LUFS Targets 2026: Spotify, Apple, TikTok & Amazon Compared
The 2026 LUFS normalization targets for Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Amazon, Tidal and TikTok — plus what to actually master to for streaming and short-form social, with true-peak guidance.
Every streaming platform normalizes loudness to its own target. Master to the right one and your track sits confidently in the mix; get it wrong and it's either turned down or left sounding weak. Here are the 2026 reference values and, just as important, what to actually do with them.
New to LUFS? Start with What is LUFS? and come back — this article is the reference table.
Platform normalization targets (2026)
These are the integrated-LUFS levels each platform normalizes toward. They're the target the platform turns your track *down* to if you're louder:
| Platform | Normalization target | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Spotify | -14 LUFS | On by default; "Loud" setting ≈ -11 with a limiter |
| Apple Music | -16 LUFS | Sound Check |
| YouTube / YouTube Music | -14 LUFS | Only turns loud tracks down |
| Amazon Music | -14 LUFS | — |
| Tidal | -14 LUFS | — |
| Deezer | -15 LUFS | — |
| TikTok / Reels | ≈ -14 LUFS | Not officially published; looser in practice |
True peak: every major platform recommends a ceiling of -1 dBTP, and Spotify specifically recommends -2 dBTP for masters louder than -14 LUFS.
The key insight: normalize *to* vs. master *to*
Those numbers are what the platform normalizes to — they are not automatically the number you should master to. Two honest nuances:
1. For streaming, mastering around the platform target (-14 / -16 LUFS) with -1 dBTP headroom is the safe, high-quality choice. You get the loudness benefit without the platform pulling you down and without encoder distortion.
2. For short-form social (TikTok, Reels, Shorts), louder often wins because the content lives in a fast-scrolling feed and normalization is looser. Around -10 LUFS with -2 dBTP is a reasonable social master — louder than a streaming master, but still true-peak safe.
What Mixee actually targets per mode
Because this is the whole point — here are Mixee's real master targets, so nothing here contradicts what the tool does:
| Mixee mode | Integrated LUFS | True peak |
|---|---|---|
| Balanced Streaming | -14 LUFS | -1.0 dBTP |
| Apple Streaming | -16 LUFS | -1.0 dBTP |
| Dynamic Music | -16 LUFS | -1.0 dBTP |
| Commercial | -10 LUFS | -2.0 dBTP |
| TikTok / Reels | -10 LUFS | -2.0 dBTP |
| Club / DJ | -7 LUFS | -0.3 dBTP |
| Voice / Podcast | -16 LUFS | -1.5 dBTP |
| Vinyl Pressing | -14 LUFS | -1.0 dBTP |
Don't over-optimise for loudness
The single most common mistake is chasing loudness past the target. Since every major platform normalizes, a -8 LUFS brick-walled master gets turned down ~6 dB on Spotify — so it ends up at the same loudness as a -14 LUFS master, but with less dynamic range and more encoding distortion. You lose twice. Master to the target, keep your dynamics, and let the platform do the leveling.
Quick reference
- Streaming (Spotify/YT/Tidal/Amazon): -14 LUFS, -1 dBTP
- Apple Music: -16 LUFS, -1 dBTP
- Short-form social (TikTok/Reels): ~-10 LUFS, -2 dBTP
- Club/DJ: -7 LUFS, -0.3 dBTP
- Always: measure true peak as *true* peak, not sample peak
Measure it in the browser
Mixee shows integrated, short-term and momentary LUFS plus true peak in real time, and its quality modes target the values in the table automatically. No signup for the demo.