53 Hearing Protection Statistics

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These hearing protection figures cover the measurement periods and populations identified in the available source material. Estimates, surveys and forecasts retain their reported scope.

Key Hearing Protection Statistics

The main findings are:

  • Nearly 2.5 billion people are projected to have some degree of hearing loss by 2050.
  • 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults were at risk from unsafe personal-audio use and loud entertainment venues (2015; worldwide, teenagers and young adults).
  • In 2020, 12.3% of U.S. adults aged 18+ had some hearing difficulty even with a hearing aid (United States, age 18+).
  • About 28% of U.S. workers have had hazardous-noise exposure over their working history (worker surveillance reported 2026; United States, all industries).
  • In 2014, 53% of noise-exposed U.S. workers did not wear hearing protection consistently.
  • 75% of U.S. construction workers were exposed to hazardous noise on the jobsite (evidence available by 2010; United States, construction).
  • More than 700 million people are projected to require hearing rehabilitation by 2050.
  • Nearly 50% of people aged 1235 in middle- and high-income countries faced unsafe personal-audio sound levels (evidence through 2015; middle/high-income countries, ages 1235).
  • In 2020, 1.5% of U.S. adults aged 18+ had a lot of difficulty or could not hear even with a hearing aid (United States, age 18+).
  • About 16% of U.S. workers, or 27 million people, had hazardous-noise exposure in the last year (2023; United States, all industries).
  • WHO’s safe-listening table allows 40 hours per week at 80 dB and 4 hours per week at 90 dB (20072014).
  • 33% of construction workers exposed to hazardous noise did not wear hearing protection in the cited study (19992004 NHANES study; United States, construction).
  • About 95.1 million children aged 519 live with hearing loss worldwide (current estimate reported 2026; worldwide, ages 519).
  • Around 40% of people aged 1235 in middle- and high-income countries faced potentially damaging sound at entertainment venues (evidence through 2015; middle/high-income countries, ages 1235).
  • Some hearing difficulty affected 6.0% of U.S. adults aged 1844 in 2020 (United States, ages 1844).

Contents

Global hearing-loss burden and the prevention scale

  • Nearly 2.5 billion people are projected to have some degree of hearing loss by 2050. (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • More than 700 million people are projected to require hearing rehabilitation by 2050. (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • About 95.1 million children aged 519 live with hearing loss worldwide (current estimate reported 2026; worldwide, ages 519). (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • Unaddressed hearing loss has an estimated annual global cost of almost US$1 trillion (current estimate reported 2026). (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • More than 1 billion young adults are at risk of permanent avoidable hearing loss from unsafe listening (current estimate reported 2026; worldwide, young adults). (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • Around 430 million people, including 34 million children, require rehabilitation for disabling hearing loss (current estimate reported 2026). (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • More than 25% of people older than 60 have disabling hearing loss (current estimate reported 2026; worldwide, age 60+). (Deafness and hearing loss)
  • Nearly 80% of people with disabling hearing loss live in low- and middle-income countries (current estimate reported 2026; worldwide by income group). (Deafness and hearing loss)

WHO projection; all causes.

WHO projection; not product demand.

All causes.

All-cause unaddressed hearing loss.

Risk, not diagnosed loss.

Disabling loss is >35 dB in better ear; causes mixed.

All-cause disabling loss.

Recreational listening exposure and hearing-protection need

  • WHO estimated 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults were at risk from unsafe personal-audio use and loud entertainment venues (2015; worldwide, teenagers and young adults). (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • Nearly 50% of people aged 1235 in middle- and high-income countries faced unsafe personal-audio sound levels (evidence through 2015; middle/high-income countries, ages 1235). (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • Around 40% of people aged 1235 in middle- and high-income countries faced potentially damaging sound at entertainment venues (evidence through 2015; middle/high-income countries, ages 1235). (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • WHO reported 360 million people worldwide had moderate-to-profound hearing loss in 2015. (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • WHO gives exposure above 85 dB for 8 hours or 100 dB for 15 minutes as examples of unsafe sound (2015 guidance; general listening guidance). (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • WHO recommends keeping daily personal-audio use below 1 hour for teenagers and young people (2015 recommendation; general guidance). (1.1 billion people at risk…)
  • A gaming-sound review included 14 peer-reviewed studies from 9 countries and 53,833 people (studies through 2023, review 2024). (Video gamers worldwide may be…)

WHO synthesis, not a global census.

Synthesis of available studies.

