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The terms 33 rpm and 45 rpm refer to the speed at which a vinyl record should be played on a record player. The “rpm” stands for “revolutions per minute”. These standards were set by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the National Association of Record Manufacturers (NARM).

33 rpm is the slowest speed and it is used for full-length albums, often containing around ten tracks. The slower speed allows for more space on the record to store audio, which means more details can be captured and a full album can be released on a single record.

45 rpm, on the other hand, is the fastest speed. These records are usually much smaller and are known as “singles”. They only hold one or two tracks and are typically used for releasing new singles or for collectors. The fast speed allows for the record to be played in a shorter amount of time.