Metronome

Set a tempo and press Start (or the Space bar). The metronome clicks on every beat, accents the first beat of each bar, and lights up the beat you are on. Change the tempo with the slider, the − and + buttons, by typing a number, or with the + and − keys — it follows instantly, without stopping.

Don't know the tempo of a song? Press Tap tempo (or the T key) in time with it. After two taps you get a BPM; keep tapping and it averages the last eight, ignoring a single fumbled tap. Pause for more than two seconds and the next tap starts a fresh count.

Timing you can trust

A metronome built on JavaScript timers drifts and stutters whenever the page is busy. This one schedules every click ahead of time on the Web Audio clock — the same clock your sound card plays from — using a short look-ahead loop, so clicks land on the exact sample regardless of what the browser is doing. The beat indicator follows the audio rather than the other way round, and in a background tab it schedules further ahead so the clicks keep going.

Time signatures and subdivisions

Pick 2/4 through 7/4, or 3/8 through 12/8. The tempo counts the beats of the signature: at 120 BPM in 6/8, that's 120 eighth notes a minute. Subdivisions add quieter clicks between beats — eighths, triplets or sixteenths — which makes it far easier to keep fast passages even. Turn the accent off if you'd rather every beat sound the same.

Common uses

• Practise scales, rudiments and pieces at a steady, gradually rising tempo
• Find the BPM of a song by tapping along
• Count in a band or keep time for rehearsals
• Work on odd meters like 5/4 and 7/8 with the downbeat clearly marked
• Train an even triplet or sixteenth-note feel with subdivisions

Example

Tap along to a song: 8 taps about 0.48 s apart

Tapped 125 BPM from 8 taps · Allegro

Press Start and the click plays at the tapped tempo; fine-tune with + and − until it locks in with the recording.

Limitations

• Bluetooth headphones add a delay of 100–300 ms between the click and the moment you hear it. The beat indicator compensates when the browser reports that delay; wired headphones or speakers avoid it entirely.
• Phones may pause audio when the screen locks. Keep the screen on while practising.
• The click sounds are simple synthesised blips; there are no sampled cowbells or voice counts.

How do I find the BPM of a song?

Play the song and press Tap tempo, or the T key, on every beat. After two taps the tool shows a BPM, and it refines the reading as you keep tapping, averaging the last eight taps and ignoring a mistimed one. Pause for two seconds to start over.

Is this online metronome accurate?

Yes. Each click is scheduled ahead of time on the Web Audio clock, which runs off your sound card rather than JavaScript timers, so it doesn't drift or stutter when the page is busy. Any delay you notice is from your audio output — Bluetooth headphones in particular.

What BPM range does the metronome support?

20 to 300 beats per minute. Very slow tempos are good for deliberate practice and ballads; anything above about 200 is easier to follow with the click on half notes — halve the BPM and add an eighth-note subdivision.

How does BPM work in 6/8 time?

The tempo counts the beats of the time signature, so in 6/8 at 120 BPM the metronome plays 120 eighth notes per minute with an accent every six clicks. If you think of 6/8 in two dotted-quarter beats, set the tempo three times higher than that dotted-quarter pulse.

What are subdivisions for?

Subdivisions add quieter clicks between beats — two for eighth notes, three for triplets, four for sixteenths. They help you place notes evenly inside the beat, which is where timing usually goes wrong, and make slow tempos much easier to follow.

Are there keyboard shortcuts?

Yes: Space starts and stops, T taps the tempo, and + or − change it by one BPM. Inside the tempo field, ↑ and ↓ adjust it by 1, or by 10 with Shift. The shortcuts are ignored while you're typing in a field.

Does the metronome keep playing in a background tab?

On desktop browsers, yes — it schedules clicks further ahead when the tab is hidden, because browsers slow down background timers. Mobile browsers may suspend audio when the screen locks or you switch apps, so keep the page in front on a phone.