How to find the BPM of a song

1. Play the song from a part with a steady beat, not the intro.
2. Clap or tap your foot on the beat until it feels steady.
3. Start a stopwatch and count the beats for 15 seconds.
4. Multiply by 4. That is the BPM.

Counting for 30 seconds and multiplying by 2 is more accurate. Try it twice and take the average.

A tap tool times the gap between your taps and turns it into BPM. Open the BPM finder, play the song, and tap the button on every beat. Keep tapping for at least 8 beats, until the number stops moving.

If you have the audio file, a BPM finder can listen to it for you. Our BPM finder reads the file in your browser, so the file is not uploaded. It works best on songs with a steady drum beat. Tempo changes, long quiet parts and songs with no drums can give a wrong number, so check it with your ears.

Some apps and websites show a BPM for well-known songs, looked up from a database. That number is for the original recording. A competition mix, a cut or a sped-up version can have a different tempo, so check the file you will dance to.

Every method can land on half or double the tempo you feel. A tool may count the hi-hat and give 180 when you would clap at 90. Or it may count only the big drum hits and give 70 when you would clap at 140.

Both numbers describe the same song. For dance, use the one that matches the speed you would step or clap to. If the number feels far too fast or slow, halve it or double it.

• Cheer competition mixes: cheer music producers often make them at about 145 to 150 BPM.
• Hip-hop: many songs are between 80 and 100 BPM.
• Pop and house dance music: often around 120 to 130 BPM.

These are common ranges, not rules. Your song is the one that counts.

One 8-count lasts 480 ÷ BPM seconds: 4 seconds at 120 BPM, about 3.3 seconds at 147 BPM. The 8-count calculator tells you how many 8-counts your routine has. To find count 1 and write the counts down, read how to count music for dance.