All causes.

Illustrative guidance; susceptibility varies.

Recommendation, not adoption.

Study designs and measurement quality varied.

U.S. adult hearing outcomes and age patterns

Self-reported NHIS; all causes.

Self-reported NHIS.

Occupational noise exposure and hearing outcomes in the United States

NIOSH surveillance definition.

Annual exposure is not continuous exposure.

Chemical exposure differs from noise exposure.

Overlap does not establish attribution.

Not equivalent to diagnosed noise-induced loss.

Occupational causation not established.

Tested workers only; material impairment is source-defined.

Tested workers only.

Cited surveillance series.

Hearing-protection adoption and non-use by industry

  • In 2014, 53% of noise-exposed U.S. workers did not wear hearing protection consistently. (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • WHO’s safe-listening table allows 40 hours per week at 80 dB and 4 hours per week at 90 dB (20072014). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • HPD non-use was 90% in Accommodation and Food Services in 2014 (United States, Accommodation and Food Services). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • HPD non-use was 83% in Health Care and Social Assistance in 2014 (United States, Health Care and Social Assistance). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • HPD non-use was 82% in Education Services in 2014 (United States, Education Services). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • HPD non-use was 74% in Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting in 2014 (United States, Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing/Hunting). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • HPD non-use was 52% in Construction in 2014 (United States, Construction). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • The NIOSH HPD-use study analyzed 39,508 adult current workers from the 2007 and 2014 NHIS (2007 and 2014 surveys; United States, adult current workers). (Study Finds Over Half of…)
  • Of those surveyed, 2,057 reported occupational-noise exposure in 2007 and 3,380 in 2014 (2007 and 2014; United States, adult current workers). (Study Finds Over Half of…)

Always/usually definition; self-report.

Two survey years, not annual series.

Industry subgroup, self-report.

Sample size defines evidence base.

Noise-exposed analytic subsets.

High-risk sectors, program costs, and exposure thresholds

  • 75% of U.S. construction workers were exposed to hazardous noise on the jobsite (evidence available by 2010; United States, construction). (Hearing Loss Among Construction Workers:…)
  • 33% of construction workers exposed to hazardous noise did not wear hearing protection in the cited study (19992004 NHANES study; United States, construction). (Hearing Loss Among Construction Workers:…)
  • 46% of U.S. manufacturing workers had a history of occupational-noise exposure (evidence summarized 2022; United States, manufacturing). (Save Your Hearing Day)
  • 28% of noise-exposed U.S. manufacturing workers reported not wearing hearing protection in noise (evidence summarized 2022; United States, manufacturing). (Save Your Hearing Day)
  • 20% of noise-exposed U.S. manufacturing workers had material hearing impairment (evidence summarized 2022; United States, manufacturing). (Save Your Hearing Day)
  • Material impairment affected 26% of petroleum/coal workers, 25% of primary-metal workers, and 25% of machinery workers in cited manufacturing data (evidence summarized 2022; United States, selected manufacturing subsectors). (Save Your Hearing Day)
  • 76% of U.S. mine workers were exposed to hazardous noise (summary published 2024; United States, mining). (Mining Noise-induced Hearing Loss)
  • 25% of mine workers has a hearing problem (summary published 2024; United States, mining). (Mining Noise-induced Hearing Loss)
  • 80% of mine workers have hearing impairment by their mid-60s retirement age (estimate reported 2024; United States, mining, mid-60s). (Mining Noise-induced Hearing Loss)
  • A NIOSH-funded study covered 14 metals-manufacturing facilities employing more than 15,000 workers (study reported 2017; United States, one multinational manufacturer). (Introducing the Hearing Loss Prevention…)
  • Between one-third and two-thirds of full-shift dosimetry measurements at each study facility exceeded 85 dBA (study reported 2017; records covered 10 prior years; United States, 14 metals facilities). (Introducing the Hearing Loss Prevention…)
  • Average hearing-loss-prevention-program cost was about US$294 per worker per year (study reported 2017; United States, 14 metals facilities). (Introducing the Hearing Loss Prevention…)

Hazardous noise defined as 85 dB+.

Historical study, not current 2026.

Historical measure.

Self-reported historical evidence.

Material impairment is source-defined.

Historical subsector estimates.

Sector summary; definitions affect comparisons.

Underlying year not stated in headline.

Sector estimate; causal details limited.

Single-company sample.

Facility-specific, not national.

Not a national average or retail price.

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