Residents often describe Seattle as a “vibrant” city. Maybe another way to put it is “noisy.”

That’s what a recent Forbes study called it, ranking Seattle as the seventh-noisiest city in the United States. Before you reach any conclusions, know that it’s not necessarily all negative.

For one thing, the city contains about 184 bars and restaurants per square mile, among the highest in the country. Seattle also has a relatively high number of building construction permits, an impressive level of economic development activity. Sea-Tac International Airport is also among the busiest in the country, and is located in a very urban Seattle suburb.

On the other hand, traffic here creates lots of noise — Seattle ranks No. 11 in that category, which should surprise no one. 

The study looked at nine metrics across 83 major U.S. cities to gauge the noise that comes from road transport, construction, urban life and air traffic, as well as the density of natural sound barriers such as trees and parkland) that help reduce noise. 

So yes, Seattle can be quite noisy, but it contains a mix of lively urban sounds as well as serene spots.

Miami, New York, and Newark, N.J., topped the list.