Acoustic Panels vs Soundproofing for Offices: What’s the Difference?

“Do we need soundproofing or acoustic panels?” is one of the most common questions we hear from office customers. The two terms are often used interchangeably, but they actually solve different problems. Understanding the difference will help you choose the right solution and avoid wasting budget.

What Acoustic Panels Do in Offices

Acoustic panels are designed to improve the sound within a room. They:

• Reduce echo and reverberation Improve speech clarity
• Make spaces feel calmer and more controlled

In an office, acoustic panels are ideal for:

• Meeting rooms and boardrooms
• Open-plan offices and co-working spaces
• Reception areas and corridors
• Call centres and sales floors 

By absorbing sound energy, panels stop it bouncing around the room. This makes conversations easier to follow and reduces that “boomy” or “tinny” sound you often hear in hard, modern spaces. What acoustic panels don’t do is stop sound travelling through walls, floors or ceilings.

What Soundproofing Does in Offices

Soundproofing is about blocking or reducing sound transmission between spaces. It’s used when you need:

• Privacy between meeting rooms and offices
• To reduce noise from neighbouring units or busy roads
• To stop sound travelling between floors
• Effective soundproofing usually involves:
• Adding mass to walls, floors or ceilings
• Decoupling structures so they vibrate less
• Using specialist materials such as soundproofing mats and resilient layers

At Advanced Acoustics we supply a range of soundproofing products for walls, floors and ceilings, including soundproofing mats and acoustic underlay, which are commonly used in commercial projects.

Common Office Scenarios and What You Actually Need

To make this more concrete, here are a few typical office situations and the solutions we’d usually recommend:

1. Echoey meeting room where people struggle to hear clearly
   Problem: Poor acoustics inside the room.
   Solution: Acoustic panels on the walls and/or ceiling.
2. Boardroom next to an open-plan office where confidential conversations can be overheard
   Problem: Sound leaking through the wall.
   Solution: Soundproofing to the party wall, plus acoustic panels inside the boardroom to improve clarity.
3. Shared office where you can hear the neighbours through the party wall
   Problem: Sound transmission between units.
   Solution: Wall soundproofing (e.g. additional layers with soundproofing mat), with acoustic panels as an optional extra for internal acoustics.
4. Open-plan office that feels loud and tiring
   Problem: Excess reverberation and overlapping conversations.
   Solution: Acoustic panels on walls and ceilings, possibly combined with some layout changes.

How to Decide What Your Office Needs

A simple way to think about it is: If the problem is “it’s too loud and echoey inside this room”, you’re likely to need acoustic panels. If the problem is “people outside this room can hear us” or “we can hear the neighbours”, you’re likely to need soundproofing.

In many commercial projects, you’ll benefit from a combination of both. If you’re not sure, describe what you’re experiencing:

• Where you hear the noise
• When it’s worst
• Whether the issue is echo, privacy, or both

We can then recommend whether you need acoustic panels, soundproofing, or a combination.

The next step? For echo and clarity issues, start with our Office Acoustic Panels Page. For privacy and noise transmission problems, explore our Soundproofing Solutions and get in touch with your project details.