Guide
What LUFS for TikTok: -14 LUFS, peaks under -1 dBTP
Updated
Aim for -14 LUFS and keep the true peak under -1 dBTP. The first number sets how loud you sound next to other videos, the second keeps the sound clean on a phone speaker.
In short
- TikTok and Reels videos sound right at about -14 LUFS, with true peaks kept under -1 dBTP.
- TikTok, Instagram and YouTube do not publish a loudness target, so -14 LUFS is common advice, not a rule.
- LUFS is how loud the whole video sounds on average. dBTP is its single loudest moment.
- Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve have a LUFS meter. CapCut and iMovie do not, so measure the export in the free DaVinci Resolve.
- Cutroom, a video ad editor, sets its exports to -14 LUFS with peaks under -1 dBTP.
- LUFS, the loudness to aim for
- -14
- dBTP, the highest a peak should reach
- -1
- LUFS, the range most advice falls in
- -16 to -10
What do LUFS and dBTP mean?
LUFS measures how loud the whole video sounds on average. dBTP measures its single loudest moment, and the two go wrong in different ways.
- Integrated LUFS is one number for how loud the whole video sounds, measured the way ears hear it.
- True peak, written in dBTP, is the loudest single instant in your video, measured the way a phone will actually play it. If it goes over 0, the sound crackles.
- A video can be too quiet and crackle at the same time. A phone recording can measure around -22 LUFS and still crackle on hard p and b sounds.
- Loudness range, or LRA, is how far apart the quiet and loud parts sit. It is written in LU, and 1 LU is the same step as 1 LUFS.
LUFS and dBTP side by side
Both can be wrong in the same file, so one volume slider cannot fix both.
What it measures
- LUFS
- How loud the whole video sounds
- dBTP (true peak)
- The single loudest instant
Sign it is wrong
- LUFS
- Sounds weak next to other videos
- dBTP (true peak)
- Crackle and harsh s sounds
Where you notice it
- LUFS
- Scrolling past other videos
- dBTP (true peak)
- Phone speakers, cheap earbuds
How to fix it
- LUFS
- Raise the whole video
- dBTP (true peak)
- Lower only the peaks, with a limiter
| LUFS | dBTP (true peak) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it measures | How loud the whole video sounds | The single loudest instant |
| Sign it is wrong | Sounds weak next to other videos | Crackle and harsh s sounds |
| Where you notice it | Scrolling past other videos | Phone speakers, cheap earbuds |
| How to fix it | Raise the whole video | Lower only the peaks, with a limiter |
Is -14 LUFS an official TikTok rule?
No. TikTok, Instagram and YouTube do not publish a loudness target, so -14 LUFS is the middle of common advice, not a rule.
- Most advice for short videos falls between -16 and -10 LUFS. It comes from measuring finished videos, not from the platforms.
- YouTube turns loud videos down. Right-click a video on a computer, open Stats for nerds, and the content loudness line shows by how much.
- YouTube does not turn quiet videos up, so a quiet file stays quiet there. TikTok and Instagram do not say what they do.
- A 1 LUFS difference, like -14 against -13, is at the edge of what people can hear, so you do not need to hit -14 exactly.
- Keeping peaks under -1 dBTP matters more than hitting -14 exactly. A video at -16 LUFS sounds fine. A video that crackles does not.
Loudness levels and what they mean
The platforms publish no number, so advice varies. Anything from -16 to -10 LUFS is fine.
| Loudness | What it means for your video |
|---|---|
| -10 LUFS | The loud end of common advice. YouTube turns it down. |
| -14 LUFS | The middle of common advice. Works on TikTok, Reels and Shorts. |
| -16 LUFS | The quiet end of common advice. Still sounds fine. |
| Around -22 LUFS | Where a phone recording can sit. Clearly quieter than the videos around it. |
Loudness: -10 LUFS
- What it means for your video
- The loud end of common advice. YouTube turns it down.
Loudness: -14 LUFS
- What it means for your video
- The middle of common advice. Works on TikTok, Reels and Shorts.
Loudness: -16 LUFS
- What it means for your video
- The quiet end of common advice. Still sounds fine.
Loudness: Around -22 LUFS
- What it means for your video
- Where a phone recording can sit. Clearly quieter than the videos around it.
This is the whole editor
Highlight a phrase and a clip lands on those exact words. No timeline, no keyframes, no layers.
