Piano metronome
A metronome set up for piano technique: 60 BPM in 4/4 with sixteenth-note subdivisions, the speed at which Hanon tells pianists to begin his exercises. Press Start or the space bar.
Larghetto
Space start/stop · ↑ ↓ ±1 BPM · Shift ±10 · T tap
Speed trainer
Practice timer
- 60 BPMpreset tempo
- 4/4time signature
- sixteenth notessubdivision
- 4clicks per second
Why this preset for piano?
Most piano technique (Hanon, scales, Czerny-style studies) moves in steady sixteenth notes, four to the beat. The Virtuoso Pianist prints a double mark, "M.M. = 60 to 108", at the head of each exercise: begin at 60 and work up to 108 gradually. At 60 BPM a beat lasts exactly one second, so four sub-clicks per beat give you a quarter of a second for every note: plenty of time to listen for evenness between the thumb and the fourth and fifth fingers.
Typical practice tempos for piano
These are common starting points rather than rules; your comfortable tempo depends on the passage and your level. Begin at the bottom of a range and move up only when the playing is clean and relaxed.
| Material | BPM | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hanon, The Virtuoso Pianist (sixteenths) | 60 → 108 | The printed mark: begin at 60 and raise the tempo gradually |
| Scales, hands separately | 60–100 in eighths, then sixteenths | Play hands together about 10 BPM below your hands-separate tempo |
| Arpeggios and broken chords | 50–90 | Usually slower than scales: the thumb has further to travel |
| Alberti bass and other accompaniment figures | 60–100 | Keep the left hand quieter and perfectly even |
| Slow movements (Adagio to Andante) | 66–108 | See the tempo markings chart |
| Fast movements (Allegro) | 120–156 | Learn them well below tempo first |
Step-up practice plan: 60 → 108 BPM
Exercise: one Hanon exercise in sixteenths, hands together. Add 4 BPM every 2 days; at this pace you reach 108 BPM on day 25, after 13 sessions. Play each tempo cleanly three times in a row before moving on. If a session is not clean, repeat the same tempo next time: the table is a ceiling, not a deadline.
| Session | Day | BPM | Notes per second (sixteenth notes) | Time per note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 60 | 4 | 250 ms |
| 2 | 3 | 64 | 4.27 | 234 ms |
| 3 | 5 | 68 | 4.53 | 221 ms |
| 4 | 7 | 72 | 4.8 | 208 ms |
| 5 | 9 | 76 | 5.07 | 197 ms |
| 6 | 11 | 80 | 5.33 | 188 ms |
| 7 | 13 | 84 | 5.6 | 179 ms |
| 8 | 15 | 88 | 5.87 | 170 ms |
| 9 | 17 | 92 | 6.13 | 163 ms |
| 10 | 19 | 96 | 6.4 | 156 ms |
| 11 | 21 | 100 | 6.67 | 150 ms |
| 12 | 23 | 104 | 6.93 | 144 ms |
| 13 | 25 | 108 | 7.2 | 139 ms |
Within a session, the speed trainer can warm you up to the day's tempo: for example from 51 to 64 BPM, adding 2 BPM every 4 bars, on day 3. For the method behind gradual increases, read how to build speed with a metronome.
Subdivisions for piano
Set the subdivision to the fastest note value of the passage, not to the beat. In a piece that moves in sixteenths, sub-clicks catch the small unevenness that sounds like "galloping" in scales, which comes from the thumb arriving late after it passes under.
For hands together, practise each hand alone against the click first, then together at a tempo 10 BPM lower. For two-against-three, play the triplet hand with triplet subdivisions and the duple hand with eighths, one hand at a time, before putting them together without sub-clicks.
Hanon tempos from 60 to 108: notes per second in each hand and the gap between notes.
| BPM | Sixteenths per second | Gap between notes | One beat |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 4 | 250 ms | 1000 ms |
| 72 | 4.8 | 208 ms | 833 ms |
| 84 | 5.6 | 179 ms | 714 ms |
| 96 | 6.4 | 156 ms | 625 ms |
| 108 | 7.2 | 139 ms | 556 ms |
Tips for practising piano with a metronome
- For pieces that need rubato, click beats 2, 3 and 4 until they are muted, leaving the click on beat 1 only: the bar lines stay honest while you shape the phrase inside the bar.
- Practise pedalling with the click: release exactly on the beat and press again just after it (legato pedalling), so harmonies change cleanly.
- For waltzes and minuets, set 3 beats per bar so the strong click lines up with the bass note on beat 1.
- If the score gives the mark for a half note (for example half note = 72), set the beat note value to 2 and enter 72, or set 144 quarter notes.
Open the metronome at a fixed tempo: 60 BPM, 70 BPM, 90 BPM, 110 BPM. New to the click? Start with how to use a metronome, then how to practise with one.
Metronomes for other instruments
- Guitar metronomeSet up for guitar practice
- Drum metronomeSet up for drummers
- Violin metronomeSet up for violin practice
- Running cadence metronomeSteps per minute for runners, 150–190
FAQ
What tempo should I practise Hanon exercises at?
Hanon's instruction is to start at M.M. 60 and gradually increase the speed up to 108, which is what the double mark "60 to 108" above each exercise means. This page starts at 60 BPM with sixteenth-note subdivisions; the step-up table adds 4 BPM every second day and reaches 108 on day 25.
Should I practise piano scales with a metronome?
Yes. Evenness is the main thing scales train, and an uneven thumb crossing shows up immediately against sub-clicks. Play eighths first, then sixteenths at the same BPM, hands separately and then together.
What does M.M. mean in piano music?
M.M. stands for Mälzel's Metronome, after Johann Nepomuk Mälzel, who marketed the mechanical metronome in the early 19th century. "M.M. ♩ = 60" means 60 quarter-note beats per minute, the same as 60 BPM here.
Should I play a whole piece with the metronome?
Use it to learn and check a piece, not to perform it. Once notes and rhythm are secure, leave the click on beat 1 only or turn it off, and check the tempo again from time to time so expressive slowing does not become a habit.