The web’s most comprehensive list of legit sites and apps to answer the question, “What song is this?”

Got a tune stuck in your head but can’t remember what it’s called or who made it? At a bar when a catchy song pops on but there are no lyrics for you to Google? Luckily, there are plenty of ways to find the name of song—even if you can’t quickly punch the chorus into a search engine. In this article, we’ll cover all of the reputable resources you can use to get the info you want so you can throw a new track on your favorite Spotify playlist.

Things You Should Know

  • Use Shazam to identify songs that are playing in the background.
  • Hum the tune to Google or Midomi and they’ll search the web to find potential matches.
  • Try describing it on reddit or WatZatSong if an app or search engine can’t help you find the song, and someone will help you out.
1

Shazam

  1. Shazam is a universal option that works on any platform or phone. If the song is actively playing right now, pull your phone out and quickly download Shazam. Tap the button in the middle of the app and hold the phone up near the speaker if it’s nearby. Shazam will automatically identify the song and artist for you.[1]
    • Shazam is totally free and it’s available for both iOS and Android.
    • Soundhound used to be another alternative to Shazam, but reviews for the app from the past year indicate that it’s not a great option anymore and the company has moved on to other ventures.[2]
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7

WatZatSong

  1. WatZatSong is a great option if you want human help. If algorithms and robots aren’t able to automatically identify the song, that doesn’t mean the info doesn’t exist—the file just may be corrupted or it may be too loud in the room for something like Shazam. Post a recording of the song (or of you humming the tune) and post it on WatZatSong. Someone may help you out![8]
    • People on WatZatSong get a kick out of trying to figure out where obscure songs come from.
    • If you don’t want to upload anything, try posting on reddit’s r/NameThatSong board. Describe as much as you can about the tune and wait for the suggestions to roll in.
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8

Musipedia

  1. If you know any of the notes, Musipedia is like magic. This is a really neat tool—you open a digital piano and then you press the keys with your mouse. Based on the order of the notes, Musipedia will search through sheet music records and audio logs to identify songs that use those notes.[9]
    • This website is pretty old and buggy, so try to be patient.
    • If you get too many results to go through and you know how the song starts, enter the notes at the start of the song and select the option to only scan beginnings.
    • The more notes you enter, the more accurate the results will be. Don’t worry if a few of the notes are incorrect—Musipedia will generally figure it out.

Community Q&A

  • Question
    I have tried to hum a song but I can´t get the song right. They are singing something like this "It´s gonna be fine by me it´s gonna be fine by you," with a woman singing. Any ideas?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    Is it "It's Gonna Be Fine" by Freedonia? That seems like a likely option given your description.
  • Question
    What is the hymn with the words "We are one in the lord marching one by one?"
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    There don't appear to be any songs or hymns with those lyrics specifically in that order. Are you thinking of "When the Saints Go Marching In" or "The Battle Hymn of the Republic?" Those both seem like likely options that have similar lyrics to what you've mentioned.
  • Question
    I know the name and start of a song, but can't find it anywhere. What should I do?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    Type the lyrics into Google (or any search engine) and it should pop up. Also, SoundHound and Shazam are apps that can help with this.
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About This Article

Eric McClure
Co-authored by:
wikiHow Staff Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Eric McClure. Eric McClure is an editing fellow at wikiHow where he has been editing, researching, and creating content since 2019. A former educator and poet, his work has appeared in Carcinogenic Poetry, Shot Glass Journal, Prairie Margins, and The Rusty Nail. His digital chapbook, The Internet, was also published in TL;DR Magazine. He was the winner of the Paul Carroll award for outstanding achievement in creative writing in 2014, and he was a featured reader at the Poetry Foundation’s Open Door Reading Series in 2015. Eric holds a BA in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and an MEd in secondary education from DePaul University. This article has been viewed 264,581 times.
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Co-authors: 9
Updated: February 28, 2023
Views: 264,581
Categories: Featured Articles | Songs
Article SummaryX

To find a song without lyrics, try using a mobile app or website to track down your tune. For example, use the mobile app Soundhound if you don’t have a recording of the song but are able to hum or sing it. If you have an Andriod phone with the Google app installed, initiate the app by saying “Okay Google” and then asking “What song is this?” while the song plays into your phone. Alternatively, if you have an iPhone, say “Hey Siri” and ask about the song that's playing. You can also use websites like Midomi to find your song if you can play it into your computer’s microphone. If you don’t have access to the song, go to Musipedia and use their virtual keyboard or whistle the tune into your microphone to identify the song. To learn how to ask people online to help you identify a song, keep reading!

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