Online metronome

Free online metronome

Keep time while you practice. Set the tempo, pick a time signature, and play with a steady click.

BPM

The number is clicks per minute. Beat 1 is accented. In 6/8, beat 4 gets a lighter accent.

How to use this metronome

  1. Choose a time signature. 4/4 is the right start for most guitar practice.
  2. Set a tempo you can play cleanly. Use the slider, type a number from 40 to 240, or tap Tap tempo in time.
  3. Press Start. The first click of each bar is stronger. In 6/8, the fourth click is a lighter accent.
  4. Play with the click. If you rush or drag, slow the tempo down before you speed it up.

Press the space bar to start and stop when you are not typing in the tempo field. The click is generated in your browser and is not recorded or uploaded.

What the tempo number means

BPM means beats per minute. At 60 BPM you hear one click each second. At 120 BPM you hear two. This page treats the number as clicks per minute, then groups those clicks into the time signature you picked.

  • 60 BPM: slow chord changes, new songs, and anything you are still learning.
  • 72–84 BPM: ballads and fingerstyle patterns.
  • 96–120 BPM: everyday strumming and most rock and pop grooves.
  • 140 BPM and up: fast single-note lines. Only go here after the part is clean at a slower tempo.

Practice without rushing

Pick a short passage, one or two bars. Set the metronome slower than the recording. Play it three times in a row without a mistake, then raise the tempo by 4 to 8 BPM. If the notes get dirty, go back to the last clean tempo. Ten focused minutes beats an hour of playing ahead of the click.

Count out loud with the accent: “1 2 3 4” in 4/4, or “1 2 3 4 5 6” in 6/8. The strong click is beat 1. When a song feels uneven, you are usually early on beat 1 or late on the offbeats. The accent makes that obvious.

Need the guitar in tune first? Use the free online guitar tuner, then come back and set the click.

Questions about the metronome

Does this online metronome work on a phone?

Yes. Tap Start. It works in Chrome on Android and Safari on iPhone. Turn the silent switch off if you do not hear the click, and raise the volume.

What tempo should I practice at?

Start at the fastest tempo where every note is clean. For a new chord change, that is often 60 to 80 BPM. Raise it only after you can play the passage three times without a mistake.

What is the accent click?

Beat 1 of each bar is louder and higher. That is the downbeat. In 6/8, beat 4 also gets a lighter accent, so the bar splits into two groups of three.

How do I find the tempo of a song?

Tap Tap tempo along with the song’s main pulse, not every strum. After a few taps the number settles on the tempo. Then press Start and see if the click sits with the recording.

Do you record the audio?

No. The click is created in your browser. Nothing is recorded, stored, or uploaded. This metronome does not use the microphone.