BPM Detector: Find the Tempo of Any Song
Drop a song, loop or stem and this BPM detector tells you its tempo in beats per minute — to one decimal, with half-time and double-time values and a click track to check it by ear. The BPM detector runs entirely in your browser, so your audio never leaves your device. Free, unlimited, no sign-up — made by MusicGenerator.so.
Drop an audio file here to detect its BPM
MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, AAC, OGG, OPUS, AIFF · 4 s to 15 min · up to 150 MB
— Tap the button on each beat (0 taps). Stop for 2.5 s to start over.
100% in your browser: the BPM detector decodes and analyses your file on your device. Nothing is uploaded.
How to use the BPM detector
- 1
Drop your track
Choose an MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A or OGG file, or drag it onto the BPM detector. The file is opened only inside your browser.
- 2
Let the BPM detector listen
The BPM detector finds note attacks and drum hits, then measures how regularly they repeat. A 4-minute song takes a second or two.
- 3
Read and check the BPM
See the tempo to one decimal, the half- and double-time values and a confidence score. Press Play to hear a click on every detected beat.
Why use this BPM detector
What is BPM?
BPM stands for beats per minute: how many beats fall into sixty seconds of music. A song at 120 BPM pulses twice every second. DJs use BPM to match tracks, producers use it to set the session grid, and dancers and runners use it to pick music at the right pace. A BPM detector reads that number from the audio for you.
Private by design
Many online BPM detector sites upload your song to a server. This BPM detector does not: decoding uses your browser’s Web Audio API and the analysis runs in a Web Worker on your device, so unreleased demos and client work stay with you.
Precise, with a way to check
Instead of guessing from a few seconds, the BPM detector compares beats up to 16 beats apart across the whole file, which gives a reading to a tenth of a BPM on steady music. The click track and tap tempo let you confirm the result by ear.
Free and unlimited
No account, no credits and no watermark. Use the BPM detector on as many songs, loops and stems as you like, up to 15 minutes each.
Who it’s for
DJs
Check the BPM of every track in a set before you beatmatch, and spot songs that need half- or double-time mixing.
Producers
Find the tempo of a sample or reference track and set your DAW project to the same BPM before you chop or remix.
Musicians & teachers
Learn a song at its real tempo, set a metronome to the detected BPM, or check whether a band speeds up.
Runners, dancers & editors
Match music to a running cadence, a choreography or a video cut by its BPM.
How the BPM detector works
A BPM detector cannot hear ‘the beat’ directly. It looks for sudden changes in the sound and works out how often they repeat. This one follows the classic method used in music research.
1. Decode and downsample
Your file is decoded by the browser, mixed to mono and resampled to 22.05 kHz, which keeps every drum hit while making the analysis fast.
2. Build an onset envelope
The BPM detector slices the audio into 11.6 ms steps and measures how much new energy appears in each frequency band from one step to the next (spectral flux). Kicks, snares, plucks and chord changes become sharp peaks.
3. Find the repetition rate
Autocorrelation compares that envelope with time-shifted copies of itself. Every candidate tempo between the range limits is scored by how well the peaks line up 1 to 4 beats apart, with a gentle preference for tempos near 120 BPM, as listeners tend to tap.
4. Refine and report
The winner is refined by comparing beats up to 16 beats apart on a 0.01 BPM grid. The BPM detector then reports the tempo to one decimal, the half and double values, a confidence score and the beat grid for the click track.
BPM detector features
Runs on your device
The BPM detector analyses your audio inside the browser tab. Nothing is uploaded or stored.
One-decimal precision
Readings like 127.9 BPM, plus the rounded value, so you can tell a 128 BPM track from a 127.5 BPM one.
Half & double time
A song at 87 BPM can feel like 174. The BPM detector shows both, and the range buttons switch the octave.
Confidence score
See how sure the BPM detector is. Low confidence hints at a drifting live tempo or a track without drums.
Click track preview
Play the track with a click on every detected beat to confirm the BPM by ear.
Tap tempo
No file? Tap along to any song playing nearby and get its BPM from your taps.
Tips for an accurate BPM reading
- Use the whole song or at least 20–30 seconds with drums or a clear pulse; the BPM detector gets more precise with more beats.
- If the result is half or double what you count, switch the tempo range: Slow (50–100), Normal (70–180) or Fast (90–200 BPM).
- Drum and bass, dubstep and trap often read as half time (e.g. 87 instead of 174, or 70 instead of 140). Both values are correct counts of the same groove.
- Live recordings that speed up or slow down get an average tempo and a lower confidence score. Check the click track to see where it drifts.
- Free-tempo music such as rubato piano or ambient pads has no single BPM. Use tap tempo for a rough feel instead of trusting any BPM detector blindly.
- Want the beat only? Remove the vocals first with our Vocal Remover and run the BPM detector on the instrumental.
Typical BPM ranges by genre
Rough guide values that help you sanity-check what the BPM detector reports. Individual songs vary.
| Genre | Typical BPM | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hip-hop / boom bap | 85–95 | Often counted at double time (170–190) by a BPM detector set to Fast |
| Trap | 130–150 | Frequently felt at half time (65–75) |
| House | 120–128 | Steady four-on-the-floor; very high confidence |
| Techno | 125–140 | Steady kick drum |
| Dubstep | 140 | Usually felt at half time (70) |
| Drum and bass | 160–180 | Half time reads 80–90 |
| Pop | 100–130 | Wide range |
| Ballads | 60–80 | Use the Slow range |
Go beyond the BPM detector with MusicGenerator.so
Know the tempo — now need a track at that BPM? MusicGenerator.so is an AI music generator that turns a text prompt or your own lyrics into a complete song with vocals or an instrumental. Ask for the BPM you found with the BPM detector and get a song that fits your set, video or workout.
- Full songs with vocals from one prompt
- Instrumentals in any genre and tempo
- Vocal Remover and Song Lyrics Generator included
- Commercial license on paid plans
Tempo results are estimates. Always check important values by ear with the click track or tap tempo.
Frequently asked questions
More free AI music tools
Found the BPM? Make a song at that tempo
Use the BPM detector to read the tempo, then let MusicGenerator.so — the AI music generator — create a full track that fits it.
Last updated October 2026.