What BPM is phonk?
Phonk is 130-160 BPM, and 140 is a fair single number. It is felt at half that - 70 BPM - because the snare only lands on beat 3, so the written tempo is double the pulse you nod to. The machine above is playing phonk at 140 BPM - press Space to hear it, then move the tempo and listen for where it stops sounding like phonk.
Why phonk lives at 130-160 BPM
Phonk runs 130-160 BPM and splits in two. The Memphis-derived style - chopped vocals, cowbell melodies, a distorted 808 - sits at 130-145 with the snare on beat 3, so it is felt at 65-72 like trap. Drift phonk, the version that took over from around 2020, pushes to 150-165 and often stops waiting for beat 3, so the snare falls on 2 and 4 at speed and the whole thing drives instead of lurching. Both call themselves phonk; they are separated by twenty beats a minute and a snare.
The cowbell decides the tempo more than the drums do. A phonk hook is a four-or-five-note cowbell phrase repeated every bar, and at 140 that phrase has room to breathe between 808 hits; at 160 it becomes a run. The kit on this page is at 140 with a half-time pattern. Push it to 155 and move the snare from beat 3 to beats 2 and 4, and you have crossed to the drift side.
140 BPM in milliseconds
For setting delay times, checking a sample's length, or programming by ear: at 140 BPM one bar of 4/4 is 1,714 ms and a 16th note is 107 ms.
| At 140 BPM | Length | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| One bar (4/4) | 1,714 ms | 0.58 Hz |
| Quarter note (one beat) | 429 ms | 2.33 Hz |
| Dotted 8th | 321 ms | 3.11 Hz |
| 8th note | 214 ms | 4.67 Hz |
| 8th-note triplet | 143 ms | 7.00 Hz |
| 16th note | 107 ms | 9.33 Hz |
| 32nd note | 54 ms | 18.67 Hz |
The genres either side
Tempo windows overlap, and what separates neighbours is usually swing and where the snare falls rather than the number itself. Phonk with its nearest neighbours by tempo:
| Genre | BPM | Typical | Felt pulse | Swing | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Amen Break | 136-137 | 136 | as written | 0-8 | Breaks |
| Trap | 130-150 | 140 | 65-75 (half-time) | 0 | Hip hop |
| Phonk | 130-160 | 140 | 65-80 (half-time) | 0 | Hip hop |
| Drill | 138-145 | 140 | 69-72 (half-time) | 0 | Hip hop |
| Dubstep | 138-142 | 140 | 69-71 (half-time) | 0 | Bass |
Frequently asked
Is phonk half-time?
Memphis-style phonk is: the snare waits for beat 3, so 140 feels like 70. Drift phonk usually is not - the snare lands on 2 and 4 at 150-165 and the felt tempo is the written one.
What BPM is drift phonk?
150-165, most of it around 155-160. It is the fast end of the range and is the reason the phonk window is so wide.
Can I make phonk at a different tempo?
Yes, and the edges of the window are where the interesting records live. The point of the range is that inside it a listener hears phonk before they hear anything else; outside it, the same drum pattern reads as a neighbouring style. Drag the tempo on this page to hear the crossover happen.
Go deeper
Every genre's tempo
- What BPM is lo-fi hip hop?70-85 BPM
- What BPM is hip hop?80-100 BPM
- What BPM is boom bap?88-94 BPM
- What BPM is reggaeton?88-100 BPM
- What BPM is funk?95-115 BPM
- What BPM is afrobeats?100-115 BPM
- What BPM is amapiano?110-115 BPM
- What BPM is disco?110-125 BPM
- What BPM is afro house?118-126 BPM
- What BPM is house?120-128 BPM
- What BPM is UK garage?130-135 BPM
- What BPM is techno?128-140 BPM
- What BPM is the Amen break?136-137 BPM
- What BPM is trap?130-150 BPM · half-time
- What BPM is drill?138-145 BPM · half-time
- What BPM is dubstep?138-142 BPM · half-time
- What BPM is jungle?160-175 BPM
- What BPM is drum and bass?170-176 BPM
- What BPM is neurofunk?172-176 BPM
BAP Studio is inspired by classic 16-pad sampler and drum-machine workflows. It is an independent project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Akai Professional, Roland, or any other manufacturer.
Made by Max Berggren.