E · AUDIO LOUDNESS
LUFS for YouTube
The loudness standard, why it matters, and how to hit it.
By Thomas Linck, founder · Updated June 2026
LUFS (Loudness Units relative to Full Scale) measures the perceived loudness of your whole video. YouTube and most platforms normalize playback toward roughly −14 LUFS integrated. Mix to that target and your video sits at the same level as everything else in the feed.
WHY IT MATTERS
If your audio is much quieter than −14 LUFS, the platform leaves it quiet and it feels weak next to the next video. Much louder, and the platform turns it down — so you gained nothing and lost dynamic range. Matching the target is the difference between audio that sounds "pro" and audio that sounds amateur, regardless of mic quality.
TARGET · STANDARD
| Integrated loudness | −14 LUFS | EBU R128 family |
| True peak | ≤ −1 dBTP | no inter-sample clipping |
| Loudness range | ≈ 6–10 LU | comfortable for speech |
How CutScore measures it
CutScore runs an EBU R128 meter over your file and reports integrated loudness, loudness range and true peak. If you are reading hot or quiet, it tells you the exact gain change and flags where peaks exceed −1 dBTP.
RELATED TERMS
QUESTIONS
Frequently asked.
Aim for about −14 LUFS integrated with a true peak no higher than −1 dBTP. That matches how YouTube normalizes playback.
No. It only sounds quiet in isolation; on the platform everything is normalized to a similar level, so −14 LUFS is competitive and leaves headroom for dynamics.