LOUDMETER: Menu Bar · macOS
Loudness meter for Mac.
LUFS, True Peak and phase from your menu bar. No plug-in needed.
View on the App StoremacOS 14.4 or later · $9.99, one-time purchase5.0 · 3 written reviews on the App Store
Live Metering
Integrated, short-term and momentary LUFS, True Peak with max hold and clip counter, LRA, PSR, and stereo and spectral phase correlation.
File Analysis
Drop an MP3, WAV, AIFF, FLAC or M4A, compare it with Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Netflix and EBU R128 targets, and copy results or export a PNG report.
Always in Reach
Choose which readings sit in the menu bar, pin the panel over your DAW, and pick a Color, Dark or Light theme.
Every feature in LOUDMETER: Menu Bar.
Everything the app does, straight from its menus and settings.
Ignore Apps
Meter your mix, not your notifications.
Choose apps LOUDMETER should not hear, such as a video call, your mail app or a browser playing in the background. Apps appear in the list as soon as they play audio. Everything else on your monitor output is measured normally, and plug-ins inside a DAW count as part of that DAW.
Loudness Meters
- Integrated, short-term and momentary LUFS to ITU-R BS.1770-5 and EBU R128
- Short-term and momentary as max hold or live values
- Inter-sample true peak with max hold and a clip counter that stays red until you reset it
- Loudness Range (LRA) and Peak to Short-term Ratio (PSR)
- Loudness graph over 5, 10, 30 or 60 seconds
Stereo & Phase
- Stereo correlation over one second, with a fast or slow response
- Spectral phase correlation curve, to see which frequencies cancel in mono
- Phase warning when correlation drops below −0.3
Targets
- Presets for Spotify (−14), Apple Music (−16), YouTube (−14), EBU R128 (−23) and Netflix (−27)
- My Target: set your own integrated target (it starts at −8 LUFS)
- Live delta between your integrated loudness and the target
Menu Bar
- Choose which readings sit in the menu bar: momentary, short-term, integrated, true peak, LRA, PSR
- Text color: Auto, White, Black, Green, Orange or Cyan
- Click to open the panel, double-click to reset the meters
- Shrinks when the menu bar is full, and keeps measuring
Panel
- Drag the header to pin the panel above your DAW
- Drag sections and metric cards into your own order
- Show or hide the graph, correlation and targets
- Color, Dark and Light themes
Output & Channels
- Automatic, or pick the output device and channel pair you monitor on
- Follows supported physical output routes, even when your DAW uses a different output than macOS
- Adapts to sample-rate changes and keeps capture on one monitor output
Alerts
- Clipping: true peak above 0 dBTP
- Over-compression: LRA below 4 LU
- Phase: correlation below −0.3
- Delivered as macOS notifications, each one on or off
Sessions & Files
- Silence reset: start fresh after 3, 5, 10 or 30 seconds of silence, or never
- Reset all meters at any time
- Export a session report as PNG, or copy the values
- Drop an MP3, WAV, AIFF, FLAC or M4A file onto the panel for an offline report with timeline and targets
iPhone, Privacy & More
- Mirror the live meters to the free iPhone and iPad app over your local network
- Only readings leave your Mac, never audio
- No account, tracking or analytics
- Launch at login and a built-in quick tour
A LUFS meter that listens to your whole Mac.
LOUDMETER: Menu Bar measures whatever your Mac is playing: your DAW's master bus, a reference track in Spotify or a client's mix in the browser. It reads the output you monitor on, so there is no plug-in to insert and nothing to set up per session. Readings follow ITU-R BS.1770-5 and EBU R128.
Not sure which kind of meter you need? Choosing a loudness meter compares plug-ins, online analyzers, apps and hardware, and the loudness targets table lists what Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and broadcast normalize to.
Rated on the App Store.
3 written reviews for LOUDMETER: Menu Bar
Excellent Work
Loudmeter is the best app I’ve found for getting detailed and accurate insights into music and audio, whether for everyday listening or professional work. The menu bar interface is simple and unobtrusive, while the overall design feels clean, elegant, and polished. For macOS users, especially those who work with music or audio, it’s an incredibly useful tool that delivers a highly professional experience.
Great For Checking Peak db’s and LUFS
This app actually sits on your desktop at the top of the screen where al the bluetooth and wifi settings are. You can pin it to stay on top of any app you are doing and as soon as you hit play on whatever DAW you are using it analyzes the sound coming from the MAC system an does not need an input. I am using it to check the db threshold and the LUFS for Youtube. It actually identified an issue with a limiter not keeping True Peak on that I was using also. So far it’s doing what I need it to do and I don’t have to have a subscription for it.
The Best Loudness Meter
I've tried several loudness metering apps on macOS, and this is easily one of the best. The interface is clean, accurate, and very responsive. It provides all the essential loudness measurements I need for mixing and mastering without feeling cluttered. It's lightweight, stable, and integrates perfectly into my workflow. Highly recommended for anyone working with audio professionally. / macOS'ta birçok loudness ölçüm uygulaması denedim ve bu açık ara en iyilerinden biri. Arayüzü sade, doğru ölçüm yapıyor ve oldukça hızlı tepki veriyor. Mixing ve mastering için ihtiyaç duyduğum tüm loudness ölçümlerini karmaşa olmadan sunuyor. Kompakt, stabil ve çalışma akışıma kusursuz şekilde uyum sağlıyor. Profesyonel olarak sesle çalışan herkese gönül rahatlığıyla tavsiye ederim.
Loudmeter for Mac FAQ
Does Loudmeter for Mac work with my DAW?
Yes. It measures the audio your Mac sends to your monitor output, so there is nothing to insert in your session. It follows supported physical output routes even when your DAW uses a different output than macOS.
Can I measure the loudness of Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube?
Yes. Anything playing through your Mac is measured. Turn off loudness normalization in the player if you want to see a track's original level.
Can I stop some apps from being measured?
Yes. Ignore Apps lets you choose apps LOUDMETER should not hear, such as a video call or your mail app. Everything else on your monitor output is measured normally.
Which macOS version do I need?
macOS 14.4 or later.
Is it a subscription?
No. LOUDMETER: Menu Bar is $9.99 on the US App Store as a one-time purchase. Prices vary by country.
Does Loudmeter upload my audio?
No. Metering and file analysis run on your Mac. There is no account, tracking or analytics, and nothing is sent to a server.