Free Drum Machine: Make Beats Online in Seconds

You can make a drum beat in under 60 seconds — no software to install, no account to create, no musical experience required. Our free Drum Machine gives you a 16-step sequencer with multiple drum sounds, 10 genre presets to start from, WAV export, and shareable links. Open it up, click some pads, and you’re making music.

Last updated: April 2026

Make a Hip-Hop Beat in 60 Seconds

Here’s how to create a basic hip-hop beat from scratch, step by step:

1. Open the Drum Machine. You’ll see a grid with drum sounds on the left and 16 steps across the top.
2. Add the kick drum. Click steps 1, 5, 9, and 11 on the Kick row. This creates the classic boom-bap kick pattern.
3. Add the snare. Click steps 5 and 13 on the Snare row. Snare on beats 2 and 4 is the foundation of almost every hip-hop beat.
4. Add hi-hats. Click every other step (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15) on the Hi-Hat row for eighth notes. For more bounce, add a few extra hats on the off-steps.
5. Hit play. Set the BPM to around 85–95 (classic hip-hop tempo) and press play. You now have a beat.

That’s a complete, usable hip-hop drum pattern in five clicks per row. From here you can add complexity — an open hi-hat on step 9, a kick on step 7 for syncopation, some percussion for texture. But even the basic version sounds legit.

The 10 Genre Presets

Don’t want to start from scratch? The drum machine includes 10 preset patterns that give you a genre-authentic starting point. Load one up, tweak it to taste, and you’re off:

• Hip-Hop: Boom-bap pattern with punchy kicks and snappy snares at 90 BPM.
• Trap: Rolling hi-hats, sparse 808 kicks, and hard-hitting snares at 140 BPM.
• House: Four-on-the-floor kick, off-beat hi-hats, and claps at 124 BPM.
• Techno: Driving kick, metallic hi-hats, and sparse percussion at 130 BPM.
• Rock: Standard kick-snare-hat pattern with crash accents at 120 BPM.
• Drum & Bass: Breakbeat-style kick and snare with fast hi-hats at 170 BPM.
• Reggaeton: The iconic “dembow” rhythm at 95 BPM.
• Jazz: Swing pattern with ride cymbal and brush-style snare at 110 BPM.
• Lo-Fi: Laid-back, slightly swung pattern at 80 BPM. Pairs perfectly with the Lo-Fi Music Generator.
• Afrobeat: Complex polyrhythmic pattern with layered percussion at 105 BPM.

Each preset sets the BPM and the full grid pattern. Use them as-is, or modify individual steps to make the pattern your own.

Beginner Drum Patterns by Genre

If you want to build patterns from scratch and understand how different genres work, here are the core patterns. Each row shows which of the 16 steps to activate (X = active, · = empty):

Rock (120 BPM):

• Kick:  X · · · X · · · X · · · X · · ·
• Snare: · · · · X · · · · · · · X · · ·
• Hi-Hat: X · X · X · X · X · X · X · X ·

Hip-Hop (90 BPM):

• Kick:  X · · · · · X · X · X · · · · ·
• Snare: · · · · X · · · · · · · X · · ·
• Hi-Hat: X · X · X · X · X · X · X · X ·

House (124 BPM):

• Kick:  X · · · X · · · X · · · X · · ·
• Clap:  · · · · X · · · · · · · X · · ·
• Hi-Hat: · · X · · · X · · · X · · · X ·

Trap (140 BPM):

• Kick:  X · · · · · · X · · X · · · · ·
• Snare: · · · · X · · · · · · · X · · ·
• Hi-Hat: X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

Notice the pattern: trap uses constant hi-hats (16th notes) for that signature rolling sound, while rock and hip-hop use eighth-note hats. House puts the hi-hat on off-beats for that bouncy groove.

Export and Share Your Beats

The drum machine isn’t just for playing around — you can actually use what you create:

WAV Export: Download your pattern as a high-quality WAV file. Import it into any DAW (Ableton, FL Studio, Logic, GarageBand) as a drum loop. The WAV renders at full quality with no compression artifacts.

Share via Link: Generate a shareable link that encodes your exact pattern, BPM, and sound selections. Send it to a friend or collaborator and they’ll see your exact beat when they open it. No account needed on either end.

These features turn the drum machine from a toy into a legitimate production tool. Sketch a beat in your browser, export it, and build a full track around it in your DAW.

Pair It With Other Tools

The drum machine works great alongside our other music tools:

• Add melody. Open the Online Piano and play chords or melodies over your drum pattern. Between the two tools you have a complete basic arrangement.
• Visualize it. Route your audio through the Music Visualizer for real-time animated graphics. Great for social media clips or just a cool visual experience while you create.
• Background music. If you want something to play in the background while you work, the Lo-Fi Music Generator creates endless ambient beats. The drum machine is for when you want to build something specific; the lo-fi generator is for when you just want vibes.
• Focus sounds. For a completely different audio experience, the Binaural Beats Generator creates tones designed for focus and relaxation.

Start Making Beats

The Drum Machine is free, instant, and runs entirely in your browser. Load a preset, click some pads, adjust the BPM, and you’re producing. Export your creation as WAV or share it with a link. No signup, no download, no limits on how many patterns you can create.