How long is one beat at 60 bpm?

The requested quarter-note interval is 60 seconds divided by 60, or one second. The four quarter-note pulses of a 4/4 bar therefore take four seconds. The browser audio clock supplies the playback timing; this is not a calibration of your device against a clock.

Can I use 60 BPM in 3/4 or 2/4?

Yes. Choose 3/4 for three quarter-note pulses per bar, or 2/4 for two. At 60 BPM, the pulse interval remains one second. Opening this page always starts in 4/4, even if your saved meter is different. 6/8 uses a different dotted-quarter unit; choose that meter only after reading the unit on your score.

Is 60 bpm largo or larghetto?

The tool calls it Larghetto. 60 sits exactly on the boundary between Largo and Larghetto on a printed metronome face, and different editions place the boundaries a few beats apart anyway, so a choice has to be made. This tool resolves every boundary low-inclusive: 60 is the first tempo of Larghetto rather than the last of Largo. Anything below 60 down to 40 is Largo.

Why practise at 60 bpm?

A slow pulse leaves time to place each note deliberately. In 4/4 at 60, a bar has four one-second pulses: fifteen bars per minute. Slower work is useful when it helps you play a passage cleanly; the right starting tempo depends on the passage and player.

Can I change the tempo without losing the beat?

Yes. Type a new tempo, step it with the minus and plus buttons, or tap it out with Tap tempo, which averages the gaps between your last eight taps. The scheduler picks the new tempo up on its next pass, so the metronome does not stop and restart. The playable range is 20 to 300 bpm; a tempo outside it is refused with a message rather than silently changed to something else.

Can I download an MP3 or hear spoken counting?

This page generates clicks with Web Audio while it is open. It does not export MP3 audio or speak numbers. Visual dots show the current pulse; the Beep and Wood controls change the synthesized voice.

Can page delays interrupt the click?

Clicks already booked in the 100 ms Web Audio window use the audio clock. Longer page stalls can drop future clicks and show their count; a suspended audio clock stops playback and asks you to press Start again. This is not a measurement of physical clock accuracy.

60 BPM Metronome

This preset opens at 60 quarter-note pulses per minute in 4/4, with one click per pulse and the first beat accented. Press Start to hear one pulse per second and a four-second bar. Use the meter control for 2/4 or 3/4 practice at the same quarter-note tempo. Change to Wood for a short woodblock-like synthesized voice, or add quieter subdivisions. The reference below gives requested note lengths; actual sound timing depends on your device.

Larghetto · 4/460quarter note pulses per minute

Tempo

Time signature

Subdivide

Sound

Accent first

Volume: 70%

Tempo always counts the displayed note unit. Quarter-note meters use one quarter-note pulse as the beat.

Stopped. Press Start, or the space bar, to hear 60 quarter note pulses per minute.

Timing methodbooked clicks and skipped gaps
Web Audio look-ahead scheduler: 100 ms window, 25 ms tick, beat times accumulated
Tap tempotap one displayed note pulse in time
Tap the button at least twice. The last 8 gaps between taps are averaged.
Soundclick, with the accent a higher pitch
A short burst of noise through a narrow filter, the sound of a mechanical metronome's escapement.
Keyboardhands stay on the instrument
Space start and stop ↑ ↓ one bpm ← → five bpm T tap

The shortcuts wake up once you have clicked or tabbed into the tool, and only while the metronome is on screen. Until then the space bar and the arrow keys scroll the page, the way they do everywhere else.

Tempo markings

The Italian markings and the beats per minute usually printed against them. They are a naming convention, not a measurement: composers used these words for two centuries before anyone attached numbers, and editions place the boundaries a few beats apart. The row matching your tempo is highlighted.

Marking	Beats per minute	Feel
Largo	40 to 59	very slow, broad
Larghetto	60 to 65	slow, a shade lighter than largo
Adagio	66 to 75	slow, at ease
Andante	76 to 107	walking pace
Moderato	108 to 119	moderate
Allegro	120 to 167	fast, bright
Vivace	168 to 175	lively
Presto	176 to 199	very fast
Prestissimo	200 and up	as fast as it will go

Note lengths at 60 bpm

Computed from the interval the metronome actually schedules on: sixty seconds divided by the tempo, then by the subdivision. The quarter note is the beat. Milliseconds are the same figure, and are the numbers to type into a delay or a tremolo set to 60 bpm.

Note value	Length in seconds	In milliseconds
Whole note, four beats	4 s	4000 ms
Half note, two beats	2 s	2000 ms
Quarter note, one beat	1 s	1000 ms
Eighth note	0.5 s	500 ms
Eighth-note triplet	0.3333 s	333.33 ms
Sixteenth note	0.25 s	250 ms
One bar of 4/4	4 s	4000 ms

Common questions

How long is one beat at 60 bpm?: The requested quarter-note interval is 60 seconds divided by 60, or one second. The four quarter-note pulses of a 4/4 bar therefore take four seconds. The browser audio clock supplies the playback timing; this is not a calibration of your device against a clock.
Can I use 60 BPM in 3/4 or 2/4?: Yes. Choose 3/4 for three quarter-note pulses per bar, or 2/4 for two. At 60 BPM, the pulse interval remains one second. Opening this page always starts in 4/4, even if your saved meter is different. 6/8 uses a different dotted-quarter unit; choose that meter only after reading the unit on your score.
Is 60 bpm largo or larghetto?: The tool calls it Larghetto. 60 sits exactly on the boundary between Largo and Larghetto on a printed metronome face, and different editions place the boundaries a few beats apart anyway, so a choice has to be made. This tool resolves every boundary low-inclusive: 60 is the first tempo of Larghetto rather than the last of Largo. Anything below 60 down to 40 is Largo.
Why practise at 60 bpm?: A slow pulse leaves time to place each note deliberately. In 4/4 at 60, a bar has four one-second pulses: fifteen bars per minute. Slower work is useful when it helps you play a passage cleanly; the right starting tempo depends on the passage and player.
Can I change the tempo without losing the beat?: Yes. Type a new tempo, step it with the minus and plus buttons, or tap it out with Tap tempo, which averages the gaps between your last eight taps. The scheduler picks the new tempo up on its next pass, so the metronome does not stop and restart. The playable range is 20 to 300 bpm; a tempo outside it is refused with a message rather than silently changed to something else.
Can I download an MP3 or hear spoken counting?: This page generates clicks with Web Audio while it is open. It does not export MP3 audio or speak numbers. Visual dots show the current pulse; the Beep and Wood controls change the synthesized voice.
Can page delays interrupt the click?: Clicks already booked in the 100 ms Web Audio window use the audio clock. Longer page stalls can drop future clicks and show their count; a suspended audio clock stops playback and asks you to press Start again. This is not a measurement of physical clock accuracy.

Clicks are booked a tenth of a second ahead on the Web Audio clock. Longer stalls can drop clicks; suspension stops playback. Device timing varies. Tap tempo averages the last eight gaps between taps.