Loudness Penalty and speaker simulations
See how much Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music and the rest will turn your track down, then listen at that level through eleven simulated speakers. Free, in the browser.
Streaming platforms normalise loudness: a hot master gets turned down, a quiet one may be turned up. The Loudness Penalty tool measures your track, shows the adjustment each platform will make, and lets you hear the result through a car stereo, a phone, a TV or studio monitors. It is the closest thing to a listening test you can run before release.
#Using it
- Select Audio FileSame formats as the LUFS Meter, one file at a time, opened in your browser.
- Read the loudness and the verdictThe integrated LUFS and the same one-line verdict as the LUFS Meter appear at the top.
- Pick a platformThe Platform preview row shows a dB value per platform. Press one and the track plays at that level. Original is your file untouched.
- Pick a deviceThe Device preview grid switches the speaker simulation. Combine it with a platform to hear, say, your master on Spotify through a laptop.
#Platform preview
Each platform has a reference loudness. The number next to it is the difference between your track and that reference, applied as gain when you press play. Negative means the platform turns you down; a plus sign means it would turn you up.
| Platform | Reference | Example for a -10 LUFS master |
|---|---|---|
| Spotify | -14 LUFS | -4.0 dB |
| YouTube | -14 LUFS | -4.0 dB |
| Apple Music | -16 LUFS | -6.0 dB |
| Tidal | -14 LUFS | -4.0 dB |
| Amazon Music | -14 LUFS | -4.0 dB |
| Pandora | -14 LUFS | -4.0 dB |
| Deezer | -15 LUFS | -5.0 dB |
#Device preview
Eleven playback systems: Default (flat), Car, iPhone, MacBook, Headphones, TV, Home Theater, Bluetooth Speaker, Studio Monitors, Gaming Headset and Tablet. Each one colours the sound the way that kind of speaker does, so a mix that hides its bass in the car or turns harsh on a laptop shows itself now rather than after release.
- Simulation Intensity scales the effect from 0 (flat) to 200 percent (exaggerated). 100 is the modelled device; push higher to make problems obvious, lower to be gentle.
- Mono folds the track to one channel. Phones, smart speakers and a lot of venues play mono, and a wide mix can lose its lead vocal or its bass there.
- Reset puts the intensity back to 100.
#Reading the results
- Compare Original and a platform back to back at the same spot in the song. If the platform version feels small, the master relies on loudness more than on balance.
- Try Car and iPhone first. Between them they cover most of the ways people actually hear music.
- A track around -14 LUFS shows near-zero penalties everywhere, but that alone does not make it a good master. Louder masters are penalised and still sound great; it is a choice, not a mistake.
- The simulations are for judgement, not for mastering through. Make the fix in your mix or in mastering, then come back and listen again.
Is my file uploaded?
No. Measuring, normalising and the speaker simulations all run in your browser. The file stays on your machine.
Why is Apple Music harsher than the others?
Its reference level is -16 LUFS, two dB lower than most platforms, so the same master gets turned down two dB more. Sound Check is off by default on Apple devices, though, so many listeners never hear it.
Do the platforms also change the sound?
Normalisation is a volume change. Lossy encoding can nibble at the top end and add a little peak overshoot, which is why a True Peak of -1 dB or lower is the usual advice. Check it with the LUFS Meter.
Can I hear the result on my own speakers?
Yes, that is the Default device. Keep the platform selected and the simulation flat, and you hear the track exactly as the platform would play it through whatever you are listening on.