What Are the Quietest Tires? Noise-Reduction Tires

By Tire Agent Staff

October 16, 2024

If you’re looking for the quietest tires, this post covers factors that make tires noisy and what to look for in noise-reduction tires. We also include a section that explains what might be causing certain noises from your tires.

Jump to Tire Agent’s list of quietest tires.

EV Drivers Want Noise-Reduction in Tires

Electric have raised the standards for road noise reduction. Because EVs don’t have internal combustion engines or exhaust systems, they are nearly silent, especially at low speeds. (Interestingly, some countries, including the U.S., are requiring automakers to add artificial sounds at low speeds, so pedestrians and bicyclists can hear them! Read more about minimum sound requirements for hybrid and EVs.)

See our list of best tires for EVs.

But it’s not like electric vehicle owners invented the quiet ride. Luxury automobile owners, commuters, and soccer parents have been asking for decades for quiet tires to make for more enjoyable rides.

What Causes Tire Noise?

‘Why Are My Tires So Loud When I Drive?’

Several things affect the sound of rubber hitting the road, including the tires themselves, as well as the road surfaces and vehicle speed.

What makes tires noisy? Check the tread.

Tire tread is a significant noise factor. The noisiest tires have large treads with wide and deep grooves, which allow for more air to be trapped between the grooves. This results in more noise produced by the tires.

Here’s why: Air gets into the tire’s grooves and compresses between the tire and the road’s surface. When released, the air produces a sound, and the process continuously repeats when you drive. The more space between a tire’s tread, the more trapped air, making the tires sound louder.

Tire manufacturers try to alleviate noise by putting different tread patterns close together. Each pattern will produce a different tone when air is released. The intent is to generate a neutral white noise.

This is why all-terrain and mud-terrain tires are noisier on the pavement than all-season and touring tires.

What makes a tire quiet? High-quality tires.

Another factor in tire noise is the quality of the materials, which typically is reflected in how much they cost. Cheaply made tires aren’t built with the highest quality of rubber compounds. Manufacturers of cheaper tires tend to invest more into the tire’s performance than comfort and silence, generally speaking.

Other factors that affect road noise: Road surfaces and speed.

Smoother surfaces, such as asphalt and rubberized asphalt, tend to be much quieter than concrete, chip seal (tar and chips), gravel, textured roads and brick and cobblestone roads. It may come as no surprise that rubberized asphalt tends to be used more in urban and residential areas, as a way to reduce road noise!

The faster a vehicle moves, the more noise the tires generate because of increased friction between the tires and the road surfaces.

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What About Weird Sounds? Tire Noise Diagnosis

If your tires are louder than expected, or making unusual noises, like thumps, clicks or other sudden and unexpected sounds, you could be dealing with tire or vehicle problems.

‘My tire makes a humming noise’

Is a humming sound coming from your tires? It could mean faulty wheel bearings or uneven wear on the tires. Continuing to drive on humming tires could be risky. It’s best to have your vehicle’s wheel bearings inspected by a technician ASAP.

‘My tire makes loud road noise while driving’

You might have uneven wear on your tires because you didn’t rotate them properly. Preventing uneven tire wear is as simple as having your tires rotated regularly. You also have to be careful with some high-performance tires with asymmetrical treads that are specified to be only on the right side or left side of the vehicle. Putting lefties on the right and vice versa will make your car sound off-key.

‘My tire makes squealing sounds’

When your tires make squealing sounds, this could mean they are underinflated. Your first move is to check the air pressure to ensure they’re correctly inflated.

If air pressure isn’t the issue, it could be a more significant problem, like improperly aligned wheels and tires. Take your car to a professional and get the tires aligned to fix the squealing.

‘My tire makes a womp-womp noise’

You might have a foreign object in your tire. You can do a slow roll and have someone watch the tire to see if there is something like a large rock wedged between the treads. Make sure the vehicle is in park and the engine is off before you try to remove the foreign object. If it’s a bolt, nail, or sharp object, do not try to remove it, as it may have punctured the tire. Take it to your auto shop, where they can remove it and evaluate whether the hole can be patched.

The womp-womp noise could also be from a broken or separated belt, underinflated tires, or bad wheel alignment. Time for a visit to your auto shop.

‘Tire makes a clicking noise when I turn’

Weird sounds when you turn your vehicle could mean a few things. You could have a broken or damaged CV (constant velocity) joint, bad struts, or something wrong in the steering components of your vehicle.

