Silent vs Ticking Wall Clocks

The short answer

Choose a silent sweep clock for a bedroom, a studio apartment, a nursery or a home office, anywhere a tick would bother you in a quiet room. Choose a ticking clock for a kitchen, hallway or living room where there’s background noise, or if you like the sound and want a second hand that clearly counts each second. Both keep the same quartz time, so this is a choice about sound and battery life, not accuracy.

Side by side

	Silent sweep clocks	Ticking clocks
How the second hand moves	Glides in many tiny steps, often 8 per second	Jumps once per second
Noise	Near-silent; a faint hum close up in a very quiet room	Audible tick, often noticeable from across a quiet room
Battery	Usually one AA	Usually one AA
Battery life	Typically shorter; often several months to about a year	Typically longer; often a year or more
Accuracy	Quartz, same as ticking	Quartz, same as sweep
Common sizes	10 to 14 inches (25 to 36 cm) across; larger statement clocks	Same range
Weight	Usually 1 to 3 lb (0.5 to 1.4 kg) for a 12-inch clock	Same
Cost level	Similar; sometimes slightly more	Similar
Best rooms	Bedrooms, studios, offices, nurseries	Kitchens, hallways, busy living rooms

When a silent sweep clock is the better buy

If a clock will hang in a room where you sleep, read or work, choose a sweep movement. A tick that you don’t notice during the day can sound loud at night, and in a studio apartment the bedroom is every room. Sweep clocks also have a smooth, calm look, with the second hand gliding around the dial.

The tradeoff is battery life. Moving the hand in many small steps uses more power than one step a second, so expect to change the battery more often than on a ticking clock. The first sign of a weak battery is often the clock losing time or the second hand stalling around the 9, where it has to climb. Change it then rather than waiting for the clock to stop.

Check the listing for the words “silent,” “sweep,” “continuous” or “non-ticking.” “Quiet” alone can mean a quieter tick. For picks and sizing, see our guide to battery wall clocks.

When a ticking clock is the better buy

A ticking clock is the classic choice, and plenty of people find the sound comforting. In a kitchen with a fridge hum, a range hood and running water, nobody hears the tick anyway. It also gives a clear, countable second, which is handy for timing short tasks.

Ticking movements usually go longer between batteries, which is useful for a clock hung high, above a doorway or a tall cabinet, where changing a battery means getting out a step stool.

If you buy a ticking clock and later decide you can’t live with it, the movement can often be replaced. Replacement quartz movements are sold by shaft length, so measure the thickness of the dial, plus any washer, and match the hand style. That’s a short job with simple tools for most standard clocks.

In a small space

Size the clock to the wall, not the room. Over a sofa or bed, a large clock of 20 inches (51 cm) or more, or a smaller one grouped with frames, reads as deliberate; a 12-inch clock alone in the middle of a big wall looks lost. On a narrow wall beside a door or in a kitchen nook, a 10- or 12-inch (25 or 30 cm) clock is usually enough. Our guide to modern wall clocks covers sizes and face styles that read well from across a room.

Hang it where you’ll actually look. The center of the clock usually belongs near eye level, around 57 inches (145 cm) from the floor, unless it sits above furniture, in which case leave about 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) above the furniture’s top. A clock can also anchor a gallery wall; our guide to hanging a gallery wall covers spacing.

Most clocks hang from a single keyhole slot on the back. A nail or picture hook into drywall is usually enough for a light clock. For a rental, an adhesive hook works if its rating covers the clock’s weight with some to spare, using the weight rating on the package; our guide to renter-friendly wall decor has more no-drill options.

If you’re sensitive to sound, avoid hanging any clock on the wall your bed headboard sits against. Even a quiet movement carries through a thin wall more than through the air.

Care and lifespan

Use fresh alkaline AA batteries unless the maker says otherwise, and take the battery out if you store the clock for more than a few weeks. A leaking battery is the most common way a quartz movement dies.

Dust the face and frame with a dry cloth. If the clock has a glass or acrylic cover, spray cleaner onto the cloth, not the clock, so liquid doesn’t seep inside. Keep clocks out of steamy bathrooms unless they’re sold for that, and away from direct sun, which fades printed dials.

A decent quartz movement of either type typically runs for many years. When one finally fails, a replacement movement is cheap and the case and hands can usually stay.