Which generator makers say how their decibels were measured?
Honda, WEN and Yamaha give both the load and the distance behind a generator's decibel figure, while Firman, Champion, Westinghouse and Generac leave out one or both.
A generator's noise depends on how hard it is working and how far away you stand. A figure needs both to mean much. Here is what each maker gives.
Load and distance, at both ends.
Honda lists quarter load and rated load for every model: 42 and 50 dB(A) for the EU1000i, 48 and 57 for the EU2200i, 54 and 58 for the EU3200i. The product pages give no distance, but Honda's sound level comparison chart says the figures were tested to ISO 9614-2 at 23 feet (7 meters). Our Honda generator decibels page lists every current model on that basis.
Load and distance, one model.
WEN, for the 56450iX: 58 dBA at quarter load, 22 feet. Our WEN generator decibels page lists every current WEN with a published figure, grouped by the load and distance each page states.
Load and distance, at both ends, in the manual.
Yamaha's spec page gives the EF2200iS as 57 to 65 dBA at quarter and rated load with no distance, but its owner's manual says the figures are taken at 7 m (23 ft). Our Yamaha generator decibels page lists every current Yamaha on that basis.
Load, quiet end only.
WEN's 56235iX: 51 decibels at quarter load. Firman quotes most of its range this way, usually at 1/4 load, and publishes no full-load figure; our Firman generator decibels page lists every current Firman with a figure.
Distance only.
Champion: 53 dBA from 23 feet for its 2,500-watt unit, and 61 dBA from 23 feet for its 4,500-watt unit. No load is stated. Our Champion generator decibels page lists every current Champion this way, and its 2,000 to 2,500 watt enclosed inverters all sit at 53 dB(A).
Neither.
Westinghouse says "as low as 52 dBA", and says it for both a 1,900-watt and a 3,900-watt generator. Our Westinghouse generator decibels page lists the figure for every current Westinghouse model and the two pages that do name a load.
Nothing.
Generac publishes no figure for the iQ3500, in the page, the spec sheet or the manual. Our Generac generator decibels page found the same for every Generac portable and inverter; its figures cover only its home standby units.
Even this patchy record beats some other engine-driven yard machines: our pressure washer guide found no US maker publishing a figure for a gas homeowner model.
You will read that Honda and Yamaha measure at 7 meters, which is 23 feet. Neither says so on its US product pages, but Honda's sound level comparison chart and Yamaha's US owner's manuals both state it, so we can.
How loud is a camping generator at quarter load and at full load?
A camping generator is quietest at quarter load and loudest at rated load: Honda's EU2200i lists 48 dB(A) and 57 dB(A).
An inverter generator slows its engine when little power is being drawn. So the quarter-load figure is the quiet end and the rated-load figure is the loud end.
Honda's EU2200i shows the gap: 48 dB(A) at quarter load, 57 at rated load. Nine decibels is a large difference. A maker that quotes only the quiet end, or says "as low as", is telling you about a generator charging phones, not one running a microwave.
This is also why economy mode matters. Honda's manual recommends Eco Throttle to further reduce noise whenever less than a full load is applied. Champion says its economy mode reduces engine speed for quieter operation. WEN's manual says to use its eco switch only below 75% of rated output. In practice: size the generator so that your normal load is a light one.
What is the national park generator rule?
The national park generator rule, 36 CFR 2.12, prohibits running a generator louder than 60 decibels, A-weighted, measured from 50 feet.
The rule prohibits operating motorized equipment, and it names an electric generating plant as an example, in a manner "that exceeds a noise level of 60 decibels measured on the A-weighted scale at 50 feet".
Two details matter. First, the distance is 50 feet, and no maker measures at 50 feet. A box that says 58 does not prove compliance, and a box that says 61 does not prove a violation. We do not convert between distances.
Second, the rule has another clause. Even below 60 decibels, noise is prohibited if it is unreasonable, considering the location, the time of day and the effect on other park users. So a generator that meets the number can still break the rule.
Campgrounds then add their own hours. The National Park Service says quiet hours are posted in most campgrounds, typically something like 10 pm to 6 am.
Assateague prohibits generator use during quiet hours and bans generators entirely in some loops. Mount Rainier allows generators only in three two-hour windows a day. Check your campground before you pack.
For where to put a generator so the next campsite or the house next door hears less, without breaking the carbon monoxide rules, see our explainer on generator noise and neighbors, which also quotes the generator hours set by Yosemite, Zion and Assateague.
How far from your home should a generator be?
A portable generator should run outside only, at least 20 feet from homes with the exhaust facing away, by the Consumer Product Safety Commission's advice.
It is tempting to tuck a noisy generator behind a wall or a vehicle to muffle it. Do not. The Consumer Product Safety Commission's advice, in its words:
- "Never use portable generators inside homes or garages, even if doors and windows are open."
- "Use generators outside only, at least 20 feet away from homes with exhaust facing away."
CPSC says more than 100 deaths a year in the United States are linked to portable generators.