How to measure LUFS and get to -14
Measure the exported file first, then raise or lower the whole video once. That keeps music under your voice at the level you set it.
- Premiere Pro has a Loudness Meter effect. Its export settings also have Loudness Normalization, where you set -14 LUFS and a true peak limit.
- DaVinci Resolve, which is free, shows LUFS in the loudness meter on its Fairlight page. The limiter is in the Dynamics panel on the same page.
- CapCut and iMovie have no LUFS meter. Open the exported video in DaVinci Resolve to measure it.
- Audacity, which is also free, has a Loudness Normalization effect you can set to -14 LUFS, and a Limiter effect for the peaks.
- Set the limiter to -2 dB, a little under the -1 target, because saving the file as an MP4 can push peaks up a little.
- Avoid automatic loudness tools that change the level while the video plays. They make music under a voice rise and fall.
Four steps to -14 LUFS
Do them in this order. Raising the volume after the limiter pushes the peaks back up.
Measure the exported file
With a loudness meter. Change nothing yet.
Raise or lower all of it
By the gap to -14 LUFS, in one even step
Add a limiter
Set to -2 dB, under the -1 target
Export and check
Measure the new MP4, not the project
What raising the loudness cannot fix
Raising the loudness raises everything in the file, including background noise and any crackle already in the recording.
- Room noise gets louder too. A fridge you barely heard becomes clear at -14 LUFS, so move the mic closer or switch the fridge off.
- A recording that crackled cannot be repaired. The detail in those moments is gone, so record that part again.
- If the crackle is in the recording itself, turning the volume down does not remove it. You just get a quieter crackle.
Where Cutroom fits
Cutroom is a video editor that turns one clip of you talking into a finished vertical ad. It sets the audio on its exports for you.
The audio on a Cutroom export
Right for an ad in a social feed. Not the tool for a TV or broadcast loudness spec.
| Setting | Value | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Loudness | -14 LUFS | As loud as the videos around it |
| Highest peak | Under -1 dBTP | No crackle on phone speakers |
| Loudness range | 11 LU | How far apart quiet and loud words may sit, so quiet words stay easy to hear |
| How it is done | Measured first, then one even change | Music stays where it was set |
| Can you change it? | No | Cutroom sets it for you |
Setting: Loudness
- Value
- -14 LUFS
- What it does
- As loud as the videos around it
Setting: Highest peak
- Value
- Under -1 dBTP
- What it does
- No crackle on phone speakers
Setting: Loudness range
- Value
- 11 LU
- What it does
- How far apart quiet and loud words may sit, so quiet words stay easy to hear
Setting: How it is done
- Value
- Measured first, then one even change
- What it does
- Music stays where it was set
Setting: Can you change it?
- Value
- No
- What it does
- Cutroom sets it for you
Questions people ask
- Is -14 LUFS an official TikTok or Instagram requirement?
- No. Neither platform publishes a loudness target. Anyone calling -14 LUFS official is guessing from measured videos, so treat it as the middle of common advice, not a rule you can fail.
- What LUFS should Reels and YouTube Shorts be?
- The same as TikTok: about -14 LUFS, with true peaks under -1 dBTP. None of the three platforms publishes its own number, so one file works for all of them.
- Does TikTok turn loud videos down?
- TikTok does not say. YouTube does turn loud videos down, and it does not turn quiet ones up. That is why -14 LUFS is a safe level for all three apps.
- Why -1 dBTP and not 0?
- Because the export needs room. Saving the audio as AAC, the sound format inside an MP4, can push peaks higher than they were in your editor, so a file at exactly 0 can come out above it.
- Is LUFS the same as dB?
- No. A dB peak meter shows the loudest instant. LUFS is the loudness of the whole video, measured the way ears hear it, so check both on every video.
- My editor shows dB, not LUFS. Can I still hit -14?
- Not with a dB meter alone. Open the exported video in DaVinci Resolve, which is free, and read the loudness meter on its Fairlight page. Or run the audio through Audacity's free Loudness Normalization effect, set to -14 LUFS.
- Can I hear the difference between -14 and -13 LUFS?
- Barely. One LUFS is about one decibel, at the edge of what people notice, so you do not need to hit -14 exactly. A gap of six or eight LUFS is easy to hear.
Upload one clip of you talking and get a video that already sits at -14 LUFS. Your first video is free.