Although many people talk about hearing loss in terms of percentage, it is not an appropriate or meaningful measure of hearing loss. Hearing is tested across many different frequencies or pitches, from low-pitched sounds like thunder all the way up to high pitches, like a whistle. It is very common to have more hearing loss at some frequencies than for others. Hearing loss is not measured in percentages, except in specific legal situations where decibels of hearing loss are converted via a recognized legal formula to create a “percentage of hearing loss” for legal purposes only.

The generally recognized categories of hearing loss are illustrated in the table. Note that the term “audiometric threshold” refers to the softest sound level that a person is able to hear at a specific frequency. The louder the threshold, the worse that person’s hearing is.

It’s important to realize that the degree of hearing loss does not necessarily reflect the impact hearing loss has on someone’s life. A mild hearing loss can be significantly handicapping for some people, while a moderate hearing loss may not have a great impact on someone else. An individual’s lifestyle, support system, and feelings about hearing loss strongly affect its impact, even more so than the clinical diagnosis.