The Best Metering Plugins in 2026 (LUFS, Spectrum, and Stereo, Free and Paid)

The short answer: the best metering setup for most people costs nothing: Youlean Loudness Meter 2 for loudness and true peak, and Voxengo SPAN for the spectrum and the correlation meter. If you pay for one, iZotope Insight 2 puts loudness, a spectrogram and a stereo sound field in one window, ADPTR Metric AB is the pick for comparing your mix with references, Mastering The Mix LEVELS flags problems in plain language, and NUGEN MasterCheck lets you hear what streaming codecs and normalization will do before you release. A meter can't make a decision for you. Each one answers a single question: how loud, how close to clipping, where the energy sits, and whether it survives mono.

I master my own releases (Sony, Universal, Ultra, Dim Mak, 50M+ streams), and every master gets a loudness and true peak check before delivery and a mono check on the width. I also master other people's songs as a service, disclosed at the end.

Four questions, four kinds of meter

"Metering plugin" covers tools that do completely different jobs. Pick by the question you need answered.

Most of the plugins below combine two or more of these. That's what the all-in-one picks are.

The best metering plugins, compared

Prices, features and bundle contents change, so check each developer's site before you buy or download. Get free plugins from the developer's own site only.

The free picks

Youlean Loudness Meter 2. Integrated, short-term and momentary LUFS, true peak, loudness range and PLR, a history graph, and a custom true peak alert, free. Streaming presets, drag and drop file analysis and report export are in the Pro version. Every reading, with a target chart by job, is in the Youlean Loudness Meter guide.

Voxengo SPAN. Voxengo lists a spectrum analyzer with stereo, mono and mid/side views, a stereo correlation meter, and level metering (EBU R128 and K-system scales, RMS, true peak and a clipping detector). It's the analyzer on most free plugin lists for a reason, including ours. SPAN Plus is the paid edition; check Voxengo's site for what it adds. Every setting, with a chart by job, is in the Voxengo SPAN guide.

Blue Cat's FreqAnalyst. A free real-time spectrum analyzer with a smooth, zoomable display. Useful as a second opinion next to SPAN, or if SPAN's display doesn't click for you. The Pro version adds measurement tools and a 3D spectrogram view.

Voxengo Correlometer. A correlation meter split into frequency bands (Voxengo lists 4 to 64). A regular correlation meter averages the whole mix into one needle; this one shows whether the problem is in the sub, the pads or the hats. It's the mono check pick in the best stereo imaging plugins.

The paid picks

iZotope Insight 2. iZotope's metering suite: loudness (momentary, short-term, integrated and loudness range, per the BS.1770 guidelines), level meters, a sound field vectorscope for mono compatibility, a 3D spectrogram, and an intelligibility meter aimed at dialogue. It's sold on its own and inside several iZotope bundles, so check whether you already own it.

ADPTR Audio Metric AB. A referencing tool from ADPTR Audio, sold through Plugin Alliance. Load reference tracks into it, flip between them and your mix with one button at matched loudness, and compare spectrum, stereo image, correlation across the spectrum, dynamics and loudness side by side. If you're on a Plugin Alliance subscription, check whether your tier includes it. The workflow it speeds up is the one in how to use reference tracks.

Mastering The Mix LEVELS. Mastering The Mix lists true peak, short-term and integrated LUFS, a stereo field vectorscope, dynamic range, loudness range, and a Bass Space check that flags low end where it shouldn't be, with presets for streaming and broadcast targets. The most readable pick for beginners: it shows you which reading is the problem.

NUGEN Audio MasterCheck. The specialist. It previews how the codecs streaming platforms use change your master and how loudness normalization will play it back, with integrated loudness, PLR, PSR and true peak readouts. Most useful when you release often and want to hear the encoded version before your listeners do.

The stock picks

Logic ships two: the Loudness Meter (momentary, short-term and integrated LUFS plus LU range, with a target line you can drag) and the MultiMeter (an analyzer, a goniometer, level and loudness meters, and a correlation meter in one window). FL Studio's Wave Candy combines an oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer, vectorscope and peak meter, but it isn't a full integrated loudness meter, so FL users usually add Youlean. Ableton's Spectrum device covers the analyzer, and Live's own track meters show peak and RMS rather than LUFS, so most Live users add Youlean too. DAWs update their meters, so check what your version includes.

Metering chart: what to check on a mix and a master

The genre ranges are in how loud your master should be. The correlation numbers are explained in what stereo imaging is, and what true peak is covers why a sample peak meter isn't enough for the streaming row.

How to set up your meters

1. Put them last on the master, after the limiter. A meter before the limiter measures a song you aren't releasing.
2. Leave the master fader at 0 dB while you measure, so the meters read what you'll export.
3. Measure the whole song for integrated loudness, LRA and PLR: reset, then play start to finish without stopping or looping.
4. Compare with a reference at matched loudness. Load a commercial track in your genre, measure it the same way, and level-match before you compare anything else.
5. Read the spectrum against the reference, not against a flat line. A finished mix isn't supposed to look flat on an analyzer. It's supposed to look close to records in its genre that already work.
6. Check mono with your ears too. Sum the master to mono and listen for parts that disappear. The meter tells you something cancels; your ears tell you what.
7. Close the meters and listen. Then decide.

When meters mislead

• Momentary readings. They jump around by design. Mixing to them is chasing noise.
• Spectrum envy. A reference that looks brighter on SPAN may simply be louder. Match levels first.
• Sample peak as true peak. A DAW's channel meter can read under 0 dBFS while the true peak goes over. Use a meter that shows dBTP.
• One reading on its own. A -7 LUFS master can be great or crushed. The PLR, the LRA and your ears tell you which.

Where I land (and the disclosure)

For most people: Youlean and SPAN, free, last on the master, plus one good reference track. That covers every row of the chart. Pay for a meter when it saves time you're actually losing: Metric AB if referencing is slow, LEVELS if you want the problems flagged for you, MasterCheck if you release often and want to hear the codecs first. And if you'd rather not read meters at all, I master songs as a service: Stereo Mastering, with unlimited revisions. I'm biased; the free pair above will tell you whether a master is ready either way.

Quick answers

What is the best metering plugin? For loudness and true peak, Youlean Loudness Meter 2, free. For spectrum and correlation, Voxengo SPAN, free. The best paid all-in-one is iZotope Insight 2, and the best for comparing with references is ADPTR Metric AB.

What is the best free LUFS meter plugin? Youlean Loudness Meter 2: integrated, short-term and momentary LUFS, true peak, LRA and PLR, free, in VST, VST3, AU and AAX for Windows and macOS. Logic users also have the stock Loudness Meter.

Do I need a spectrum analyzer to mix? No, but it's the fastest way to confirm what your ears suspect: rumble under the kick, a low-mid buildup, a sub level far from your reference. Compare against a reference, not a flat line.

What meters should be on the master bus? A loudness meter with true peak, such as Youlean, and a spectrum analyzer with a correlation meter, such as SPAN, both last in the chain after the limiter.