Safe Listening Test
Check whether your headphone habits put your hearing at risk and learn WHO-backed ways to listen safely.
What it measures
This is a quick self-check of your everyday listening habits — how long, how loud, and in what settings you use headphones and earphones — to estimate your risk of noise-induced hearing damage. It is based on the World Health Organization’s “Make Listening Safe” guidance and the popular 60/60 rule. It does not measure decibels or test your hearing directly; it estimates risk from your reported habits.
How it works
You answer 10 short questions about your listening habits on a four-point scale from “never” to “almost always.” Each answer scores 0 to 3 risk points, and the points are added into a single total out of 30. Higher totals reflect louder, longer, or riskier listening patterns. Your total places you in a lower-, moderate-, or higher-risk band, each with plain-language, WHO-aligned advice on safer listening.
Tips for an accurate result
- 1Follow the 60/60 rule — Keep volume at or below about 60% of maximum, and take a quiet break after roughly 60 minutes of listening.
- 2Let your headphones do the work — Noise-cancelling or well-sealing headphones cut background noise so you don’t need to crank the volume in noisy places.
- 3Mind your weekly dose — WHO suggests sound below 80 dB for no more than 40 hours a week; louder means far less safe time — 90 dB is safe for only about 4 hours a week.
- 4Heed the warning signs — Ringing (tinnitus), buzzing, or muffled hearing after listening is a signal to turn it down and give your ears a rest.