All of the above mean a trip to the auto mechanic. Don’t procrastinate; call them now.

Something less serious is a loose hubcap. If you hit a lot of potholes or bumps the wrong way, it could loosen your hubcap and cause a rattle, which is amplified when you turn. This isn’t as much a safety hazard for you as it could be for someone else. If your hubcap flies off while you’re driving, it could cause danger to other drivers.

‘My car has loud tire noise at highway speeds’

When your vehicle goes faster, you will have more noise. So, expect some increased noise from your tires when you’re cruising at highway speeds. If the loud noise is sudden and louder than usual … you know what we’re going to say: Have it checked by your auto mechanic.

‘Why are my tires so loud?’

You bought new tires, and you’re shocked at how loud they are when you drive on them for the first time. Your new tires could have an aggressive tire tread, like a mud tire or off-road tire. Once you drive on them for a while, the rubber heats up and softens, which should reduce the road noise somewhat. If a stranger noise is coming from your tires, take it to your tire installer for a quick check to see if there are underlying issues with your vehicle.

Now that you know what causes tires to be noisy, let’s look at tires built to make less noise.

What Are the Quietest Tires?

If you want a quieter ride, you’ll need to get tires featuring noise-reducing technology. One trick that’s up tire manufacturers’ sleeves is implementing sound-absorbing foam in the tire’s interior. This is done by adding a thick layer of foam insulation to the tire’s inner lining as either one continuous piece or several smaller sections.

Tire makers can add insulation after the initial manufacturing process, so this type of noise-reducing tire is identical to its non-noise-reducing companions. That’s why you’ll typically see a logo indicating noise-reduction technology etched onto the tire’s sidewall to distinguish between them and their standard tire counterpart.

Here are some other features to look for that help reduce tire noise:

Tires built with rubber that has a softer composition
More narrow tire sizes
Tires with a reinforced shoulder that stabilizes tread blocks
Varied tread block shapes that create numerous pitch patterns
Smaller blocks

Loudest to Quietest Tire Types

Passenger vehicles

This is a list of passenger tire tread types from loudest to quietest:

Studded winter tires (loudest)
Stud-less winter tires
SUV / CUV highway tires
Performance tires
Touring all-season tires (quietest)

Passenger tires with low road noise

Kenda Vezda Touring A/S KR205: This grand touring all-season tire comes in a variety of sizes and is one of the more affordable options, starting at around $96 per tire.*
Turanza EL400-2: This touring all-season tire from Bridgestone features “noise-cancelling sound waves,” and starts around $105 per tire.
Cinturato P7 All Season: Pirelli’s touring all season checks a lot of boxes: eco-friendly, road noise reduction, reduced hydroplaning and improved grip. Sizes range from 16″ to 21″ and start around $180 per tire.
Michelin Primacy Tour A/S: The entire line of Michelin’s Primacy models are designed for quiet and comfortable rides. This premium tire starts around $229 per tire and comes in sizes ranging from 17″ to 22″.
Goodyear Assurance ComfortDrive: This versatile touring all-season tire from Goodyear comes in a wide range of sizes (16″ to 20″) and includes a 60k-mile warranty and innovative noise reduction treads. It starts around $171.

SUV, CUV and light trucks

This is the list of light truck and SUV tire types from loudest to quietest:

Quietest truck and SUV tires

For light trucks, pickup trucks and SUVs, these are among the best tires with low road noise:

Michelin Primacy Tour A/S: This versatile tire fits many SUV and light trucks (see description above, in the passenger car section).
Hankook Dynapro AT2 (RF11): One of the quieter all-terrain tires on the market, the Dynapro AT2 also features a longer-than-average treadwear rating (660 vs category average of 506). Starting at $143, this is one of the lower-priced SUV tires.
Bridgestone Turanza QuietTrack: With an 80k-mile warranty and built-in QUIETTRACK® technology, this tire from Bridgestone easily makes our list of quietest tires. Sizes range from 15″ to 20″ and prices start around $204 per tire.
Toyo Extensa A/S II: The budget-friendly Extensa from Toyo starts around $80 per tire. This touring all-season tire comes with a 75k-mile warranty and sizes ranging from 14″ to 20″.

*Tire prices subject to change. Check the product lineup at Tire Agent for the latest pricing and to ensure the right fit for your vehicle. Shipping is always free within the continental U.S. on qualifying orders from Tire Agent!

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