What is AI Mastering and How Does it Work?
Learn more about LANDR Mastering, the industry standard in AI Mastering with more than a decade of innovation and refinement.
What is AI mastering?
AI Mastering is a software application that listens to and analyzes a stereo mixdown and then applies a collection of targeted processors to adjust the dynamics, loudness, frequency balance and stereo image much the same way as a traditional mastering engineer.
Like a mastering engineer, AI mastering brings music to commercial loudness levels while correcting for any imbalances in the mix and enhancing the character and musicality of the overall production.
A short history of mastering in music
Mastering started as a way to transfer final mixes to vinyl without playback issues—like the needle jumping from loud peaks or too much bass.
As formats evolved to cassettes and CDs, mastering adapted to keep music sounding clear, consistent, and free of distortion on everything from car stereos to home speakers.
Today, it’s still a key step in making sure your music translates across streaming platforms and modern listening devices.
Whether you're releasing lo-fi beats or a polished pop track, mastering helps your music hold up against everything else out there. It’s that final bit of polish that makes your track release-ready—and helps it hit just right, no matter where or how it's played.
How does AI mastering like LANDR Mastering work?
LANDR’s AI mastering engine analyzes your track to identify its musical style, then scans for key features like dynamics, frequency balance, and stereo width. Based on this, it builds a custom processing chain tailored to your sound.
You can choose from three unique Mastering Styles—each with its own aesthetic—whether you want something clean, punchy, or loud. The same smart process powers both the cloud and plugin versions, with the plugin offering real-time control and the cloud giving you easy offline revisions.
For albums, LANDR’s engine analyzes the full tracklist to create consistent, balanced masters across every song. Whether it's a single or a full release, LANDR Mastering makes it fast and easy to get pro-level sound.
Advantages of AI mastering
AI mastering has several advantages over human mastering engineers.
Master tracks instantly
First and foremost is the speed at which an AI mastering plugin or tool can produce a master.
With human mastering engineers often taking anywhere from a few hours to several days to master an album, AI mastering tools can produce a master in seconds.
Aside from removing additional wait time during the music production processes, the speed of these tools is great for quickly generating revisions and creating reference masters while mixing.
Significantly lower cost
Beyond the speed of AI mastering tools, they are also significantly less expensive than working with a human mastering engineer.
With most engineers charging anywhere from $50-$500 dollars per track, AI mastering tools like LANDR Mastering offer high-quality masters at $9.99 per month for unlimited masters.
Consistency and genre recognition
Human mastering engineers can consistently master songs and produce great results, so can AI mastering. The only difference is AI mastering tools don’t have off days.
AI mastering tools don’t have ears that get fatigued and don’t suffer from skewed perception when their sinuses get clogged. They can do the job 24/7.
Learning and continuous improvement
AI’s remarkable ability to continuously improve means that mastering tools today greatly exceeds the effectiveness of early AI mastering software.
LANDR Mastering is by far the most advanced because it was the first AI mastering tool on the market, meaning LANDR Mastering has a far bigger training set and has been tweaked and tuned through over a decade's worth of dedicated engineering and development.
Is AI mastering as good as human mastering engineers?
Thanks to advances in AI mastering technology, many listeners can’t tell the difference between a well-mastered track from an AI tool and one done by a human engineer.
While professional mastering engineers bring expertise and creative input, especially for complex or high-stakes projects, AI mastering has become a powerful, accessible option for artists at every level.
AI mastering plays a vital role in helping independent musicians release polished, professional-sounding music quickly and affordably.
It's not just a budget alternative, it’s a practical tool that empowers creators to sound their best without barriers.
How to prepare your track for AI mastering
Prepare a final mix
A good mix is crucial for successful mastering, whether done by a human or AI. Ensure your mix is clean, balanced, and free of issues like clipping or muddiness. Luckily with AI mastering, you can refine and tweak your mix before re-mastering if needed.
Clean out unnecessary noise
Remove unnecessary silence and noise from your mix, including empty clips with active plugins and unwanted noise from software instruments. This lowers the noise floor and eliminates unnecessary frequencies.
Leave headroom
For best results with LANDR Mastering and the LANDR Mastering Plugin, leave about -10 dBFS of peak headroom, with an average level around -18 dBFS.
Before exporting, check your master bus levels—especially if peaks are too high. If needed, turn down or disable gain-boosting plugins like tape emulators, compressors, or limiters on your master bus.
These tools are often better placed elsewhere in your mix. Need help? Check out our guide to gainstaging.
Export a high-quality audio file
Once your mix sounds good and you’ve got some headroom, you’re ready to export for AI mastering.
If you’re using the LANDR Mastering Plugin, just put it on your master bus, pick a style, tweak your settings, and export your finished track right from your DAW.
Using a browser-based mastering tool instead? You’ll need to export your mix first. Make sure to choose a high-quality WAV or AIFF file.
Stick with the same sample rate you recorded at—your DAW usually does this automatically unless you’ve changed it. And make sure you’re exporting at 24-bit with dithering turned on. You’ll find these options in your DAW’s export settings.
Once that’s set, hit export and get ready to upload your track for mastering.
