# What Is Loudness Range (LRA)? > LRA measures how much the loudness varies across a whole track. Typical values, what a low number means, and why it is not the same as crest factor. [All guides](/blog) # What Is Loudness Range (LRA)? Published 28 August 2026, 15:00 UTC · updated 12 August 2026, 21:30 UTC · by Loopin LRA describes how much the loudness moves across a whole track — verse to chorus, intro to outro. It answers a different question from crest factor and people confuse the two constantly. ## What it measures LRA looks at the loudness over time, discards the quietest and loudest extremes, and reports the spread of what is left, in LU. A track with a whispered verse and a huge chorus has a high LRA; one at a constant level has a low one. It is a statistic about the arrangement as much as about the mastering. A song that never changes dynamic cannot have a high LRA no matter how gently it was mastered. ## Typical values Pop and electronic: 3–6 LU. Rock and hip-hop: 4–8. Singer-songwriter and acoustic: 6–10. Classical and film score: 10–20 and up. Under about 3 LU means the track is essentially one level throughout, which is fine for a club record and wrong for almost anything with a build. ## How it differs from crest factor Crest factor is peak minus average — it describes moment-to-moment punch, whether a drum hit stands above the level around it. LRA describes section-to-section contrast, whether the chorus is bigger than the verse. A track can have healthy crest factor and near-zero LRA: punchy drums, but every section at the same loudness. The two are independent and you want to know both. ## What a falling LRA tells you Measure it before and after mastering. If it drops significantly, your compression or limiting is levelling the sections against each other, which flattens the arc of the song without necessarily sounding compressed on any individual beat. That is the specific failure mode where a master sounds fine in isolation and the chorus stops arriving. [Re-master at a lower target](/mastering) and compare LRA before and after. ## When to ignore it Do not chase an LRA number. It is a description, not a target — a dance record with an LRA of 3 is correct, and raising it would be wrong. Use it as a check against your own intent: if you wrote a song with a big dynamic arc and the master measures 2 LU, something removed it. If you wrote a constant-level track and it measures 2 LU, nothing is wrong. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a good LRA value? It depends on the material: 3-6 LU for pop and electronic, 4-8 for rock and hip-hop, 6-10 for acoustic, 10-20 for classical. Under 3 means the track is essentially one level throughout. ### What is the difference between LRA and crest factor? Crest factor is peak minus average and describes moment-to-moment punch. LRA describes section-to-section contrast — whether the chorus is bigger than the verse. They are independent. ### Should I try to increase my LRA? No. It is a description rather than a target — a dance record with an LRA of 3 is correct. Use it to check whether mastering removed an arc you deliberately wrote in. ## Related reads - [Master your track free](/mastering) - [What is crest factor?](/blog/what-is-crest-factor) - [What is dynamic range?](/blog/what-is-dynamic-range-in-music) --- Source: https://onloopin.com/blog/what-is-loudness-range-lra