Best Mastering Plugins for 2025

Discover new tools for more mastering music at all levels, from do-it-all processors to precision engineering tools, with this guide.

Mastering is a strange part of the music-making process. It’s a technical activity at heart, but it’s also abstract enough to be thought of as an art. While mixing is a stage that leaves room for creative choice, mastering is about ensuring those choices come through and fit on all playback systems and formats – as well as making music sound more balanced and comparable with other releases.

The tools that engineers employ to carry out the mastering process are very varied. Some are packages with multiple components; some are specific components that might be able to bring your mastering to the next level; some are all-in-one plugins that let you master your music quickly and simply.

 

 

The best plugins out there to add a professional touch and finish off your tracks

In this article, we’ll show you nine of the best mastering tools out there for both first-time engineers and long-time experts looking for new devices, and we’ll discuss how to choose the right options for you depending on your situation.

This list contains a mixture of types, and not every entry will be right for every reader. However, almost every reader will be able to find something new at their level, thanks to the choice of different mastering plugins and packages we’ve included.

 

 

Our recommended audio mastering plugins

Here are the plugins and packages we’ll cover throughout this article, as well as the other topics we will be discussing…

• iZotope Ozone 11 Advanced
• IK Multimedia T-RackS 6 MAX
• Sonnox Oxford Dynamics
• Mastering The Mix LEVELS
• brainworx bx_masterdesk
• iZotope Tonal Balance Control 2
• Newfangled Audio Elevate Mastering Bundle
• Klevgrand Grand Finale
• Tokyo Dawn TDR SimuLathe REF
• What are mastering plugins?
• What audio mastering plugins do you need?
• Choose the best mastering plugin for you
• FAQs about mastering plugins
  • What is mastering?
  • Why is mastering important?
  • What’s the difference between mixing and mastering plugins?
• Where to get mastering plugin

 

 

iZotope Ozone 11 Advanced

Best for serious mastering applications, but the full version is expensive

Ozone is a plugin that dates from times when most mastering engineers weren’t convinced that a computer-based platform was good enough to master a piece of music. As time went by, and as iZotope’s flagship piece of software grew better and better, there’s barely a mastering engineer out there that doesn’t use Ozone – at least occasionally and for a small part of their work.

Ozone comes in the all-singing, all-dancing Advanced version as the flagship, but picking up Ozone 11 Standard isn’t a bad shout at all if the Advanced version is out of your budget. There are plenty more options for buying Ozone 11, so you can pick up one that’s right for you.

Pros

• Probably the most trusted name in digital mastering
• AI assistance features to detect problems and get your chain started
• All the traditional mastering tools plus cutting edge ones (Stem focus, Low End Focus)
• Helps with comparing your music to modern standards

Cons

• Advanced version is expensive
• Lots to learn for newcomers

 

IK Multimedia T-RackS 6 MAX

Best alternative to iZotope Ozone as a full mastering effects package

IK Multimedia have a long history of releasing many effects plugins for production, including both digital and analogue-style devices. Inside their T-rackS system, you get access to these plugins, with routing options and comprehensive metering options making your chains more than the sum of their parts. For mastering, modules like Stealth Limiter, ‘White Channel’, and the ‘Quad’ series of multiband specialist devices have you covered in the digital realm.

In the package, you’ll also find venerable friends of the music producer and engineer: models of renowned EQs, compressors, tape machines and creative effects, meaning that T-rackS is also a good collection for mixing. It could be a good package to buy if you can’t justify dropping money on mastering alone.

You can also get T-rackS in pared-down versions: T-rackS 6 Pro and T-rackS 6. These both reduce the price but pack in fewer processors.

Pros

• Loads of processors for mastering and mixing too
• Chain processors together in a shell, route signals and get visual insights
• Analogue character and digital precision across this range of devices

Cons

• Not as assistive as other packages
• Slightly less integrated as a mastering package