, such as people talking across a room, and via impact vibrations, such as footsteps on floorboards.
However, for an effective soundproofing solution that looks the part too, we recommend hiring a soundproofing specialist.
How to find a soundproofing specialist
Use our quick and easy request a quote feature and we'll get experienced local soundproofing specialists to contact you directly. To get accurate quotes, be as detailed as you can:
Which room (or rooms) you want soundproofed
What you're trying to block out (neighbour noise, traffic, music, impact noise from upstairs)
Whether you have a preference for method (e.g. acoustic plasterboard only vs full stud wall)
The approximate size of the room in square metres
Any access constraints (top-floor flat, listed building, etc.)
Keen to speak to someone right away? Find soundproofing services that we've checked and reviewed below.
Search for soundproofing specialists near you
Enter your postcode to find a top tradesperson near you
City Insulation Group Ltd
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G.A.S General Building Services Ltd
10.00
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Acoustic & Soundproof Floor Upgrade£110 / m² London Soundproofing R US Limited
9.83
(686 reviews)Services & skills
InsulationSound ProofingSoundproofingUK Ltd
9.78
(179 reviews)Services & skills
InsulationSound Proofing- A
An Expert Maintenance ltd
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Our soundproofing hub has all the information you need in one place to help with your project, including soundproofing windows and fences.
Soundproofing cost checklist
Before you hire a soundproofing specialist, use this checklist to make sure you're prepared and know what to expect:
Soundproofing a room: Cost checklist
Soundproofing cost FAQs
Soundproofing reduces noise travelling through walls, floors and ceilings by adding mass, absorbing vibrations or creating an air gap between surfaces. It can help block both airborne noise (such as voices, TVs and music) and impact noise (such as footsteps), with the best solution depending on the type of noise you're trying to reduce.
Benefits of soundproofing a room include reduced noise pollution, improved sleep, better privacy, and the ability to use a room for music, film, or work without disturbing others.
Even a basic treatment (acoustic panels or acoustic plasterboard) to reduce noise transmission can make a difference. A full stud-wall installation can cut noise by 30–50 decibels.
Soundproofing paint provides minimal noise reduction and isn't recommended as a primary soundproofing solution. It may help slightly with echo but won't block sound transmission through walls.
Acoustic underlay reduces impact noise (footsteps) but won't block airborne noise travelling through the floor structure. For better results, a floating floor system is more effective.
In most cases, you don't need planning permission to install soundproofing. Internal soundproofing work (adding acoustic plasterboard, stud walls, floor insulation) is classed as permitted development. Listed buildings or properties in conservation areas may have restrictions: check with your local planning authority.
How much you spend on soundproofing depends on the method. Acoustic panels can cost a few hundred pounds. A full acoustic treatment for a room (walls, floor, ceiling) typically costs £11,050–£20,650. A whole semi-detached house costs around £30,000.
No room can be made completely soundproof. Professional treatments can dramatically reduce noise transmission, but some sound will always pass through. A well-specified job should make a very significant difference to day-to-day noise levels.
Building a dedicated soundproof room (room-within-a-room construction, with acoustic isolation from the main structure) typically costs significantly more than treating existing surfaces: from £11,000 upwards depending on size and specification.
Soundproofing a room is worthwhile, especially if noise from neighbours, traffic, or another room is affecting your sleep or ability to work. You won't achieve total silence, but a well-specified job makes a real difference.
The cheapest approach is to add acoustic panels or heavy curtains to reduce echo and soften airborne noise: these cost from a few hundred pounds. For real noise reduction through walls or floors, you'll need acoustic plasterboard or a full stud wall, which costs more but lasts indefinitely. Speak to a specialist about which method gives the best result for your budget.
Soundproofing and acoustic treatment do different jobs. Soundproofing blocks noise from travelling through walls, floors and ceilings. Acoustic panels reduce echo and reverberation inside a room. Many jobs involve both: for example, a home studio or home cinema room needs the walls treated for sound isolation and acoustic panels inside to control the room's sound.
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