The noise levels are indeed much greater.
When I moved into my house in 2001, the MW band was as clean as could be here. Today in 2022, its a mess of noise and has been for 10-15 years. When the power goes out, the band cleans right up, so I grab a battery operated radio to do some quick DXing.
Also, how many stations actually care about their AM stations these days or are they used as an excuse to get an FM translator?
I sure would like to see AM Stereo increase in usage on the MW band.