What Is Dithering and When to Use It
Updated July 2026 · by Loopin
Dithering sounds technical, but the idea is simple: it’s a tiny bit of added noise that keeps quiet detail clean when you reduce a file’s bit depth. Here’s what it does and when you actually need it.
What dithering actually is
Dithering is a very low-level, carefully shaped noise added to audio when you reduce its bit depth — for example, converting a 24-bit master down to 16-bit for a CD. Reducing bit depth means rounding each sample to a coarser grid, and that rounding introduces small errors called quantization distortion, which is most audible in quiet passages and fade-outs.
Dither replaces that ugly, correlated distortion with a smooth, much less noticeable hiss. Counter-intuitively, adding the right noise makes the result sound cleaner — the low-level detail in reverb tails and fades stays smooth instead of breaking up into gritty steps.
Why bit depth reduction causes the problem
Higher bit depth gives you more possible amplitude values, so quiet sounds are described accurately. When you drop from 24-bit to 16-bit, those quiet sounds get rounded to the nearest available step, and the rounding error correlates with the signal — which the ear hears as distortion rather than gentle noise, especially on a long fade to silence.
Dither breaks that correlation by adding random noise before the rounding, so the error becomes uncorrelated and benign. Noise shaping goes a step further, pushing that dither noise into frequencies the ear is less sensitive to, making it effectively inaudible on most material.
When to use it — and when not to
Use dither only on the final bit-depth reduction, as the very last step before export, and only when you’re actually lowering bit depth — typically 24-bit down to 16-bit. Apply it once. Dithering twice (say, dithering a file and then dithering again later) stacks noise needlessly.
Skip dither when you’re staying at the same or higher bit depth. If you deliver a 24-bit WAV — which most streaming distributors prefer — there’s no bit-depth reduction happening, so no dither is needed. Modern streaming export at 24-bit sidesteps the whole question; dither mainly matters for 16-bit deliverables like CD.
Let mastering handle it for free
You don’t need to manage dither by hand. When you finish a track with Loopin’s free online mastering, the export is prepared correctly for delivery, so you can focus on how the master sounds rather than the bit-depth plumbing — and A/B against the original to judge the result.
If you’re unsure whether you even need a 16-bit version, the safe default for streaming is a 24-bit WAV, where dither doesn’t apply. For the rest of the export picture — format, sample rate and loudness — see best export settings for streaming and master your track free.
Frequently asked questions
What is dithering in audio?
Dithering is a tiny, carefully shaped noise added when you reduce a file's bit depth (for example 24-bit to 16-bit). It replaces the harsh quantization distortion that rounding would cause with a smooth, far less audible hiss, keeping quiet detail clean.
When should I apply dither?
Only on the final bit-depth reduction, as the last step before export, and only when you're actually lowering bit depth, such as 24-bit down to 16-bit for CD. Apply it once and never stack it.
Do I need dither for a 24-bit streaming master?
No. If you deliver a 24-bit WAV, no bit-depth reduction is happening, so there's nothing to dither. Dither mainly matters for 16-bit deliverables like CD.