BPM (beats per minute) is the speed of a piece of music: how many beats fall in one minute. A song at 120 BPM has two beats every second; a ballad at 60 BPM has one. It is the number you clap or tap along to, and the number DJs, producers, drummers and runners use to match music to each other or to a pace.
What counts as a beat
The beat is the steady pulse you would naturally clap, nod or step to. In most pop, rock, hip-hop and dance music it is the quarter note of a 4/4 bar: one, two, three, four, with the kick drum usually on one and three (or on every beat in house and techno) and the snare on two and four.
BPM counts those pulses, not every drum hit. A hi-hat playing eighth notes at 120 BPM hits 240 times a minute, but the song is still 120 BPM.
Tempo vs BPM
Tempo is the general idea of speed; BPM is the way to measure it. Before metronomes were common, composers described tempo with Italian words, and sheet music still uses them. Each word covers a range rather than an exact number:
| Marking | Meaning | Usual BPM |
|---|---|---|
| Grave | very slow, solemn | 20–40 |
| Largo | broad | 40–60 |
| Adagio | at ease, slow | 66–76 |
| Andante | at a walking pace | 76–108 |
| Moderato | moderate | 108–120 |
| Allegro | fast, bright | 120–156 |
| Vivace | lively | 156–176 |
| Presto | very fast | 176–200 |
A metronome marking such as "♩ = 96" on a score is the BPM, written with the note that gets the beat.
BPM and time signatures
The time signature says how beats are grouped into bars; BPM says how fast they come. A waltz in 3/4 at 90 BPM and a rock song in 4/4 at 90 BPM have the same pulse speed but feel very different because of the grouping. In compound meters such as 6/8 the beat people feel is usually the dotted quarter (two per bar), so a 6/8 piece can be quoted at two different BPMs depending on which note is counted. If in doubt, give the BPM together with the note value.
Typical BPM by genre
Most tracks in a style fall into a familiar range, which is why a DJ can mix house records into each other without large tempo changes:
| Genre | Typical BPM | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hip-hop | 80–100 | Boom-bap sits around 85–95 |
| Reggaeton | 88–100 | The dembow rhythm, often 90–96 |
| Pop | 100–130 | Ballads drop to 60–80 |
| House | 118–130 | Deep house lower, 120–124 is common |
| Techno | 125–145 | Faster styles go well beyond 145 |
| Dubstep | 138–142 | Felt as half-time, 70 |
| Trap | 130–170 | Usually felt at half speed |
| Drum and bass | 160–180 | 174 is the standard |
Lo-fi hip-hop usually sits around 70–90 BPM and most ballads at 60–80. These are ranges, not rules: a song is whatever speed its writer chose.
Half-time and double-time: why one song has two BPMs
Many tracks can be felt at two speeds. Trap and dubstep are produced at around 140 BPM, but the snare lands on the third beat, so most listeners nod along at 70. Drum and bass at 174 can be felt at 87. Both numbers describe the same track; one is twice the other.
This is the most common reason two BPM tools disagree, and why BPM analysis software sometimes reports "half" or "double" the number you expect. The convention in each genre decides which one people quote: dubstep producers say 140, not 70.
How to measure the BPM of a song
- Count it: count the beats for 15 seconds and multiply by 4. It gets you within a few BPM.
- Tap it: tap along on a tap BPM counter for 10 to 20 beats. The average of all taps lands within about 1 BPM, and it works for songs playing anywhere, from a speaker or a video. The ½× and 2× buttons switch between half-time and double-time readings.
- Analyse the file: if you have the audio file, the BPM finder measures tempo, key and energy without any tapping.
Once you have the number, a metronome set to it lets you practise along, and the audio speed changer slows a song to a practice tempo without changing its pitch.
What BPM is used for
- DJing: beatmatching two tracks means bringing them to the same BPM, then lining up the beats. Mixing in key matters too (see the Camelot wheel).
- Practising an instrument: learn a passage at 60–70 % of the target BPM and raise it a few BPM at a time.
- Running and workouts: many runners like music near their step rate, roughly 150–180 steps per minute; cycling and gym playlists are often built around 120–140 BPM.
- Video editing: cutting on the beat is easier when you know the interval: at 120 BPM a beat lasts 0.5 seconds.
FAQ
What is a normal BPM for a song?
Most popular music sits between about 80 and 130 BPM. 120 BPM is a very common default in pop and dance music.
Is BPM the same as tempo?
BPM is a measurement of tempo. "Allegro" describes a tempo; "132 BPM" states it exactly.
How many seconds is one beat?
60 divided by the BPM: at 120 BPM a beat is 0.5 s, at 90 BPM about 0.67 s, at 174 BPM about 0.34 s.
Why does a BPM tool show double the tempo I hear?
It counted the faster pulse, such as the hi-hats or the double-time drums. Halve it; both numbers describe the same song.