Beats per bar
44 quarter note beats fill every bar of 4/4.Pulse · tempo · time
4/4 Metronome
This page opens a working metronome in 4/4 time at 120 BPM. The first beat of every bar gets a brighter accent click, so you can hear where the bar begins without watching the screen. Change the tempo freely, or switch signature from the same panel to compare.
Beats per minute
BPM
1234
Ready at 120 BPM in 4/4.
Tempo facts
What 4/4 time means
A bar of 4/4 holds 4 quarter note beats. Here is how that plays out at the 120 BPM this page opens with.
Beat unit
Quarter noteThe lower number, 4, is what counts one beat in 4/4.Accent
Beat 1The metronome plays a brighter click on the downbeat. The pattern below shows the lighter stresses musicians add.Bar length
2 sAt 120 BPM one bar of 4/4 lasts 2 seconds.How 4/4 is counted
- 1Strong
- 2Weak
- 3Lighter
- 4Weak
Count 'one two three four' and begin again. Four quarter-note beats fill every bar, and the metronome plays a brighter accent click on beat one so you always hear where the bar starts. Beat three carries a lighter secondary stress, which is why 4/4 feels like two halves rather than four equal events.
How to practise in 4/4
Set the online metronome to 4/4, pick a tempo and play one note per click until beat one is obvious without looking at the screen. Then play only on beats two and four: that is the backbeat, where a drummer's snare lands in almost all popular music.
What music is written in 4/4
4/4 is called common time and is often written as a C on the stave. The overwhelming majority of pop, rock, blues, hip-hop, funk, country and dance music is in 4/4, along with marches and a large part of the classical repertoire.