What Spotify does with loudness
Spotify normalizes loudness: it measures each song and turns it up or down so everything plays at a similar level. The measure is integrated LUFS, which shows how loud a song feels on average. Premium users can pick one of three levels:
| Spotify level | Loudness |
|---|---|
| Normal (the default) | −14 LUFS |
| Loud | −11 LUFS |
| Quiet | −19 LUFS |
A master louder than −14 LUFS is turned down, without distortion. A quieter one is turned up. When people play a whole album, Spotify normalizes the album as a unit, so the differences between songs stay intact.
In practice: pushing your master louder doesn't make it sound louder on Spotify. It just loses dynamics, because it gets turned down anyway.
So should you master to −14 LUFS?
It's not mandatory. There are two valid paths:
- Aim for −14 LUFS. That's Spotify's recommendation. The song isn't turned down and keeps its transients and punch. It works very well for pop, rock, acoustic, jazz and dynamic music.
- Master louder, by genre. In trap, reggaeton, electronic or metal, density and saturation are part of the sound. That master will be turned down on playback, but it keeps its character. In that case, Spotify asks you to keep true peak below −2 dBTP.
True peak: the other number that matters
True peak is the real peak of the signal, even between samples. When a platform converts your WAV to its compressed format, those peaks can grow and distort. That's why Spotify recommends:
- True peak below −1 dBTP if the master is at −14 LUFS or quieter.
- True peak below −2 dBTP if the master is louder than −14 LUFS.
What about other platforms?
Apple Music, YouTube, Tidal and others normalize too, each at its own level (Apple Music with Sound Check, for example, around −16 LUFS). You can't hit every level at once. A master near −14 LUFS with true peak under control sounds right almost everywhere.
How to master for Spotify with AI Master, for free
- Upload your mix, ideally a WAV or FLAC with some headroom.
- Pick a style. For exactly −14 LUFS, use General / Delivery → Streaming −14 LUFS. For something a bit louder but dynamic, Pop → Dynamic (streaming) aims at −12. Or pick your genre's style.
- To set the numbers yourself, turn off the automatic loudness target and the automatic true-peak ceiling in the master options. If the master will end up louder than −14 LUFS, set the ceiling to −2 dBTP.
- Compare before and after with "Match loudness" on: you hear the difference in sound, not just in level, the way Spotify plays it.
- Check the final integrated LUFS and true peak in the report, and download WAV or FLAC for your distributor.