About the Audio Loudness Checker
How loud is your audio? This tool measures it the way streaming services and broadcasters do. It gives the integrated loudness in LUFS (using the ITU-R BS.1770 method with gating), the highest peak, the average level (RMS), the loudest short moment and the number of clipped samples. It then compares the loudness with common targets: -14 LUFS for Spotify and YouTube, -16 LUFS for podcasts and -23 LUFS for broadcast, and tells you how many decibels you are above or below each. Drop a file and read the results. The file is decoded and measured in your browser, so unreleased music and private recordings are not uploaded.
Updated October 2026
How to use the Audio Loudness Checker
- 1Drop an audio file.
- 2Wait for the measurement.
- 3Read the LUFS, peak, average level and clipping.
- 4Compare with the targets for your platform.
- 5Adjust the level in your editor and measure again if needed.
Why loudness matters
Streaming services turn loud tracks down and quiet tracks up to a target level so that listeners do not have to change the volume. If your track is much louder than the target, it will simply be turned down, and any squashing done to make it loud is wasted. If it is much quieter, some services turn it up, which can raise the noise.
Measuring your loudness before you upload lets you hit the target with the best sound quality, leaving some dynamic range in the music or speech.
Dynamic content such as a film score measures differently from steady speech, because the gating ignores very quiet passages. That is why two files with the same peak can have very different loudness. Compare files of the same kind, such as one episode against the next, to keep a consistent level, and check the longest, loudest passage for clipping.
Common targets
- Spotify, YouTube and Tidal: about -14 LUFS.
- Apple Music: about -16 LUFS.
- Podcasts: -16 LUFS for stereo, -19 LUFS for mono.
- EBU R128 broadcast: -23 LUFS.
- US TV (ATSC A/85): -24 LKFS.
- Peak: keep below -1 dBFS to avoid distortion in lossy files.
Related tools
Adjust the volume and normalise a file with the Audio Speed Changer, trim the quiet beginning and end with the Audio Trimmer and remove gaps with the Audio Silence Remover. Check your microphone with the Mic Test and record with the Voice Recorder. A meter is a guide; always listen to the result too.
Features
- Integrated loudness in LUFS with gating
- Peak and average (RMS) level in dBFS
- Loudest 0.4 second moment
- Clipping counter
- Comparison with Spotify, podcast and broadcast targets
- Works on MP3, M4A, WAV, OGG and FLAC
- Private, no upload
Frequently asked questions
What is LUFS?
Loudness Units relative to Full Scale. It measures how loud audio sounds to people, by weighting frequencies the way the ear does and averaging over the whole file, ignoring silence.
What loudness should I aim for?
Spotify and YouTube normalise around -14 LUFS. Most podcast hosts recommend -16 LUFS (stereo) or -19 LUFS (mono). Broadcast TV and radio in Europe use -23 LUFS.
What is the difference between peak and loudness?
Peak is the highest single sample. Loudness is the average sound over time. A track can have a high peak and still be quiet, or be loud with a modest peak.
Why is my mono file different from stereo?
A mono file counts as one channel, so for the same level it measures about 3 LUFS lower than the same sound played from two channels.
What does clipping mean?
Samples at the maximum level are flattened, causing harsh distortion. If the checker finds many, lower the level before you export.
Is this the same as a true peak meter?
Not exactly. It measures the sample peak. After conversion to MP3 or AAC, the true peak can be a little higher, so leave about 1 dB of headroom.
Is my audio uploaded?
No. It is measured on your device.