Tempo markings and BPM

BPM (beats per minute) is the number of beats in one minute. Tempo markings such as Andante and Allegro describe a speed in words. This page shows how the two relate.

What BPM means

At 60 BPM, there is one beat every second. At 120 BPM, there are two beats every second. The beat is the note in the bottom number of the time signature: a quarter note in 4/4, and an eighth note in 6/8 (see time signatures explained).

Tempo markings and their BPM

Under the BPM, Setlist Metronome shows the tempo marking for that speed. These are the ranges it uses:

Marking	Meaning	BPM in this app
Grave	Very slow and solemn	20–39
Largo	Broad, slow	40–59
Larghetto	A little less slow than largo	60–65
Adagio	Slow, at ease	66–75
Andante	At a walking pace	76–107
Moderato	Moderate	108–119
Allegro	Fast, bright	120–167
Vivace	Lively and fast	168–176
Presto	Very fast	177–199
Prestissimo	As fast as possible	200–300

Tempo markings are older than the metronome, and they describe the character of the music as well as its speed. Different books and metronomes give slightly different ranges, and the right tempo for a piece also depends on the meter and the style. Use the table as a rough guide. When the music gives a number (such as ♩ = 96), use the number.

How long one beat lasts

The time between notes, in milliseconds (1000 ms = 1 second). It helps when you set the delay of an effect pedal, or to see how much less time you have at a faster tempo.

BPM	Beat (quarter)	8th	Triplet	16th
60	1000	500	333	250
72	833	417	278	208
80	750	375	250	188
90	667	333	222	167
100	600	300	200	150
120	500	250	167	125
140	429	214	143	107
160	375	188	125	94
180	333	167	111	83

Rounded to the nearest millisecond. The beat is a quarter note.

Choosing a practice tempo

A common way to learn a hard passage is to start below the target tempo and raise it step by step once you can play it cleanly. These are 70%, 80%, and 90% of some target tempos:

Target BPM	70%	80%	90%
100	70	80	90
120	84	96	108
140	98	112	126
160	112	128	144
180	126	144	162

In Setlist Metronome, select the song, tap Duplicate, and lower the tempo of the copy. Then you can switch between the practice tempo and the real tempo with one tap.