The best way to handle how to remove background noise from a podcast is to stop most of it at the source, then clean up what remains with a noise-reduction tool in your editor. Software like Audacity, Reaper, Descript and Adobe Podcast can suppress steady hum, hiss and room rumble, but no plugin fully fixes a noisy recording — so your microphone technique and room matter most.
Fix the recording before you fix the file
Background noise is far easier to prevent than to remove. A clean recording needs almost no processing, while a noisy one always sounds processed after you fight it. Before each session, do the obvious things: turn off fans, air conditioning, fridges and noisy computers; close windows; and record in the most soft-furnished room you have. Soft surfaces absorb reflections that otherwise read as boxy room sound.
Mic choice and distance matter too. A dynamic microphone close to your mouth rejects far more room noise than a sensitive condenser placed a foot away. For the full technique, see our guide on how to sound better on a podcast microphone, and if you’re treating the space, acoustic treatment for home studios explains what actually reduces room noise.
Identify what kind of noise you have
Different noises need different fixes, so listen carefully first:
- Hum (a low steady tone) — usually electrical, often around mains frequency. A notch or hum-removal filter targets it.
- Hiss (a constant high “shhh”) — preamp or gain noise. Noise reduction based on a noise profile works well.
- Rumble (low-frequency thud) — traffic, footsteps, HVAC. A high-pass filter removes it cleanly.
- Intermittent sounds — clicks, mouth noise, the odd cough. These need manual editing, not a global filter.
The reason this matters is that a single tool rarely solves more than one problem well. If you reach for broadband noise reduction to remove a low electrical hum, you will end up dragging the reduction amount far too high and smearing the voice in the process. Diagnose first, then pick the narrowest tool that targets exactly that noise. A good habit is to solo the track and listen on headphones to a quiet passage between sentences — whatever you can hear there is your noise floor, and its character tells you which fix to start with.
How to remove background noise from a podcast in your editor
The core technique is the same across most software: capture a sample of “noise only”, let the tool learn that fingerprint, then subtract it from the whole track.
Audacity
- Select a second or two of audio with only the background noise (no speech).
- Open the Noise Reduction effect and use the option to capture the noise profile.
- Select the whole clip, reopen Noise Reduction, and apply it.
- Start with gentle settings. Pushing reduction too hard creates a watery, robotic artefact.
Reaper
Reaper handles this with FX on the track: a high-pass filter for rumble, the built-in ReaFIR plugin in “subtract” mode to learn and remove steady noise, and a gate or expander to quieten gaps between words. If you also master in Reaper, our guide to mastering a podcast covers the order of processing.
Descript and Adobe Podcast
Descript includes a one-click “Studio Sound” style enhancement that reduces noise and evens out tone automatically, which is handy when you want speed over control. Adobe Podcast’s enhance feature does something similar. These are excellent for spoken-word cleanup, but use them in moderation — heavy AI enhancement can make voices sound artificial.
Whichever tool you use, capture the cleanest possible noise profile. A sample that accidentally contains a breath, a lip smack or a stray word teaches the tool the wrong fingerprint, and it will then carve those frequencies out of your speech as well. Aim for a flat, uninterrupted stretch of room tone, and grab it from the same session rather than reusing an old profile, because the noise floor changes with the room, the mic position and even the time of day.
The right processing order
Apply fixes in a sensible chain so each step has less to do:
- High-pass filter first, to remove rumble below the voice.
- Noise reduction or de-hum for steady broadband noise.
- Manual edits for clicks, breaths and one-off sounds.
- EQ and compression last, once the track is clean — see EQ and compression fundamentals.
This is part of normal post-production, so it fits naturally into your wider workflow in our guide on how to edit a podcast.
The order is not arbitrary. Filtering out rumble first means the noise-reduction stage has a smaller problem to solve, so you can use a gentler setting. Doing manual click and breath edits before you compress matters too, because compression raises the level of quiet detail — an unedited mouth click that was barely audible can jump out once a compressor brings it forward. Save your loud, tone-shaping moves for the end, when the track is already clean and you are only deciding how it should sound, not how to rescue it.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Reaching for software first. If every recording needs heavy cleanup, the fault is the room or the mic, not your plugins. Fix the input.
- Over-reducing. A faint, natural noise floor is far less distracting than a voice that sounds like it is underwater.
- Processing the whole show with one global pass. Different speakers, locations and recording days have different noise. Treat each track or segment on its own.
- Skipping a reference listen. Always check the result on headphones and on phone speakers; artefacts that hide on studio monitors often surface on cheap earbuds.
Know when to stop
Aggressive noise removal does more harm than a little background hiss. If you hear underwater, swirly or metallic artefacts on the voice, you’ve gone too far — back off the reduction amount. Listeners forgive a faint, steady noise floor far more readily than a damaged-sounding voice. When a recording is badly compromised, the honest answer is to re-record rather than to process it to death.
Frequently asked questions
Can I remove background noise after recording, or do I need to do it live?
You can do both. Some interfaces and apps offer real-time noise suppression, but most podcasters clean up in post with a noise-reduction tool. Post-processing gives you more control and lets you undo if you overdo it.
Why does my voice sound robotic after noise reduction?
That’s the classic sign of too much reduction. The tool starts removing parts of your actual voice along with the noise. Lower the reduction strength, capture a cleaner noise profile, and apply the effect more gently.
Does a noise gate remove background noise?
A gate only silences the audio when you’re not talking — it doesn’t remove noise that sits behind your voice. It’s useful for cleaning up pauses, but you still need noise reduction or good recording habits to deal with noise during speech.
How much background noise is acceptable in a finished podcast?
There is no single number, but a good guide is that the noise floor should sit well below the voice and stay steady, so listeners stop noticing it within a few seconds. A faint, consistent hiss is fine; anything that fluctuates, pumps or competes with quiet speech will pull attention away from your content and is worth another pass.
