How to use it
- Open the audio and read the measured Peak and Integrated loudness.
- In Effects → Normalize choose Peak (e.g. −1 dBFS) or LUFS (e.g. −14 for streaming, −16 for podcasts, −23 for broadcast).
- Turn on the limiter when normalizing to loudness, so peaks stay under the ceiling.
- The preview re-renders; the meters show the result.
- Export.
Peak vs. loudness normalization
Peak normalization scales the whole file so its highest sample hits the target. It is simple and never clips, but two files normalized to the same peak can sound very different in loudness.
LUFS normalization measures integrated loudness with the ITU-R BS.1770-4 method (K-weighting and gating) and scales the file to the target. Our meter is checked against the EBU Tech 3341 reference signal (stereo 1 kHz at −23 dBFS reads −23.0 LUFS). It reports sample peaks, not 4× oversampled true peak, so keep a −1 dBFS ceiling when delivering to streaming platforms.
Questions
What LUFS should I use?
Spotify and YouTube play back around −14 LUFS; Apple Music around −16; podcasts commonly use −16 (stereo) or −19 (mono); EBU R128 broadcast uses −23.
Why did LUFS normalization make it clip?
Raising loudness can push peaks above 0 dBFS. Enable the limiter, which keeps sample peaks below the ceiling.
Is this the same as compression?
No. Normalization changes the level of the whole file by one amount. A compressor reduces the difference between loud and quiet parts; it is in Effects too.