5 Best Acoustic Panels For Office: Reviews, Buying Guide, FAQ

Noise pollution in workspaces can grind the companies to halt. If your employees are unable to focus on work because of higher frequency noises in the surroundings, you can never scale your company’s productivity.

Most of the time, soundproofing the entire office is arduous because of the building structure and its cost. However, there are few economical solutions for this. One of which is to place acoustic panels on the walls and ceilings to reduce the sound transfer. By using acoustic panels, you can substantially minimize workspace noises. 

Here, check out these 5 best acoustic panels for offices that will ensure minimum noise distractions and optimum results for your company.

Top Picks For Best Acoustic Panels For Offices

Here, take a look at our top picks for the best acoustic panels for offices.

Product	Features	Link
ATS Acoustic Panel  (best-overall)	– 0.95 NRC – Mounting hardware is available – Wooden frame – Fire resistant – 2-inch thick – Available in 4 colors	Amazon
Acoustimac DMD Stagger Acoustic Panel (runner-up)	– Set of eight panels of equal size – Heat-resistant – 0.95 NRC rating – Wooden frame – Covers 32 sq. ft surface – Z clips for installation included	Amazon

Best Acoustic Panels For Office

If you’re looking for detailed reviews of our top picks and more, then here are the detailed reviews for the best acoustic panels for offices:

1. ATS Acoustic Panel

ATS acoustic panels are one of the premium quality panels that fits best for office settings. You can place these in conference rooms, office cubicles, common rooms, and other noisy areas in your office. 

ATS has the perfect NRC rating of 1.0, which makes sure to contain sound waves within the room. These acoustic panels have wooden frames that are 2” thick, which provide more density. The frame has an overlay of solid jute fabric. 

These are 24 x 48 x 2 large-sized panels, therefore, you will require fewer panels in the room. Moreover, it goes well with the office walls, as it comes in four plain colors, including black, burgundy, ivory, and light brown. Along with blocking the noise, it adds a pleasant face to the office interior.

However, the ATS acoustic panels are more expensive than other panels on the list, but it provides great value. Also, the package contains a single panel.

Pros

• 0.95 NRC
• Mounting hardware available
• Wooden frame
• Fire resistant
• 2-inch thick
• Available in 4 colors

Cons

• Expensive
• Mounting hardware is not available

2. Acoustimac DMD Stagger Acoustic Panel

The Acoustimac DMD Stagger tops our list of most suitable acoustic panels for the offices. With this package you will get a set of eight panels; four charcoal colored and four grays. If you do not like the alternative charcoal and gray panels, you can also order them in the same color.

DMD Stagger acoustic panels are heat-resistant and have wooden frames with absorption material and a covering of fabric. These have high absorption power as they have an NRC rating of 0.95. It deadens the noise to a significant extent and removes the echo.

Using this set, you can cover up the 32 sq. ft surface of your walls. Placing these in meeting rooms, auditoriums, or entrance offices, which are usually too noisy, will give you excellent results. Installation of DMD acoustic panels is also basic, as the Z clips are already available with the set. 

At first, it might feel that the product is slightly expensive but it is not so. It is the overall price of a complete set of eight panels along with the mounting hardware, making it quite reasonable.

Pros

• Set of eight panels of equal size
• Heat-resistant
• 0.95 NRC rating
• Wooden frame
• Covers 32 sq.ft surface
• Z clips for installation included

Cons

• Only available in monochromatic colors

3. TroyStudio Acoustic Panel 

TroyStudio acoustic panels are a set of 2 square-shaped acoustic panels. These are small-sized panels, which are ideal for small office rooms or cubicles. These are the best acoustic panels, which fulfill your noise mitigating needs at a reasonable price.

TroyStudio panels are 1-inch thick and are made of fiberglass. The fiberglass works fine for reducing the echoes and containing the sound. The noise reduction coefficient for these acoustic panels is 0.79, which means it works fairly well for lessening the noise. 

The panels are available in four colors, including white, black, gray, and brown. Therefore, you have color choices to match your office interior.

However, these panels are inadequate for the larger rooms, as you will have to use lots of acoustic panels to make these work. Moreover, you also have to put up with its fish-like smell, which may go away with time.

Pros

• 0.79 NRC
• Fiberglass material
• Controls echo and reduces sound
• 2 panels included
• Appropriate for smaller spaces like home studios or office cubicles
• Fire resistant
• 4 color options
• 1-inch thick

Cons

• Unpleasant odour
• Not suitable for larger rooms 

4. Acoustimac Sound Absorbing Acoustic Panel

Acoustimac Sound Absorbing Panels is another high NRC rating acoustic panel for offices. These acoustic panels are suitable for larger spaces like conference rooms, common rooms, etc. You can add more colors to your workspaces, as these sound-absorbing panels are available in six sophisticated colors.

