Online Metronome
A pendulum metronome that writes every bar in notation.
Swing needs eighths or sixteenths.
- Space
- Start or stop
- T
- Tap tempo
- ↑ ↓
- Tempo by 1
- Shift ↑ ↓
- Tempo by 5
A free online metronome that runs in your browser, with no sign-up. Its pendulum swings with the beat and it writes each bar on a staff as it plays, so you can read the bars you have just played as well as hear them.
How to use the metronome
- Press Start, or press Space while the metronome is on screen. Press it again to stop.
- Set the tempo from 20 to 300 BPM with the slider, the number field or the arrow keys. You can also drag up or down on the metronome's scale, or scroll over it. The weight on the arm shows the tempo: the higher it sits, the slower the beat.
- To match a song, press the Tap key or T in time with the music. The tempo follows the average of your last few taps, and a pause of more than two seconds starts a new count.
- Choose a meter of 1 to 12 beats over a half, quarter, eighth or sixteenth note. For odd meters such as 7/8, pick a grouping like 2+2+3, and the first beat of each group is accented.
- Press a beat key to change that beat. Each press moves it on to the next state: normal, ghost, muted, then accent.
- Pick one of five sounds: woodblock, clave, bell, beep or clock. Then set the volume.
Reading the staff
The metronome writes each bar on a one-line staff as it plays. An accent is a note with an accent mark (>) above it, a normal beat is a plain note and a ghost beat is a note in brackets. A muted beat is a rest, subdivisions are shorter notes beamed to their beat, and a bar line closes each bar. Each line opens with a percussion clef and a tempo mark, and the beat keys show the same symbols as the staff.
Keys and settings
Space starts and stops, T taps the tempo, the arrow keys change the tempo by 1 BPM and Shift with an arrow changes it by 5. The keys work while the metronome has focus or is on screen, and they never get in the way of typing in a field.
Each theme at the top of the page lights the metronome in one of three moods: Morning, Lamplight or Midnight. Your tempo, meter, beats, sound and practice settings are saved in this browser and are never sent to a server.
Practising with a metronome
Start slower than you think you need. Find a tempo where you can play the passage cleanly, then raise it a few BPM at a time once it feels easy.
When you play right on the beat, the click tends to blend into your note. If you can hear it standing apart, you are a little early or a little late.
Use the phrase bell to feel where a phrase ends. With the bell every 4 bars, the bell on top of the metronome rings on the first beat of the fourth bar, and the staff starts a new line as the next phrase begins. Set it to 0 to turn the bell off.
Once the time feels steady, take some clicks away. Mute beats 1 and 3 to hear only the backbeat, or keep only beat 1, and hold the time yourself in between.
Subdivisions and swing
Subdivisions add quieter clicks between the beats: eighths (two per beat), triplets (three), sixteenths (four) or sextuplets (six). They help you place the notes that fall between beats and keep fast passages even.
Swing delays the second click of each pair of eighths or sixteenths. At 0% the clicks are even. At 50% the off-beat lands two thirds of the way through the beat, the familiar triplet feel, and the slider goes up to 75%.
In 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8 with the default grouping in threes (3+3, 3+3+3 or 3+3+3+3), the metronome counts dotted-quarter beats and already clicks every eighth, so subdivisions are turned off. Pick another grouping to count eighths and use subdivisions again.
The gap trainer and the speed trainer
The gap trainer alternates bars with a click and silent bars, from 1 to 8 of each. Keep playing through the silence, then check that you land with the click when it comes back. The pendulum keeps swinging through the silent bars and the staff writes each one as a whole-bar rest, so you can see where you are.
The speed trainer changes the tempo by 1 to 20 BPM every few bars until it reaches your target, then holds it there. It starts from the tempo you set, and the target can be faster or slower.
Tempo markings
Composers often write the tempo as an Italian word rather than a number. The metronome shows the marking for the current tempo using the ranges below. They are a common guide, not a fixed rule, so trust the music and your ear.
| Marking | Meaning | BPM |
|---|---|---|
| Larghissimo | As slow as possible | 20–24 |
| Grave | Very slow and solemn | 25–44 |
| Largo | Slow and broad | 45–65 |
| Adagio | Slow and at ease | 66–75 |
| Andante | At a walking pace | 76–97 |
| Moderato | Moderate | 98–107 |
| Allegretto | Fairly fast | 108–119 |
| Allegro | Fast and bright | 120–155 |
| Vivace | Lively and fast | 156–167 |
| Presto | Very fast | 168–199 |
| Prestissimo | As fast as possible | 200–300 |
Questions
Is the metronome free?
Yes. It is free to use, needs no account and runs in your browser.
Does it download any sounds?
No. All five sounds are made in your browser from synthesis code after you first press Start, so there are no audio files to download.
How steady is the timing?
Each click is scheduled ahead of time on your browser's audio clock, on a fixed grid. Other work on the page cannot move a click once it is scheduled, and a tempo change takes effect without a stutter.
Does it keep playing if I switch tabs?
On a computer, yes: hiding the tab does not stop it. On a phone, the browser may pause the sound when you switch apps or take a call. The metronome then stops and shows a Resume button.
Can I use it on my phone?
Yes, in a current mobile browser. Where the browser allows it, the screen stays on while the metronome runs. On an iPhone or iPad, check that the silent switch is off if you hear nothing.
Are my settings saved?
Yes, on this device. They are kept in your browser's storage and are never sent to a server.
Why does it write the beats as notes?
Writing each bar in notation turns the staff into a record of your practice. You can read back the accents, ghost beats, rests and silent bars you have just played, written the way a rhythm appears in sheet music.