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Mastering for Spotify

Spotify adjusts every track to a common playback level, so the goal is a master that sounds good after that adjustment, with the peaks under control. Here are the numbers, and how to hit them with an AI master you can hear for free.

Master for Spotify

What Spotify does to your master

In the Normal setting Spotify plays tracks at about −14 LUFS integrated. A louder master is turned down by the difference. A quieter one is turned up, but only until the true peak reaches −1 dBTP, so it never needs limiting.

That means a heavily limited −8 LUFS master is not louder on Spotify. It is turned down, and the squashed dynamics stay. The practical goal is a master that is balanced and clean, with a true peak at or below −1 dBTP, at a loudness that suits the genre.

Spotify loudness targets

Checked 7 November 2026 against Spotify for Artists, the only source here that Spotify itself publishes.

Plays at
−14 LUFS
Quieter tracks
Turned up, only until the true peak reaches −1 dBTP
Source
Spotify for Artists: Loudness normalization, 2026-11-07 (Published by the service)

Premium listeners can pick Loud (−11 LUFS, with a limiter) or Quiet (−19 LUFS). Albums are normalised as a whole; the web player does not normalise.

Not sure how your track compares? Drop it into the loudness penalty checker to see the exact change Spotify applies and listen at that level. It runs in your browser and nothing is uploaded.

Open the loudness penalty checker

Master for Spotify in three steps

  1. 1 Upload your final mix

    Drop in a stereo mix as WAV, MP3, FLAC, AIFF, M4A or OGG. No account is needed to start.

  2. 2 Set it up and listen

    Choose an engineer style, set Loudness and Ceiling as below, then hear a 30-second mastered preview next to the original.

  3. 3 Check, then download

    Measure the result with the free LUFS meter. If the numbers and the sound are right, download the full track with Unlimited or Unlimited Plus.

The settings that matter for Spotify

  • Ceiling: -1 dB. Matches the −1 dBTP point where Spotify stops raising a quiet track, and leaves room for lossy conversion. Check the true peak on the meter, since sample peak can differ slightly.
  • Loudness: Balanced. A clean starting point for streaming. Louder settings mostly get turned down, so only choose them if the sound itself benefits.
  • Mono safety. Many listeners are on a phone speaker. Club-safe is the setting that makes the mix hold up when summed to mono.
  • Albums. Spotify normalises a whole album with one gain. Master the tracks together and keep their relative levels.

Questions

Spotify’s reference is −14 LUFS. You do not have to hit it: louder masters are simply turned down, and quieter ones are raised until the true peak reaches −1 dBTP.

Spotify raises quiet tracks only until their true peak reaches −1 dBTP, so −1 dBTP is a sensible ceiling for your master. Set the Ceiling control to -1 dB and verify on a meter.

Yes, in the Normal setting. Premium listeners can pick Loud (−11 LUFS, with a limiter) or Quiet (−19 LUFS). The web player does not normalise.

Listening is free: upload and hear a 30-second preview with no account. Downloading the full track needs Unlimited or Unlimited Plus.

Delivery rules come from your distributor. MasteringKit exports WAV 24-bit and MP3 320 on paid plans, so you can supply the format your distributor asks for.

Master your track for Spotify

Hear it in about a minute, with no account. Download only if you like it.

Master for Spotify