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Category: Tech & Automation
By: James Wu
Reply by Brittany Simmons:
I've used both so I'll give you the honest rundown. Minut is what I'd recommend for most hosts. $150 for the device, $10/month per device. It monitors noise levels, temperature, and humidity — that last one is actually super useful because you get alerts if something's off (frozen pipe risk, mold-friendly conditions). It looks like a little smoke detector so guests barely notice it. Can run on battery or plug-in. The killer feature is auto-guest-notification: you set a decibel threshold and Minut automatically texts the guest a polite heads-up before you even need to get involved. Most of the time that's all it takes. My only gripe is the monthly subscription adds up if you have a bunch of properties. NoiseAware is $199 plus $9/month per device. It only measures noise but it's supposedly better at telling the difference between "party" noise patterns and just someone watching a movie loud. It has escalation workflows built in — alert goes to you first, then co-host, then whoever's next in line. That's nice for bigger operations. Downside: it's plug-in only and bigger than the Minut, and you don't get the temp/humidity bonuses. I went with Minut across all 6 of my properties. In 18 months, zero guest complaints about having a noise monitor. Three guests actually mentioned it positively in reviews. A couple people asked me about it and I just explained it measures decibel levels only, no audio recording, and they were totally fine with it. Cheaper option: Alertify at $150 + $6/month. Less polished app but it does noise plus smoke/vape detection, so if smoking violations are your bigger concern that might be worth looking at. Whatever you choose, DISCLOSE IT. In your listing, in your house rules, everywhere. Undisclosed monitoring devices will get your account suspended. You can generate proper disclosure language at https://strspecialist.com/tools/noise-camera-disclosure-generator.
Reply by Priya Nair:
The secret weapon in noise monitoring: **the automatic guest notification.** Minut can be configured to automatically send the guest a message when noise exceeds your threshold. No human intervention needed. My setup: - Threshold 1 (75 dB for 10 minutes): Minut auto-sends: "Hi! Our noise monitoring system has detected elevated noise levels. As a reminder, quiet hours are 10pm-8am. Please be mindful of our neighbors. Thank you!" - Threshold 2 (85 dB for 5 minutes): I get alerted, personal message: "Hey [Name], I've received a noise alert from the property. Could you please lower the volume? I want to make sure we stay on good terms with the neighbors." - Threshold 3 (90+ dB sustained): Call the guest directly. If no answer, consider sending co-host/neighbor. The automatic first warning resolves 90% of issues. Most noise is just guests being unaware (music too loud, talking on the deck at night). A friendly automated nudge is all it takes. Since implementing this escalation system: zero neighbor complaints in 14 months. Previously: 4-5 complaints per year.