Quick answer: a vocal range chart shows the notes each voice type usually sings. From highest to lowest: soprano C4–C6 (262–1,047 Hz), mezzo-soprano A3–A5, contralto F3–F5, countertenor G3–E5, tenor C3–C5, baritone A2–A4 and bass E2–E4 (82–330 Hz). The ranges overlap, so tone and comfort decide your voice type, not one single note.
Not sure where your own voice sits? Take the free vocal range test first: it measures your lowest and highest notes in about two minutes. Then find your notes on the chart below and see which bar they fit best.
Vocal Range Chart: Every Voice Type on One Note Axis
Vocal range chart: voice types from highest to lowest (C2 to C7)
Violet = female voices, blue = male voices. Grid lines mark every C: C2 = 65 Hz, C3 = 131 Hz, C4 = 262 Hz, C5 = 523 Hz, C6 = 1,047 Hz, C7 = 2,093 Hz. C4 is middle C.
Each bar runs from the lowest to the highest note that voice type usually sings with a full, usable tone. Read the chart from left (low) to right (high): the further right a bar reaches, the higher the voice. Notice how much the bars overlap around middle C (C4): a tenor and a contralto share more than an octave of notes, which is why a range on its own never settles a voice type.
The notes use scientific pitch notation: a letter for the note and a number for the octave. The octave number goes up at every C, so B3 is followed by C4. Each step of one octave doubles the frequency, which is why C3 is 131 Hz, C4 is 262 Hz and C5 is 523 Hz.
Vocal Range Chart Table: Highest to Lowest
| Voice type | Typical range | Frequency | Span | Usually |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coloratura soprano | C4 – F6 | 262–1,397 Hz | 2 oct + 5 | Light, agile top of the soprano voice |
| Soprano | C4 – C6 | 262–1,047 Hz | 2 oct | Highest common female voice |
| Mezzo-soprano | A3 – A5 | 220–880 Hz | 2 oct | Middle female voice, the most common |
| Contralto (alto) | F3 – F5 | 175–698 Hz | 2 oct | Lowest female voice, rare as a true contralto |
| Countertenor | G3 – E5 | 196–659 Hz | 1 oct + 9 | Male voice singing in the alto range, mostly in head voice |
| Tenor | C3 – C5 | 131–523 Hz | 2 oct | Highest common male voice |
| Baritone | A2 – A4 | 110–440 Hz | 2 oct | Middle male voice, the most common |
| Bass | E2 – E4 | 82–330 Hz | 2 oct | Lowest male voice |
The order of vocal ranges from highest to lowest is therefore: soprano, mezzo-soprano, contralto (alto), countertenor, tenor, baritone and bass. “Alto” is the choir name for the lower female part; as a solo voice type the lowest female voice is called contralto. For the tone colour, sub-types (lyric, dramatic, spinto) and break points of each voice, see the full guide to the types of vocal ranges.
Female Vocal Range Chart
Female vocal range chart (C3 to C7)
Violet = female voices, blue = male voices. Grid lines mark every C: C3 = 131 Hz, C4 = 262 Hz, C5 = 523 Hz, C6 = 1,047 Hz, C7 = 2,093 Hz. C4 is middle C.
Female voices sit roughly one octave above male voices of the same kind. The soprano is the brightest and highest, usually C4–C6, with coloratura sopranos adding agile notes up to around F6. The mezzo-soprano (A3–A5) is the most common female voice: darker than a soprano, with a strong middle. The contralto (F3–F5) is the lowest and rarest; many women who sing alto in a choir are really mezzos. For averages and how untrained women compare, read the average female vocal range.
Male Vocal Range Chart
Male vocal range chart (C2 to C6)
Violet = female voices, blue = male voices. Grid lines mark every C: C2 = 65 Hz, C3 = 131 Hz, C4 = 262 Hz, C5 = 523 Hz, C6 = 1,047 Hz. C4 is middle C.
The baritone (A2–A4) is the most common male voice. The tenor (C3–C5) is the high male voice of pop, rock and opera; C5 is the famous tenor “high C”. The bass (E2–E4) is the lowest, with a dark, heavy tone. The countertenor is a male singer who uses a developed head voice (falsetto) to sing in the alto range, common in early music. How most men compare, with untrained averages, is covered in the average vocal range for men.
