How many taps until the number is right?

Two taps produce a first guess; four or five settle it; nine is as good as it gets — the ninth tap fills the eight-interval averaging window, and older taps drop out. If the number keeps wandering after that, the wandering is in the taps — try the spacebar, or tap half-time and double the result.

Why did the number reset while I was tapping?

You paused for more than two seconds, and the tool deliberately treats that as a new measurement rather than averaging across the gap. A tempo reading that blends the verse you tapped, the sip of coffee, and the chorus you came back for would be worth nothing.

Should I tap every beat or every bar?

Every beat. The tool measures the interval between taps, so tapping bars gives you a number four times too low in 4/4 — correct, but for the wrong unit. If the song is too fast to tap comfortably, tap every second beat and double the reading.

Can it listen to the song and detect the BPM itself?

Not this page — it measures your taps and nothing else, which also means it needs no microphone and works with the sound coming from anywhere, including headphones the page could never hear. Your ears do the beat-finding; they are better at it than they get credit for.

Is it free, and does it upload anything?

Free, no account. It has no microphone access and takes no files — there is no music and no file to upload, and the only thing the page ever measures is the timing of your taps.

Tap BPM

Play the song, tap along — on the big button or your spacebar — and read the tempo. The reading settles after four or five taps and keeps refining as you go; stop for a couple of seconds and it starts fresh, so measuring the chorus after the verse does not drag the old tempo behind it.

Tap the beat — here or on your spacebar

Open in metronome

How to find a tempo by tapping

Play the music

From anywhere — another tab, a speaker, the radio. This page does not listen; you do.
Tap the beat

Click the pad or hit the spacebar on every beat. Four or five taps and the number settles.
Read the BPM

Take the number, or open it straight in the metronome to practice at it.

What you get

The spacebar counts

A keyboard tap is steadier than a trackpad click, and half the people measuring a tempo have the song playing in the next tab. Space works anywhere on the page; the pad is there for phones.

Smooths your hand, follows your changes

The reading averages your last eight intervals — enough to iron out human jitter, short enough that tapping a new tempo settles within a bar or two instead of dragging the old one along.

A pause means start over, on purpose

Stop tapping for two seconds and the next tap begins a fresh measurement. Nobody resumes the same tempo after a pause; averaging across one would poison the next reading, so it is not done.

One tap from practicing at it

The tempo you measured opens directly in the metronome, already set. Measure the song, click through, play along.

Questions about tapping a tempo

How many taps until the number is right?: Two taps produce a first guess; four or five settle it; nine is as good as it gets — the ninth tap fills the eight-interval averaging window, and older taps drop out. If the number keeps wandering after that, the wandering is in the taps — try the spacebar, or tap half-time and double the result.
Why did the number reset while I was tapping?: You paused for more than two seconds, and the tool deliberately treats that as a new measurement rather than averaging across the gap. A tempo reading that blends the verse you tapped, the sip of coffee, and the chorus you came back for would be worth nothing.
Should I tap every beat or every bar?: Every beat. The tool measures the interval between taps, so tapping bars gives you a number four times too low in 4/4 — correct, but for the wrong unit. If the song is too fast to tap comfortably, tap every second beat and double the reading.
Can it listen to the song and detect the BPM itself?: Not this page — it measures your taps and nothing else, which also means it needs no microphone and works with the sound coming from anywhere, including headphones the page could never hear. Your ears do the beat-finding; they are better at it than they get credit for.
Is it free, and does it upload anything?: Free, no account. It has no microphone access and takes no files — there is no music and no file to upload, and the only thing the page ever measures is the timing of your taps.

Got the number? Open the metronome and practice at it. Tuning first? The tuner is one tab over, and the speed & pitch deck slows the song down once you know how fast it was.