Can you hear 17,000 Hz?
Hearing 17 kHz is typical for people in their 20s and younger; from the 30s on, most cannot. On that table teens reach 20 kHz, people in their 20s 18 kHz, and the ceiling drops about 2 kHz a decade. Being able to hear 17 kHz puts you ahead of about 67% of people across all ages.
Typical up to the 20sThe oldest decade whose typical ceiling reaches this tone. If 17 kHz is the highest tone you hear, our test files you under the 30s, the bracket whose ceiling sits at or just below it. Individuals vary by several kHz.
17 kHz by group
Typical ceiling by age
Every tone on our test
Percentile is the share of people, across all ages, whose typical ceiling is below this frequency. “1 in X” counts the rarer side: people at or beyond this value above the median, at or under it below. Taken from the age bracket table rather than a normal curve: each decade bracket is assumed to hold about 14% of people, an assumption of the test, not a measured distribution.
What this means
- The "mosquito" ringtone built so teachers cannot hear it is 17,400 Hz, 0.4 kHz above this tone. It works because most people past 30 cannot hear it.
- The hair cells that respond to high frequencies sit at the entrance of the cochlea and take the most wear. They do not grow back, so the ceiling only moves one way. Loud concerts and earbuds at full volume move people down the table early.
- A browser test can only play what your hardware reproduces. Laptop speakers fade above about 15 kHz, Bluetooth codecs cut off somewhere between 16 and 20 kHz, and cheap earbuds vary. A no at 18 kHz may be your equipment's answer, not your ears'. An audiologist's booth is the real test.
- The share of people per bracket is an even split of about 14% per decade, an assumption of our test. It makes the percentile a rough guide, not a measurement.
Questions
- Can you hear 17,000 Hz?
- Typically yes for people in their teens and 20s, typically no from the 30s on. Individuals vary by several kHz.
- What age can hear 17,000 Hz?
- On the ceiling-by-decade table, people in their teens and 20s typically hear 17 kHz; people in their 30s and older typically do not. Hearing it puts you ahead of about 67% of people across all ages, by our test's rough split of 14% per decade.
- Why can I not hear it on my laptop?
- Small speakers roll off above 15 kHz or so, and many Bluetooth codecs cut high frequencies before they reach your ears. Use wired headphones, raise the volume to a comfortable level first, and treat a failed 17 kHz on built-in speakers as untested, not failed.
Source: Typical upper hearing limit by decade: Lutman 1991; Śliwińska-Kowalska 2021, as tabulated by our hearing test. Taken from the age bracket table rather than a normal curve: each decade bracket is assumed to hold about 14% of people, an assumption of the test, not a measured distribution.
Tones from 8 to 20 kHz through your headphones. About a minute.
Test your hearing range