Quick one…what do people use?
I’ve only used i-device apps. I found quite a bit of variation between some of them, but a few were more consistent, and with levels for non-music sources that were quite close to published typical levels, so seemed believable. It may be that you’d need to perform a similar exercise with Android apps unless someone else has. Remember that the weighting is significant, A-weighting being the one that is most commonly used when discussing music levels, so unless you have other needs I suggest checking what the app offers and choosing that setting.
I trust my handy old 9v powered Radio Shack SPL meter. I don’t trust any of the phone apps.
I have the Radio Shack one too! But I also have the free Dynaudio app.
Ha…long time fan of Dynaudio speakers and I had no idea they have an app. I just downloaded it, and it has a link to upgrade to pro audio tools…from a different seller. Sounds…dodgy… 
I’ve had it on my iPhone for years never any problem
I’m not saying apps are a “problem”, but I wonder about their accuracy. It seems to me the microphone would need to be calibrated to the software to be accurate. In the case of the Radio Shack it’s a hardware device that includes a microphone.
I bought a miniDSP USB microphone to use with software. They send me a calibration file tied to the serial number of the microphone.
I think the apps are fine, but I question their accuracy compared to hardware devices. For most practical purposes we care about I’m sure they are fine. I already have the Radio Shack so I trust that.
I might pull it out and compare to the Dynaudio app, and another iPhone app I already had installed. I still haven’t done anything with the miniDSP mic. I bought that to measure my subwoofer pair response in room. I still haven’t gotten beyond using my ears. LOL
I use Decibel X but can’t vouch for how accurate it is
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