85 BPM metronome
Press Play to hear a steady click at 85 BPM, or open a drum groove below and feel it in half time. One beat lasts 706 ms, so 85 beats fill one minute. 85 BPM falls within Andante (at a walking pace, roughly 76–108 BPM).
How long is one beat at 85 BPM?
Divide 60,000 by the tempo: 60,000 ÷ 85 = 706 ms per beat. Every other note value follows from that. Producers often set a delay to the dotted eighth or eighth note to keep echoes in time with the track.
| Note value | Length |
|---|---|
| Whole note (4 beats) | 2,824 ms |
| Half note | 1,412 ms |
| Quarter note (1 beat) | 706 ms |
| Dotted eighth | 529 ms |
| Eighth note | 353 ms |
| Eighth-note triplet | 235 ms |
| Sixteenth note | 176 ms |
85 BPM in bars and phrases
A bar of 4/4 at 85 BPM lasts 2.82 seconds. Eight bars take 22.6 seconds, and a 32-bar form takes 90.4 seconds. One minute holds 85 beats, or 21.25 bars of 4/4.
How fast are subdivisions at 85 BPM?
Eighth notes at 85 BPM run at 2.83 notes per second, triplets at 4.25 and sixteenth notes at 5.67. Switch on the subdivision you are practising so the click marks every note, then return to quarter notes to check that you keep the spacing on your own.
What tempo marking is 85 BPM?
85 BPM falls within Andante (at a walking pace, roughly 76–108 BPM). Treat these ranges as conventions rather than rules: editions and metronome makers print slightly different numbers, and an Italian marking describes character as well as speed.
Half time and double time
Counted in half time, 85 BPM feels like 43 BPM; counted in double time it feels like 170 BPM. When you tap along with a recording and get either number, both describe the same music; choose the pulse that gives you sensible bars and accents.
Practising at 85 BPM
This is a comfortable range for learning new material. Play the whole passage at 85 BPM without stopping before you raise the tempo, and loop any bar that breaks the pulse rather than slowing everything down. Build speed can then add a few BPM every few bars once the passage is controlled.
Drum grooves for 85 BPM
None of the built-in grooves is written this slowly, but a groove played at 170 BPM puts every second beat on a 85 BPM pulse. Try 5/4 Jazz (3+2) (170), Rosanna Shuffle (171) and Drum & Bass Break (174) and count only every second beat. The links below open them at 170 BPM.