Streaming Platform Presets

Official loudness targets and delivery specs for every major platform. Data is sourced from platform documentation and reflected in the tool's conversion presets automatically.

Specs verified as of Mar 2026. Platforms may update requirements at any time.

Music Streaming

verified Mar 2026

Platform	Target LUFS	True Peak	Format	Bitrate	Sample Rate	Normalization	Docs
Spotify	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗
Apple Music	-16 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗
YouTube / YouTube Music	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	48.0 kHz	↓ down only	↗
Tidal	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	↓ down only	↗
Amazon Music	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗
SoundCloud	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	— none	↗
Deezer	-15 LUFS	-1 dBTP	flac	—	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗

Spotify

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Spotify normalizes both up and down by default. Lossless FLAC delivery launched Sept 2025. Upload highest quality source.

Apple Music

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-16 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Sound Check enabled by default on iOS. Accepts up to 24-bit/192kHz. Apple encodes to AAC 256kbps and ALAC for delivery.

YouTube / YouTube Music

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

48.0 kHz

Normalization

↓ down only

YouTube only turns down loud content, never boosts quiet content. YouTube prefers 48kHz sample rate (video standard). YouTube Music may use a -7 LUFS ceiling for some content.

Tidal

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

↓ down only

Tidal dropped MQA in July 2024. Now delivers FLAC up to 24-bit/192kHz for HiFi Plus tier.

Amazon Music

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Amazon Music HD supports up to 24-bit/192kHz FLAC. Ultra HD tier available on all plans since 2023.

SoundCloud

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

— none

SoundCloud does NOT normalize loudness. They transcode everything to MP3 128kbps (free) or AAC 256kbps (Go+). Upload highest quality source. Target -14 LUFS as best practice.

Deezer

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-15 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

flac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Deezer targets -15 LUFS (slightly quieter than Spotify/YouTube). FLAC streaming available on Premium tier.

Podcasts

verified Mar 2026

Platform	Target LUFS	True Peak	Format	Bitrate	Sample Rate	Normalization	Docs
Apple Podcasts	-16 LUFS	-1 dBTP	mp3	192 kbps	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗
Spotify Podcasts	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	mp3	192 kbps	44.1 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗

Apple Podcasts

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-16 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

mp3

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Bitrate

192 kbps

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Apple specifies -16 LUFS ±1 LU (LKFS). Sound Check applies. Accepts MP3 or AAC in M4A container. Mono 64kbps minimum for speech.

Spotify Podcasts

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

mp3

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Bitrate

192 kbps

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

Spotify normalizes podcast audio to -14 LUFS. Ads are normalized to -16 LUFS with -2 dBTP limit. Upload in MP3 or OGG.

Broadcast

verified Mar 2026

Platform	Target LUFS	True Peak	Format	Bitrate	Sample Rate	Normalization	Docs
EBU R128 (European Broadcast)	-23 LUFS	-1 dBTP	wav	—	48.0 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗
ATSC A/85 (US Broadcast)	-24 LUFS	-2 dBTP	wav	—	48.0 kHz	↑↓ both ways	↗

EBU R128 (European Broadcast)

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-23 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

wav

Sample Rate

48.0 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

EBU R128 targets -23 LUFS ±1 LU for programme loudness. True peak must not exceed -1 dBTP. 48kHz sample rate is broadcast standard.

ATSC A/85 (US Broadcast)

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-24 LUFS

True Peak

-2 dBTP

Format

wav

Sample Rate

48.0 kHz

Normalization

↑↓ both ways

ATSC A/85 is FCC-mandated for US television. Targets -24 LUFS ±2 LU. Stricter true peak limit of -2 dBTP. AC-3 is the delivery codec but WAV is the mastering format.

Social Media

verified Mar 2026

Platform	Target LUFS	True Peak	Format	Bitrate	Sample Rate	Normalization	Docs
Instagram (Reels/Stories)	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	aac	256 kbps	44.1 kHz	— none	↗
TikTok	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	aac	256 kbps	44.1 kHz	— none	↗
Facebook / Meta	-14 LUFS	-1 dBTP	aac	256 kbps	44.1 kHz	— none	↗

Instagram (Reels/Stories)

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

aac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Bitrate

256 kbps

Normalization

— none

Instagram does not publish official loudness specs and does not normalize. -14 LUFS / -1 dBTP is best practice. Audio is re-encoded to AAC.

TikTok

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

aac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Bitrate

256 kbps

Normalization

— none

TikTok does not publish loudness specs or normalize. -14 LUFS is best practice. All audio is re-encoded for delivery.

Facebook / Meta

↗ docs

Target LUFS

-14 LUFS

True Peak

-1 dBTP

Format

aac

Sample Rate

44.1 kHz

Bitrate

256 kbps

Normalization

— none

Facebook re-encodes to AAC LC 128kbps. No loudness normalization. -14 LUFS is best practice.

* Bitrate shown is recommended upload/delivery bitrate. Platforms re-encode your audio for streaming. Always upload the highest quality source file your platform accepts. LUFS values are integrated loudness targets per ITU-R BS.1770-4 / EBU R128.