Can You Put a Golf Simulator in an Apartment or Condo?

Sometimes, but the neighbors decide it more than the equipment does. The building’s construction sets how far the noise travels, and no mat or screen fully fixes a floor that carries sound to the unit below. Lease or HOA rules and a small room come next.

In a Nutshell

An apartment or condo sim is a noise question first: concrete between floors gives you a chance, while a wood-frame floor with neighbors below usually doesn’t, whatever you put under the mat. Owners who make it work mostly hit irons, keep driver to daytime or use a net; check the lease or HOA rules before buying.

👉 Before you spend anything, hit a few balls into a borrowed net while a neighbor listens from their unit.

Jargon, once:

• Impact screen vs net — a screen takes the projected image and the ball; a net only stops the ball.
• Wood-frame vs concrete floor — timber joists carry thumps to the unit below; a concrete slab between units carries far less.

How this was built: owner reports from Reddit since 2020, plus related guides on noise and room size. No maker figures are used. Nothing here was tested hands-on.

Noise Decides It: Who Hears What

Owners most often name the ball hitting the screen as the loudest sound (7 reports from 6 owners). In the room the club strike can be louder, but the screen’s thud is what reaches the neighbors.

• Neighbors on every side count. Noise reaching neighbors above, below or beside is the most common reason owners say a sim doesn’t work in a condo or apartment (6 reports from 6 owners).

• It travels through the structure. Owners describe impact noise carrying through floors, ceilings and walls, often heard as a thud or a door slam (7 reports from 6 owners).

• Construction matters most. Thick concrete floors and insulated walls contain it; standard wood-frame floors pass it on (5 reports from 4 owners).

• Measured, it is loud. Owners with decibel meters report driver shots at about 82 to 94 dB (3 reports from 2 owners). One owner measured 82 dB hitting driver into a net and about 87 dB into a screen.

The floor takes a hit on every swing, too:

“youll be hitting 60 to 80 thuds on the ground each time you use it” (Reddit user, 2026-07-05)

Lease, HOA and the Neighbors

Read the lease or the HOA rules before buying, and get any permission in writing. Rules on noise, quiet hours and alterations differ by building, so check your own documents rather than assuming.

Landlords’ core worries are errant-shot damage to walls and ceilings and drilling to fix mounts or screens (4 reports from 4 owners). A free-standing frame avoids drilling, and side netting or padding guards the walls.

Owners advise talking to the neighbors first, doing a live test-hit and leaving your contact details so any complaint comes to you, not to the landlord or the board (3 reports from 2 owners). The worry that stops many condo buyers is simple:

“getting reported by neighbors to the HOA due to noise” (Reddit user, 2023-07-21)

The Floor: The Thump Below

If someone lives under you, the club hitting the mat matters as much as the ball hitting the screen. Owners advise that on a concrete slab, irons with a little padding under the mat shouldn’t bother the unit below, though the club’s thump on the mat may still reach them; on a wood-frame floor, they say no mat is likely thick enough. Ground-floor units, or units with nobody beneath, avoid the problem.

One commenter suggests a test: hit 7-iron shots off a cheap mat with foam balls while the downstairs neighbor is home, then rap a 5-gallon pail with a mallet to mimic the screen.

Floor build-ups and the noise fixes have their own guides:

Building a Quiet Golf Simulator – Soundproofing Tips for 2025

Golf Simulator Flooring (2026): What Goes Under and Around the Mat

Space: Apartment Rooms Run Small

Most apartment rooms limit the clubs as well as the noise. In 8 to 9 ft ceilings, owners often drop driver and long clubs and still risk the ceiling or the projector (8 reports from 8 owners).

Width is the other squeeze: owners put the usable minimum around 8 to 10 ft, with narrower rooms seen as unworkable for full swings (8 reports from 8 owners).

One owner built in a high-rise condo spare bedroom of 12 × 10 × 9 ft, right-handed only, and reports it barely audible from the far side of the condo, with a padded hitting base, foam insulation and a double impact screen, in a concrete building and a corner unit that shares one wall. That is one build, not a promise.

Golf Simulator in a Spare Bedroom: Sizes, Layouts and Limits

How much space do you need for a Golf Simulator?

Setups That Keep the Peace

Every quieter setup gives something up, usually the driver or the projected picture.

• Irons and wedges only. A common workaround: skip driver and woods, since that strike is the loudest and draws the most complaints (5 reports from 4 owners).

• A net instead of a screen. Archery or baffle netting is the most effective way to cut ball-impact noise, at the cost of the image on the screen (4 reports from 4 owners).

• A better screen. Swapping a cheap impact screen for a higher-end one, or for netting, cuts impact noise (5 reports from 4 owners).

• Foam balls. Some owners in very noise-limited rooms switch to foam balls and accept less accurate launch monitor reads (2 reports from 2 owners).

• A screen that stows away. In rentals and shared rooms, retractable curtain-track screens or nets pull out for play and pack away with no permanent changes (3 reports from 3 owners).

• A late-night curfew. One owner with a fully insulated room says it’s still loud and avoids woods later at night.

“Net and don’t hit driver. But even then it’s hard.” (Reddit user, 2023-07-21)

Real soundproofing, decoupled walls and added mass, is expensive, so most owners settle for damping and absorption instead (4 reports from 3 owners).

Impact Screen vs Net – Pros & Cons + Buying Guide

When an Apartment Is the Wrong Place

Some units won’t work, and it’s better to learn that before buying gear. Owners warn that sims “aren’t for apartments” unless the building has concrete floors (5 reports from 5 owners). Look elsewhere if:

• you have neighbors below and a wood-frame floor;
• the lease or HOA rules bar the noise or the fixings;
• the ceiling rules out the clubs you want to hit.

Swing-stick systems and foam balls fit tighter spots but trade away real ball-strike feel, and some owners call that feel non-negotiable (3 reports from 3 owners).

Apartment Golf Simulator FAQ

Can you have a golf simulator in an apartment?

Sometimes. Concrete floors, no one below, iron practice and a lease that allows it give the best odds. Owner outcomes are mixed.

How loud is a golf simulator?

Owners with meters report about 82 to 94 dB for driver shots. The screen’s thud is what travels; in the room the club strike can be louder.

Will downstairs neighbors hear a golf simulator?

On a wood-frame floor, probably. On concrete, owners advise that irons with padding under the mat shouldn’t bother them.

Do you need landlord permission for a golf simulator?

Check your lease and ask. Damage and drilling are landlords’ main concerns, so a free-standing setup helps.

Is a net quieter than an impact screen?

Yes. Owners call a net the most effective noise fix, though you lose the projected image.

What size room does an apartment simulator need?

Owners put the minimum width around 8 to 10 ft, and 8 to 9 ft ceilings often rule out driver.

Is a condo you own any easier?

Owning removes the landlord, not the HOA or the neighbors; the same floor and noise checks apply.

Do foam balls work with a launch monitor?

They cut noise, but owners report less accurate reads.

Final Thoughts

Check the floor, the lease and the neighbors before the gear. If all three allow it, start with irons and a net.