What BPM is rock?
The most common tempo for rock is 120 to 130 BPM. Across 130,686 rock songs with verified tempo in the TempoTunes library, the median is 119 BPM and half of all songs fall between 98 and 136 BPM.
- Most common
- 120 to 130BPM
- Median
- 119BPM
- Songs
- 130,686verified tempo
Rock songs across the tempo scale
Songs per 10 BPM. Orange marks the busiest stretch.
Rock is spread wide. Even its busiest stretch, 120 to 130 BPM, holds only 17% of the songs, so you can find rock at almost any pace.
One caution when you read any tempo chart: the same groove can be counted at half or double time, so a rock song at 119 BPM can also read as 60 BPM. That is why many genres show a second, smaller hump.
The busiest rock tempos
Chill rock: 60 to 90 BPM
18,295 rock songs at this pace: wind-downs, slow burns, and late-night listening.
Holier Than Thou
Metallica
86 BPM (1991)
Yesterdays
Guns N' Roses
88 BPM (1991)
Let You Fade
LINKIN PARK
82 BPM (2024)
Nervous Shakedown
AC/DC
84 BPM (2000)
Piggies
The Beatles
86 BPM (1968)
Lonely Day
System Of A Down
75 BPM
Drift Away
The Rolling Stones
78 BPM (1981)
The Wind Cries Mary
Jimi Hendrix
75 BPM (2010)
Steady rock: 90 to 120 BPM
47,099 rock songs at this pace: head-nod grooves and walking pace.
Plaster 2
LINKIN PARK
98 BPM (2003)
Rocker
AC/DC
119 BPM (2009)
Rocket Queen
Guns N' Roses
114 BPM (2018)
Shake Your Body
Michael Jackson & The Jacksons
117 BPM (2009)
Breadfan
Metallica
101 BPM (1988)
Blue Moon
The Beatles
101 BPM (1968)
Sittin’ on a Fence
The Rolling Stones
101 BPM (2002)
B.Y.O.B.
System Of A Down
101 BPM
Drive rock: 120 to 150 BPM
50,422 rock songs at this pace: dance-floor and workout energy.
Rebellion
LINKIN PARK
130 BPM
Down on the Borderline
AC/DC
122 BPM (2002)
Love You To
The Beatles
129 BPM (1966)
The Struggle Within
Metallica
147 BPM (1991)
Civil War
Guns N' Roses
140 BPM
Let It Bleed
The Rolling Stones
129 BPM (1969)
Breathe
Pink Floyd
129 BPM (1973)
Adam's Apple
Aerosmith
129 BPM
Fast rock: 150 to 200 BPM
14,870 rock songs at this pace: running cadence and full-sprint songs.
A.06
LINKIN PARK
150 BPM (2001)
Anything Goes
Guns N' Roses
153 BPM (1987)
Room of Mirrors
Metallica
158 BPM (2023)
Besame Mucho
The Beatles
161 BPM (1995)
Kicked in the Teeth
AC/DC
164 BPM (1978)
Run Like Hell
Pink Floyd
161 BPM (1987)
Dancing In the Light
The Rolling Stones
165 BPM (2010)
Ship of Fools
The Doors
167 BPM (1970)
Other genres by BPM
Build a rock playlist at your pace in seconds
Set the tempo, pick genres and artists, and TempoTunes builds the playlist from 2 million tracks with verified BPM. Save it to Apple Music, Tidal, or YouTube Music (Spotify once we reach 250k monthly listeners). Playlists that match your Pace.