How many bars is a three-minute song?

At 120 BPM in 4/4, three minutes is 90 bars. The calculator works both directions, so you can start from a target duration and get the bar count, or start from an arrangement and get the running time.

Why plan an arrangement in bars?

Because sections are written in bars, not seconds. Knowing that a 16-bar chorus is 32 seconds at your tempo makes it obvious whether an arrangement will land near a target length before you produce it.

Do playlists and radio have length requirements?

There is no universal rule, and anyone quoting one is guessing. What is true is that a target length constrains your section count, and that is exactly what this converts.

What if my track changes tempo?

Calculate each tempo section separately and add the durations. A single BPM figure cannot describe a track with a tempo change.

Free tool

Song Length Calculator

Turn an arrangement in bars into a running time, or a target length into the bar count you have to work with.

Calculated locally. No files, no upload, no account.

Bars to duration

BPM

Beats per bar

Bars

Running time

3:12

Minutes:seconds

Seconds

192

Target length to bars

Target length (minutes)

Uses the tempo and time signature on the left.

Bars available

At this tempo

Beats

360

Round down when planning: a 93-bar budget is easier to fill with six 16-bar sections minus a short intro than to stretch.

Section lengths

Typical section sizes at your tempo.

Section length in bars and seconds
Section	Bars	Length
Intro	8	0:16
Verse	16	0:32
Pre-chorus	8	0:16
Chorus	16	0:32
Bridge / breakdown	16	0:32
Outro	8	0:16

Detail

How this works

A bar lasts beats per bar × 60 / BPM seconds. Everything else follows from that, in both directions: multiply by the bar count for a duration, or divide a duration by it for a bar count.

The practical use is arrangement planning. If you want a track around three minutes at 124 BPM in 4/4, you have roughly 93 bars — which is about six 16-bar sections. Deciding that before you produce saves cutting a section you already finished.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

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