The manuals agree. Honda's says not to enclose or cover the generator with boards or a tent, even outside, and to place it so the muffler points the way the wind is blowing. Champion's says never to run one in an RV generator compartment, the back of an SUV, a camper or a truck bed.
Every generator we picked has a carbon monoxide shutoff: Honda calls it CO-MINDER, Champion CO Shield, WEN CO Watchdog, Westinghouse CO Sensor. Treat it as a last line of defense. It is not a reason to park the generator beside a window.
What size generator do you need for camping?
The right size camping generator depends on the load: Honda lists the EU3200i, not the EU2200i, for a 13,500 BTU RV air conditioner, and small loads may suit a power station instead.
For an RV air conditioner, go by what makers state. Honda names a 13,500 BTU RV air conditioner among the EU3200i's applications, and does not do so for the EU2200i. Champion says two of its inverters on its 30-amp parallel kit will start and run a 15,000 BTU unit.
Choosing the air conditioner itself is its own problem. Our RV air conditioner guide sorts rooftop units by what each maker's figure covers, and quotes RecPro's requirement for its 115V units: 2,500 watts of generator at minimum, with a 30-amp service dedicated to it.
Two small units in parallel give you the output of a large one and the option of carrying only one on light trips. Honda says paralleling gives extra power without trading up to a larger, heavier generator, and that only identical units can be paired. Two paralleled inverters running side by side have no published sound rating from any of these makers.
If the generator has to be lifted into a car or carried to a campsite, our guide to the quietest lightweight generators sorts carry-size units by each maker's stated weight, from the Honda EU1000i at 28.7 lb dry, and ranks their noise figures only within groups that share a load and distance.
Check the outlet. With a TT-30R, the RV cord plugs in with no adapter. The Champion 4,500-watt, both Westinghouse units and the WEN 56450iX have one. Honda's EU3200i and Companion, and the Generac, use 30-amp locking outlets that need an adapter.
A power station suits small loads and places that ban generators. It has no engine, no exhaust and no fuel. It also has a fixed amount of energy: about 1,000 watt-hours in the two we checked.
Our power station guide covers when their fans spin up and how to charge one quietly at night. If you are weighing a battery against a generator, our Jackery and EcoFlow power station pages explain why a station's decibel figure cannot be set beside a generator's figure at 23 feet.
A home standby generator is a different machine: bolted to a pad beside the house, piped to natural gas or propane, and wired to start by itself when the grid fails. The makers' exercise figures and running figures are ranked separately in our home standby generator guide, nearly all of them stated at 7 meters.
Between the two sits the 5,000 to 12,000 watt portable you wheel out for an outage and connect through a transfer switch or an inlet. Our guide to the quietest portable generators for home backup groups those makers' figures by the load and distance each one states.
How much does a quiet generator cost?
A quiet inverter generator costs around $530 to $600 in the 2,000-watt class from Westinghouse or WEN, and around $1,000 to $1,200 for a Honda EU1000i or EU2200i.
Around $530 to $600 buys a 2,000-watt class inverter from Westinghouse or WEN, and the Champion sits in the same class. Expect a single noise figure with something missing from it. Our guide to the quietest inverter generators under $1,000 sorts every inverter at that price by what its maker states: load and distance, one of the two, or neither.
Around $830 buys the WEN 56450iX, with 3,500 running watts, an RV outlet, and the best-qualified figure in the guide.
Around $1,000 to $1,200 buys a Honda EU1000i or EU2200i. What the extra money buys is the lowest published figures, stated at both ends of the load.
Around $2,800 buys the Honda EU3200i. It is the lightest way to run an RV air conditioner that a maker will put in writing, and few people will pay it.
Around $560 to $800 buys a 1,000 watt-hour power station at list price.
Where do camping generator buyers go wrong?
Generator buyers go wrong by comparing figures across brands, trusting "as low as", assuming a figure under 60 is park-legal, buying too small, moving the generator closer, and comparing runtimes at different loads.
They are not. Compare within a brand, and treat a few decibels between one generator maker and another as unknown.
Reading "as low as" as the working noise level
That figure describes the generator at its very quietest, not its usual running level.
The park rule is measured at 50 feet and has a second clause about unreasonable noise.
Buying too small, then running flat out
A generator at rated load is at the loud end of its range all day. Honda's own figures put that 9 decibels above quarter load on the EU2200i.
Moving the generator closer to block the sound
CPSC's distance still applies at a campsite or in a driveway: 20 feet or more, exhaust pointed away.
Comparing runtimes without checking the load
WEN quotes runtime at half load. Most others quote quarter load.
The park rule measures "on the A-weighted scale", the same weighting behind the dBA and dB(A) figures on generator boxes, which dBA explained covers.
Westinghouse's "as low as 52 dBA", with no load or distance, and Champion's 53 dBA from 23 feet, with no load, cannot be set side by side, for reasons our page on comparing decibel ratings explains. At a national park campsite the number to know is that rule's 60 decibels at 50 feet, and our room by room guide to how quiet is quiet enough puts it in context.