Vocal Range Chart in Hz (Frequency)
If you work with a pitch detector or an audio course, you often need the range in hertz. These are the notes at the edges of the chart:
| Note | Frequency | Where it sits on the chart |
|---|---|---|
| E2 | 82.41 Hz | Bottom of the bass range |
| A2 | 110.00 Hz | Bottom of the baritone range |
| C3 | 130.81 Hz | Bottom of the tenor range |
| F3 | 174.61 Hz | Bottom of the contralto range |
| A3 | 220.00 Hz | Bottom of the mezzo-soprano range |
| C4 (middle C) | 261.63 Hz | Bottom of the soprano range; shared by every voice |
| E4 | 329.63 Hz | Top of the bass range |
| A4 | 440.00 Hz | Top of the baritone range; tuning reference |
| C5 | 523.25 Hz | Top of the tenor range (tenor high C) |
| E5 | 659.26 Hz | Top of the countertenor range |
| F5 | 698.46 Hz | Top of the contralto range |
| A5 | 880.00 Hz | Top of the mezzo-soprano range |
| C6 | 1,046.50 Hz | Top of the soprano range (soprano high C) |
| F6 | 1,396.91 Hz | Top of the coloratura range |
To see the frequency you are singing right now, use the singing note detector, and for every note from C0 to B8 use the complete musical note frequency chart. Speaking voices sit much lower than singing ranges: adult male speech is commonly given as about 85–180 Hz and adult female speech about 165–255 Hz. The full span of the voice in hertz, from the lowest growl to whistle notes, is explained in human vocal range.
Worked example: which voice can sing a note with a wavelength of 0.68 m?
A common physics exercise gives a chart in hertz (bass 60–300 Hz, baritone 90–450 Hz, tenor 120–470 Hz, contralto 160–650 Hz, soprano 215–1,200 Hz) and asks which voices can produce a sound travelling at 343 m/s with a wavelength of 0.68 m. Frequency = speed ÷ wavelength = 343 ÷ 0.68 ≈ 504 Hz, a note between B4 (494 Hz) and C5 (523 Hz). Only two ranges in that chart include 504 Hz: contralto and soprano. Bass, baritone and tenor all stop below 504 Hz in that exercise.
Vocal Registers Chart: Where Each Voice Changes Gear
A range chart shows how far a voice goes; a register chart shows how the voice produces those notes. Most singers move through chest voice (low, speech-like), a middle or mixed voice, and head voice (light, high). Some high voices also have a whistle register, usually above about C6. The points where the voice shifts are called the passaggi (singular passaggio). Classical voice teachers commonly cite approximate figures like these:
| Voice type | First passaggio (approx.) | Second passaggio (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Soprano | E♭4 | F♯5 |
| Mezzo-soprano | E4 | E5 |
| Contralto | G4 | D5 |
| Tenor | D4 | G4 |
| Baritone | B3 | E4 |
| Bass | A3 | D4 |
Where your passaggi fall is one of the strongest clues to your voice type: two singers with the same range can have their breaks in different places. A baritone who can reach C5 still shifts register near E4, while a tenor carries full voice higher before the second break.
How to Use the Chart to Find Your Voice Type
- Warm up for 5 minutes with humming, lip trills and gentle sirens.
- Find your lowest note: slide down slowly and stop where the tone turns breathy or unstable. Vocal fry does not count.
- Find your highest note: slide up without strain and stop before the voice cracks or squeezes.
- Write your range, for example G2–D5, and mark it on the chart above.
- Check your comfortable zone: the notes you can sing for a whole song. The bar whose middle matches that zone is your likely voice type.
Common mistakes: counting falsetto squeaks or fry as usable range, testing with a cold voice, and choosing a label from one extreme note. The step-by-step guide what is my vocal range explains how to read your result, tessitura included.
Beyond the Chart: The Extremes
The chart shows typical trained ranges, not records. Below E2 you reach basso profundo and oktavist territory, described in the lowest vocal range. Above F6 lies the whistle register used by a few pop and opera singers, covered in the highest vocal range. Singers credited with five to seven octaves are listed in 7-octave vocal range singers; those spans include fry and whistle notes, far beyond any single bar on this chart.
More Vocal Range Guides
- Vocal Range Notes
The lowest and highest notes of each voice type, note by note, and whether a note is high or low.
- SATB Vocal Ranges
What SATB means and the soprano, alto, tenor and bass ranges used in choirs.
- Vocal Range Guide
Every vocal range page, test and exercise in one place.
Vocal Range Chart FAQ
What is the most common vocal range?
Baritone for men and mezzo-soprano for women. Most untrained adults can sing about one and a half to two octaves comfortably.
What is the rarest vocal range?
The true contralto among women and the true (low) bass among men are usually described as the rarest classical voice types. Countertenors are rare too, but that is a trained technique more than a natural voice type.
What are the vocal ranges from highest to lowest?
Soprano, mezzo-soprano, contralto (alto), countertenor, tenor, baritone and bass. In a choir the same order is shortened to soprano, alto, tenor, bass.
Is vocal range the same as voice type?
No. Range is the notes you can reach. Voice type also depends on your comfortable zone (tessitura), where your register breaks sit and the colour of your tone.
Can your vocal range change?
Yes. Training usually adds a few notes, mostly at the top, and age, health and daily condition move your edges by a note or two. Re-test every month or two.
Are online vocal range tests accurate?
They measure the notes you sing accurately with a decent microphone and a quiet room. The result is only as good as the notes you give them, so warm up and count only clear, sustained tones.