How to match your podcast loudness to apple podcasts (-16 lufs)
- Step 1Drop your audio file — Drop your raw or edited episode.
- Step 2Select loudness preset — Select the Apple Podcasts preset (-16 LUFS / -1 dBTP).
- Step 3Download normalised audio — Download and upload directly to your host — publish-ready.
Frequently asked questions
What LUFS target should I use for podcasts?+
Apple Podcasts and Spotify both normalise to around −16 LUFS and −14 LUFS respectively during playback. For consistency across all apps, master your episodes to −16 LUFS integrated with a −1 dBTP true-peak ceiling. This sounds correct on both platforms without aggressive app-side normalisation.
What is the difference between LUFS and dB?+
dB (decibel) measures instantaneous peak signal level. LUFS (Loudness Units relative to Full Scale) measures perceptual loudness averaged over time, accounting for how the human ear perceives volume. A recording can be very loud in peaks but still measure as quiet in LUFS — which is why streaming platforms use LUFS for normalisation, not peak levels.
Will normalising change the sound quality of my audio?+
Two-pass EBU R128 normalisation is a gain-only operation — it adjusts overall level without any dynamic processing or spectral change. The tonal character of your audio is unchanged. True-peak limiting only activates if your file would clip after gain adjustment, and applies minimal transparent brickwall limiting.
Privacy first
All audio processing runs locally in your browser using FFmpeg compiled to WebAssembly. No file is ever uploaded — only metadata counters are saved for signed-in dashboard stats.