How Many LUFS for Spotify? How Loud Your Master Should Be

Your song is done, you're ready to put it on Spotify, and then the question hits: how loud should my master actually be? You see "-14 LUFS" everywhere, but also people saying you shouldn't master to that at all. In this article we explain what Spotify itself says, what happens to your track when it's too loud or too quiet, and how to check where your master sits in a few minutes.

Short answer: how many LUFS for Spotify?

Spotify plays tracks back at around -14 LUFS (integrated) by default. That's on the official Spotify for Artists support page about loudness normalization. If your master is louder, Spotify turns it down. If it's quieter, Spotify turns it up, but only as far as the peaks allow.

Spotify also gives two true peak tips:

  • Keep your true peak below -1 dBTP.
  • If you master louder than -14 LUFS, keep your true peak below -2 dBTP, so you don't get distortion when the file is converted to a compressed format.

That's the foundation. Below is what it means in practice.

What is LUFS, anyway?

LUFS stands for Loudness Units relative to Full Scale. It measures how loud a song sounds to your ears, not just how high the peaks go. Spotify measures according to the international ITU-R BS.1770 standard, like most loudness meters.

A few terms you'll run into:

  • Integrated LUFS: the average loudness of your whole song. This is the number Spotify looks at.
  • True peak (dBTP): the highest peak, including peaks that fall between samples. A regular peak meter can miss those.
  • Short-term LUFS: how loud a short section sounds, like your hook.

What does Spotify do with your master?

Spotify calls this loudness normalization. The goal is that listeners don't have to keep reaching for the volume knob every time a new song starts.

Your master is louder than -14 LUFS

Your track gets negative gain: Spotify turns it down to around -14 LUFS. So you don't "lose" loudness compared to other songs, because everything is brought to the same level. What stays is how hard you squashed it. A heavily limited master can sound flatter after being turned down than a master with more dynamics.

Your master is quieter than -14 LUFS

Your track gets positive gain, but Spotify takes your peaks into account and leaves 1 dB of headroom for compressed formats. Spotify's own example: a track at -20 LUFS with a true peak of -5 dBTP only goes up to -16 LUFS, not all the way to -14. So a master that's too quiet can end up slightly quieter than everything around it.

Listener settings

Premium users can pick one of three levels in the app:

  • Loud: -11 LUFS
  • Normal: -14 LUFS
  • Quiet: -19 LUFS

On Loud, Spotify uses a limiter that kicks in around -1 dB. Good to know: according to Spotify, the web player and third party devices, like TVs and speakers, don't use loudness normalization. There, your track plays back exactly as you delivered it.

Albums and EPs

When someone plays your album or EP front to back, Spotify normalizes the whole album at once. The level differences between your tracks stay the same. On shuffle or in a playlist, each song is adjusted on its own.

So should you master to exactly -14 LUFS?

No, you don't have to. Spotify gives -14 LUFS as a guideline, but it also tells you what to do if you master louder (true peak below -2 dBTP). Mastering louder is fine, as long as it doesn't distort.

What is smart:

  • Master for your song and your genre, not for a number. A hard trap or drill beat with an 808 that needs to hit asks for something different than a laid back R&B track.
  • Don't crush your master just to sound "louder". Spotify will turn it down anyway. What you mostly hear then are the downsides: flat drums and a vocal that doesn't breathe.
  • Always watch your true peak. That's the number where things usually go wrong, especially on loud masters.
  • Compare with a reference track at the same volume. That way you can honestly hear whether your mix falls short, or is just quieter.

Check your master in 4 steps

  1. Export your master as a WAV, at your project's sample rate and bit depth. Don't put anything on the master bus after your limiter.
  2. Open the free Master Checker and drag your file in. Your audio isn't uploaded, everything happens in your browser.
  3. Look at three numbers: integrated LUFS, true peak and loudness range. The tool also shows roughly what Spotify, YouTube and Apple do with your track.
  4. Adjust and check again. True peak above -1 dBTP? Lower your limiter's ceiling. Everything sounds flat? Back off the gain reduction on your limiter.

Want to put your master side by side with a song that sounds the way you want to sound? With Master Checker Pro you compare loudness, dynamics and tonal balance with a reference track, and check a whole EP in one go.

Common mistakes

  • Only watching your DAW's peak meter. A sample peak of -0.1 dB can mean a true peak above 0 dBTP.
  • Measuring a preview or MP3 instead of your actual master. Always measure the file you send to your distributor.
  • Turning your master up because it sounds quieter than a hit. Often the difference is in the mix (the balance between vocal, 808 and drums), not in the loudness.
  • Mastering every track on your EP to a different level. With album normalization, those differences stay audible.

Rather have someone else do it?

Mastering is a craft of its own, especially when your ears have already heard the same song a hundred times. Not sure about your mix or master? Run it through the Master Checker first, and check out the other free music tools for your release.

FAQ

Is -14 LUFS too quiet for rap?

Not on Spotify, because louder tracks get turned back down to around -14 LUFS anyway. If you want to master louder, that's allowed. Just keep your true peak below -2 dBTP, as Spotify recommends.

Does my song get worse if it's too loud?

Spotify only turns it down, and that alone doesn't cost quality. But if your master is already distorted or flat from too much limiting, you'll still hear that after it's turned down.

What's the difference between LUFS and dB?

dB (for example dBFS or dBTP) tells you about the signal level, like your peaks. LUFS measures how loud the song sounds to the human ear, averaged over time.

Does this apply to YouTube and Apple Music too?

Other platforms adjust volume too, but they don't all work the same way. The Master Checker shows you roughly what happens to your track per platform.

Source: Spotify for Artists, "Loudness normalization" (support.spotify.com).

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