How Much Does a Sound Masking System Cost?

The total cost of implementing our sound masking technology, which includes system components, installation, cabling, commissioning, calibration, etc., is starting at $4.00 per square foot, depending on project complexity and how big or small the floorspace covered by the system. Generally speaking, the bigger the floorspace covered, the cheaper the sound masking system per square foot. And the more employees who experience better sonic comfort and a distraction-free working environment thanks to it, the higher the sound masking system's return on investment in terms of increased productivity.

How much increased productivity are we talking about? Independent studies have consistently shown a 10 to 25% improvement in employee productivity, directly attributable to having significantly reduced common office distractions with a well-tuned sound masking system in place. The bottomline: Many of our clients have seen their sound masking system paying for itself in under a year, sometimes much less. And they're still reaping the benefits.

Regardless of cost per square foot, sound masking remains one of the most cost-effective, flexible, and scalable solutions to reduce office distractions and ensure good acoustic privacy wherever it matters most. When integrated at the planning stage of new office projects, sound masking technology is about saving money, not spending money. It makes it possible to achieve greater levels of sonic privacy and comfort with less insulation in interior walls, cheaper acoustic ceiling tiles, and lower partitions—saving project teams up to $8 per square foot in construction and soundproofing work.

The Cost of Sound Masking Is Much Less Than the Cost of Workplace Distractions and Lack of Acoustic Privacy

However you look at it, failure to provide office workers with a healthy acoustic environment costs a lot more than any imaginable field-proven solution to solve even the trickiest of workplace noise issues—be it sound masking technology, super high STC-rated partitions or the best acoustic baffles money can buy. A study presented at ICBEN's 9th International Congress on Noise as a Public Health Problem found that office workers lost on average 21.5 minutes each day due to sonic distractions, mostly overheard conversations. That's almost 5 percent of the average work day lost to noisy distractions alone.

Now let's consider a 30,000 square-foot corporate headquarters occupied by 200 employees paid on average $65,000 a year each. Failure to mitigate sonic distractions in this workspace, as beautiful and functional as it may be, is costing the company at least $585,000 a year in lost time and productivity. 21.5 minutes lost to distractions each day takes quite a toll on the bottomline, doesn't it? And that's a conservative number—ongoing research by office furniture and design company Steelcase found that office workers in North America lost as much as 86 minutes a day due to sonic distractions.

But with our average 30,000-square-foot office sound masking system costing somewhere between $50,000 and $75,000—and we're talking about the most sophisticated office sound masking technology ever developed: one that self-adapts to the office soundscape and automatically generates just the right amount of background ambient sound needed to gently drown out noisy distractions at any given time—that $585,000 a year in lost productivity can quickly be flipped into a $585,000 yearly benefit in increased productivity, and then some.

And you're not just buying a sound masking system to help employees concentrate better and get more done. You're making a sound investment in their everyday comfort. You're helping them feel better knowing that they can openly discuss private matters behind closed doors without being overheard, be on phone calls without becoming the center of attention, and collaborate with teammates without disturbing those deeply focused on individual work.

How much is this worth to you—and them?

Sound Masking's Return on Investment Is Easy to Calculate