Spotify plays music at about -14 LUFS and recommends that you master to -14 LUFS integrated with a true peak below -1 dBTP, or below -2 dBTP if your master is louder than -14 LUFS. Louder tracks are turned down at playback, so extra loudness buys nothing; quieter tracks are turned up only as far as their peaks allow.
In Short
The short version:
- Spotify adjusts playback to about -14 LUFS on its Normal setting.
- Recommended master: -14 LUFS integrated, true peak below -1 dBTP.
- Louder than -14 LUFS? Keep the true peak below -2 dBTP.
- Albums are normalized as a whole, so quiet songs stay quieter than loud ones.
- Send your distributor a lossless file (WAV or FLAC), never an MP3.
How Spotify’s Loudness Normalization Works
Tracks arrive at Spotify at very different levels. To stop listeners reaching for the volume control between songs, Spotify measures the loudness of each track when it is delivered and adjusts the playback volume. According to Spotify’s own documentation , tracks are adjusted to -14 LUFS, measured with the ITU-R BS.1770 standard. The audio file itself is not changed; the adjustment happens while the track plays.
- Louder masters are turned down. A track at -8 LUFS is played 6 dB quieter. Nothing is distorted, but nothing is gained either.
- Quieter masters are turned up, within limits. Spotify leaves 1 dB of headroom, so a quiet track with high peaks is raised only part of the way. Its own example: a track at -20 LUFS with a true peak of -5 dB is lifted to -16 LUFS, not -14.
- Albums are adjusted as one unit. When an album is played in order, the same gain is applied to every track, so the quiet song stays quieter than the loud one.
- Listeners can change it. Premium users can choose Loud (-11 LUFS), Normal (-14 LUFS) or Quiet (-19 LUFS), and normalization is not used in the web player or on some third-party devices.
Why Louder Is No Longer Better
For decades, records were mastered louder and louder, because in a direct comparison the louder one seemed more impressive. The cost was dynamics: heavy limiting flattens drums and makes a mix tiring to listen to. This period is known as the loudness war, and USC’s Illumin magazine has a readable history of it . Normalization removes the advantage. On Spotify, a master crushed to -8 LUFS and a dynamic master at -14 LUFS play at the same loudness, and the dynamic one usually sounds punchier because its peaks are intact.
Spotify’s Recommended Master Settings
| Setting | Recommendation | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated loudness | -14 LUFS | Matches the playback level, so the track is neither turned down nor held back |
| True peak | Below -1 dBTP | Leaves room for the conversion to Ogg Vorbis and AAC |
| True peak for masters louder than -14 LUFS | Below -2 dBTP | Louder tracks are more likely to distort when they are transcoded |
| File format | Lossless: WAV or FLAC | A lossy file would be compressed a second time |
These are recommendations, not rules: Spotify does not reject louder masters. Many commercial releases are mastered louder for artistic reasons, in the knowledge that they will be turned down. What matters is that the decision is deliberate and that the true peak stays under control.
How to Check and Prepare Your Master, Step by Step
You can check everything in your browser before you send the track to a distributor.
Step 1: Measure Your Mix
Open your exported mix in the LUFS & Peak Analyzer. Note the integrated loudness, the true peak and how far the file is from Spotify’s -14 LUFS target.
Step 2: Decide How Loud to Go
If your mix is within a decibel or two of -14 LUFS and the true peak is below -1 dBTP, it is ready. If it is much quieter, it needs more level; if it is much louder, consider backing off so the dynamics are kept.
Step 3: Adjust the Level
In the Sound Optimizer, use the compressor to control the loudest peaks and Volume / Gain to move the loudness towards your target. Keep the Peak meter at or below -1 dB. How to Normalize Audio Without Clipping explains how to work out how much gain is safe.
Step 4: Measure the Exported File
Run the exported WAV through the LUFS & Peak Analyzer again. Check that the true peak is below -1 dBTP, or below -2 dBTP if you chose to master louder than -14 LUFS.
Step 5: Deliver a Lossless File
Send your distributor the WAV file at the sample rate you worked in. If the distributor asks for a specific rate, convert the file with the Sample Rate Converter. Keep MP3 copies for sharing only; you can make them with the WAV to MP3 Converter.
What About YouTube, Apple Music and Podcasts?
This guide is about Spotify. Other platforms use different reference levels, and podcasts have their own target of about -16 LUFS. The normalization guide has a table of platform targets and the method for reaching any of them.
Common Mistakes
- Chasing loudness with a limiter. Anything above -14 LUFS is turned down on playback; the distortion from over-limiting stays.
- Ignoring true peak. A file that peaks at -0.1 dBFS can clip after it is transcoded. Measure true peak, not just sample peak.
- Normalizing every album track to the same LUFS. Spotify keeps the level differences within an album, so master the album as a whole.
- Uploading an MP3. It will be encoded again and lose quality twice.
- Judging loudness by the waveform. Two tracks that look equally full can differ by several LU. Use a meter.
Check Your Master
Measure the integrated loudness and true peak of your track and see how far it is from -14 LUFS.
Open the LUFS & Peak AnalyzerFree, no sign-up, and your files never leave your device.