The 7 best loudness metering plugins: Hit the exact LUFS, RMS, and True Peak targets every time

Well, metering plugins don’t get people excited the way a new synth or saturation plugin does. There’s no flashy sound to demo, no tone to fall in love with, just numbers and graphs sitting quietly on your master bus.

The thing is that there’s a real gap between what you hear in your studio and what streaming normalization does to your track. That’s exactly the gap loudness metering is built to close.

I’ve used some of these plugins over time and here are the seven I’d actually want you to know about:

1. Mastering The Mix LEVELS

I love how LEVELS strips away the intimidating wall of numbers most metering plugins throw at you. It splits everything into separate sections for loudness, true peak, dynamic range, stereo field, and bass space, and each one glows green when you’re in good shape or red when something needs your attention.

When it comes to LUFS module, it gives you integrated, short-term, and momentary readings at once, with built-in target ranges for Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and other platforms you can select right inside the plugin.

I’d say the bass space feature is what really sets it apart though, since it shows you the mono versus stereo energy balance in your low end. It matters once you remember most playback systems collapse that stereo field below a certain frequency anyway. If you’re newer to metering, this is genuinely one of the friendliest places to start.

2. Waves WLM Plus

Next, WLM Plus from Waves has been staple in broadcast and post-production for years, and honestly. It’s fully compliant with ITU, EBU, and ATSC loudness specs, giving you momentary, short-term, long-term, and true peak readouts all in one window.

What you’ll appreciate if you deliver content regularly is the built-in warning and logging system, since it actually tracks every time your levels exceed or fall short of your target and lets you export the whole thing as a CSV file.

I also think the built-in True Peak Limiter and Gain Trim controls are a smart touch, because you can correct your loudness right there in the plugin instead of reaching for a separate limiter every time. I would say it’s a good plugin for podcasts, trailers, games, and broadcast work specifically, not just music.

3. Goodhertz Loudness (FREE)

Now, this one is bit of a surprise to me because it’s free and comes with lots of features. Loudness is part of the Goodhertz Free Series, and it covers LUFS, RMS, Peak, and True Peak readings across momentary, short, and long-term windows.

You simply set a target loudness, hit Apply, and the fader snaps right into place, which can indeed save you time from doing math mid-session.

In addition, there’s also a goniometer and stereo balance section tucked into the advanced page if you want to check your stereo field, plus smooth fader glide times that eliminate the clicks and pops most DAWs introduce when you automate mute, solo, or polarity switches. For a free plugin, it’s really capable.

4. SSL Meter

When it comes to SSL Meter, it’s the standard, more affordable half of SSL’s metering duo. What’s worth knowing upfront is it doesn’t include the loudness/LUFS suite (that’s Meter Pro), and it’s mono/stereo only, so surround and immersive formats aren’t covered here.

What you do get is a solid mixing toolkit. There’s digital metering with Peak, True Peak, and RMS readouts across Non-Linear, Linear, and K-System scales, plus analog-style VU and PPM meters for that classic console feel.

For stereo imaging, it includes a Lissajous phase scope, phase correlation meter, and L-R balance meter. A 31-band RTA rounds things out for spotting frequency issues.

Lastly, it integrates with SSL 360° and the UF1 controller, and the GUI is rescalable from 50–200%. It’s a paid plug-in in its own right, best thought of as the leaner mixing tool, with Meter Pro as the upgrade for loudness compliance and multichannel work.

5. T-Racks Metering by IK Multimedia

T-RackS 6 Metering is IK Multimedia’s broadcast-ready metering suite, with individual meters you can toggle on or off to keep things streamlined.

What you get is a LUFS loudness meter covering integrated, short-term, and momentary readings, alongside Peak, RMS, and Dynamic Range meters for judging crest factor and mix dynamics.

Also, it includes a spectrogram and real-time analyzer, phase and correlation meters for mono-compatibility checks, classic VU/PPM meters, and a Mid/Side meter for balancing mono versus stereo content and the whole suite can pop out into a floating window for a second monitor. Keep in mind it’s included in T-RackS 6, PRO, and MAX, or available standalone for €99.99 (excl. VAT).

6. Youlean Loudness Meter 2 (Free Edition)

If you only download one free metering plugin this year, I’d point you here first. The free version of Loudness Meter 2 gives you integrated LUFS, loudness range, and true peak metering, all inside a fully resizable window that scales cleanly no matter how small or large you make it.

I really appreciate that the loudness history graph runs across the whole plugin, so you can actually watch how your integrated reading develops over a full playthrough instead of just staring at a single number.

Streaming target presets for Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube are included even in the free tier, which a lot of paid meters don’t bother giving you upfront. Short-term and momentary LUFS, batch file analysis, and report exporting are locked behind the Pro upgrade, but for day-to-day mixing and mastering checks, the free version genuinely covers what most of us need.

7. sonible true:level

This one takes a slightly different angle than a standard LUFS meter, and I think that’s exactly why it’s worth knowing about. true:level visualizes the relationship between loudness and dynamics together, rather than treating them as two separate numbers you have to mentally connect yourself.

You can pick from a library of built-in references covering streaming platform loudness targets and genre-appropriate dynamics ranges, or load up to eight of your own reference tracks for comparison.

If you’re not sure what to adjust, the Level Check feature actually tells you what action to take to land inside your chosen reference zone, which I find especially handy when I’m second-guessing whether to pull back the limiter or just leave it alone. It started life as the metering section inside sonible’s smart:limit, and that pedigree shows in how thoughtfully the whole thing is laid out.

Final Thoughts

If you’re just starting out, I would recommend you Youlean or Goodhertz Loudness since they cost nothing and cover the fundamentals. Once you’re delivering across multiple platforms regularly, something like WLM Plus or true:level earns its place by saving you from second-guessing whether your master will actually translate once it leaves your room, hope it helps!