Along with the NRC rating of 0.95, these soundproofing panels are 2-inch thick. Moreover, their wooden frame is filled with mineral wool insulation substances, and the upper covering is of dense fabric. You can choose the fabric color from six options, that are: black, gray, white, stone, khaki, and charcoal. 

Besides being highly functional against noises and having an elegant appearance, these acoustic panels are heat and fire-resistant too. Also, these are easy to install, as the instructions and mounting hardware are available with the package.

Only one thing is off about these Acoustimac panels and that is its price. Though these are quality acoustic panels, the price is still too high. These panels are not available in sets.

Pros

• 0.95 NRC
• Compatible for large office spaces
• Mounting hardware available
• Wooden frame
• Fire resistant
• 2-inch thick
• 6 color options

Cons

• Highly Expensive

5. Acoustic Design Works – Mondrian Kit of Acoustic Panels

The Mondrian Kit from Acoustic Design Works is one of the most decorous acoustic panels that will be apt for your office walls. This kit is a set of four panels; two rectangular and two square-shaped. These are available in various exciting color combinations, that will help you in decorating your office and reducing the noise.

Rectangular-shaped panels are larger with 48” x 24” x 1” size and the squared ones are smaller with 24” x 24” x 1” size. These also have decent absorption capacity as the NRC rating for these acoustic panels is 0.85. These are composed of fiberglass material and the Guilford absorption fabric.

Mondrian Kit can be a great addition to your home offices too. It will provide a decent background to your virtual meetings and take care of the echoes and reverberations. These are fairly easy to install on walls with the help of the available brackets. Moreover, you can use these acoustic panels for your office ceilings too. 

The Acoustic Design Works’ Mondrian Kit of acoustical panels might be expensive, but it can be an impressive addition to your office’s decor that will also lessen the noise. 

Pros

• Set of four acoustic panels
• Available in various combinations of colors
• 0.85 NRC rating 
• Fiberglass material
• Guilford fabric
• 1-inch thickness
• Mounting hardware included

Cons

• Expensive
• Not suitable for completely blocking sound waves

Buying Guide For Best Acoustic Panel For Offices

The considerations for selecting the right acoustic panels for offices are similar to those for any other setting. Therefore, considering the NRC, material, and thickness of acoustic panels is inevitable. However, for offices, you should also consider the intensity of background noises, average reverberation time, and the setting where you want to place the panels.

Background Noise Intensity

Sound intensity is the volume of a sound wave traveling per second that is represented through decibels. A normal human being can hear 0 to 140-decibel sounds while sounds from 60-80 dB are considered as noise for human ears. 

In an average workplace, employees are exposed to 60 to 65 dB of noise. But only under 45 dB background noise is acceptable in work environments. Therefore, controlling this noise is unavoidable as it creates distractions for employees that negatively affect their health and productivity.

Placing acoustic panels in offices can be really helpful in reducing such noises. However, for this purpose, you must determine the intensity of noise in your office. You can find out the intensity of noise through the use of various online tools. Then select the acoustic panel accordingly.

If the background noises in your office are higher than 60 dB, you must go for the acoustic panel with an NRC of at least 0.85.

Reverberation Time

Reverberation time is the decaying time of 60 dB of sound in unit time. As reverberation intensifies the noise, you must make sure to reduce the reverb time. The acceptable reverb time in offices is 0.75s. If it is higher than this in your office, then you use more absorption material in the room to reduce the reflective surfaces for sound waves.

Moreover, if the reverberation time is higher, you will require more acoustic panels to cover the reflective surfaces.

Placement of Acoustic Panels

Other than the noise intensity and reverb time, you must consider the location of the acoustic panels. Firstly you have to consider the size of the room and whether it is an open or a closed area. If the space is smaller, you must place the panels vertically as walls are the main surfaces where sound strikes the most. However, in larger rooms, it is suitable to place acoustic panels horizontally or on the ceiling rather than vertically. These surfaces provide more area for the reflection of sound.

Some of the other things that you might consider are:

• The material used in the room structure
• Size of the walls
• Furniture and other objects in the room

FAQ

Final Thoughts

Noise pollution in the workplace is one issue that not only limits a business’s productivity but it is also dangerous for its employees. However, to tackle this issue, the expensive soundproofing of the entire building structure is not the only way. You can use some of the low-cost options like acoustic panels, which help in blocking the sound transfer.

Picking up suitable acoustic panels for offices can be tricky because you need to consider many things. These include the understanding of NRC ratings, suitable material, and thickness of the panels. Moreover, from the perspective of an office setting and the level of background noises, you must also consider the intensity of noise, reverberation time, and the right placement of acoustic panels.

One of the best acoustic panels is ATS Acoustic Panels that are 2-inch thick having the perfect noise reduction coefficient of 1.0. The next best acoustic panels are Acoustimac DMD Stagger Acoustic Panel. These are a set of monochromatic eight panels having an NRC of 0.95. These reasonably priced acoustic panels can be staggered on a wall and mitigate the sound transfer.