To find someone to mix your music, look at the credits on songs in your genre that sound the way you want, then search collaboration platforms, SoundCloud, Instagram, local studios and hiring marketplaces like SoundBetter. Listen to their before and after examples, send one song with a rough mix, a reference track and clean, labelled stems, and agree the price, the number of revisions and the deadline before they start. Many independent engineers charge somewhere around £50 to £300 a song.
The song is written, the vocals are recorded, and it still does not sound like the songs you love. The vocal sits on top instead of inside the beat, the low end is muddy on your phone and booming in the car, and every time you try to fix it yourself you make something else worse. That is the point where most people need a mix engineer, and most have no idea where to find a good one.
Here is how to find someone to mix your music, what to send them, and what it should cost.
Mixing, mastering and production are different jobs
It helps to know exactly what you are asking for.
- Mixing balances all the parts of a song: levels, EQ, compression, space and effects, so the vocal, drums, bass and everything else sit together and the song hits the way it should.
- Mastering is the final polish on the finished mix: overall loudness, tone and consistency, so it sounds right on every speaker and next to other songs.
- Production is building the song itself: the beat, the arrangement, the sounds. If the song is missing parts, you need a producer, not a mixer. There is a guide for that: how to find a producer for your music.
Many engineers offer mixing and mastering together. If yours does not, get the mix done first and the master after.
Where to find a mix engineer
Start with songs you love
Find three or four independent releases in your genre that sound like where you want to be. Check the credits on Spotify, Tidal or the artist's posts and see who mixed them. Engineers who mix smaller independent artists are often reachable and reasonably priced, and you already know they can get the sound you want.
Collaboration platforms
Platforms where engineers list what they do let you hear their work and message them directly, without a middleman. You can often find engineers who are early in their careers, very good and keen to build a portfolio. We list the main ones in the best places to find music collaborators.
Hiring marketplaces
SoundBetter and general freelance sites are full of mix engineers with reviews, sample work and set prices, and payment is handled for you. It is the easiest route if you have a budget and want it done by a date.
SoundCloud, YouTube and Instagram
Lots of engineers post before and after clips and mix breakdowns. If someone's breakdowns make sense to you and the after sounds right, that is a good sign they will be easy to work with too.
Local studios
A local studio engineer can mix with you in the room, which is brilliant for your first few songs because you learn a lot by watching. It usually costs more, but you leave knowing why things sound the way they do.
How to tell if a mix engineer is good
Listen on more than one thing: your headphones, your phone speaker and a car if you can. A good mix sounds right on all of them.
- Before and after examples. Anyone can make a great song sound great. Hearing what they did with a rough recording tells you much more.
- Your genre. Mixing drill, folk, metal and Afrobeats are very different skills. Look for someone who has done your sound more than once.
- Vocals. For most independent music the vocal is the song. Listen for vocals that are clear, sit in the beat and are not harsh.
- Communication. A quick, clear reply to your first message about price and timing is usually how the rest of the job goes.
What to send a mix engineer
Most of a good mix is decided by what you hand over. Get this right and you save time, money and revisions.
- Stems, exported as WAV files at the session's sample rate, every one starting at the very beginning of the song so they line up. Name them clearly: "Lead Vocal", "Adlibs", "808", "Kick", not "Audio 14".
- Effects off on vocals, unless an effect is part of the sound, in which case send both a dry and a wet version.
- Your rough mix, so they hear how you imagine it.
- One or two reference tracks with a sentence on what you like about them, for example "vocal as upfront as this, low end like this".
- The tempo and key, and any notes about moments that matter, like a drop or a beat switch.
If you are swapping files back and forth with collaborators too, how to collaborate on music remotely covers exporting stems that line up.
What mixing costs
Prices vary a lot with experience, so use these as rough guides. Engineers early in their careers might charge £30 to £80 a song. Many experienced independent engineers charge somewhere around £100 to £300 a song. Engineers with major credits charge far more. Mastering is often an extra £20 to £100 a song, or included in a bundle.
Price usually depends on the number of stems, how many revisions are included and how fast you need it. Ask what is included before you compare prices, because a cheap mix with no revisions can end up costing more than a dearer one with three.
Agree these before they start
- The price and when you pay, often half upfront and half on delivery.
- How many rounds of revisions are included, and what extra ones cost.
- The deadline.
- What you get back: the final mix as a WAV, an instrumental, a clean version, a performance version for live shows.
- How they are credited.
Mix engineers usually work for a fee and do not take a share of the song, but some offer a lower fee plus a small percentage. Either is fine if it is agreed in writing.
Giving notes on a mix
Listen to the first version a few times on different speakers before you reply, then send all your notes in one message. Be specific and use time stamps: "vocal a bit too quiet in the second verse, around 1:12" helps far more than "it does not feel right yet". Refer back to your reference track. And trust them on the things you cannot hear yet; that is what you are paying for.
Common questions
How much does it cost to get a song mixed?
Many independent mix engineers charge somewhere around £50 to £300 a song, depending on experience, the number of stems and how many revisions are included. Beginners can be cheaper and engineers with big credits cost much more. Mastering is often extra.
Where can I find someone to mix my music online?
Check the credits on independent songs you like, then look on collaboration platforms, hiring marketplaces like SoundBetter, and engineers who post before and after clips on SoundCloud, YouTube and Instagram. Listen to their work before you message them.
Can I mix my own music instead?
Yes, and plenty of people learn to. It takes time, a decent pair of headphones or monitors, and a lot of comparing your mix with reference tracks. Many artists mix their own demos and pay for the songs they release.
Should mixing and mastering be done by the same person?
It can be, and it is often cheaper as a bundle. Some people prefer a different person for mastering, because fresh ears catch things the mixer has stopped hearing. Both are normal.
Does a mix engineer get royalties?
Usually not. Most mix engineers work for a flat fee and take no share of the song, though some offer a lower fee in exchange for a small percentage. Whatever you agree, put it in writing.
A note from us
Tonivo is a free place to find producers, artists and engineers and message them directly. You can browse engineers on Tonivo, hear their work, and post a call saying what your song needs, for example a mix for a finished R&B track, so the right people come to you.
The short version
Find engineers through the credits on songs you love, listen to before and after examples, send clean labelled stems with a rough mix and a reference, and agree the price, revisions, deadline and deliverables before anyone starts. Do that and the song that sounds fine in your headphones will finally sound finished everywhere else.