Tap any key to hear it and see its signature. Tap a key at the bottom twice for its other spelling.
C major
No sharps or flats
Major scale
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- A
- B
- C
Chords in C major
Tap a chord to hear it. The I, IV and V chords are the key's three major chords.
Related keys
What the circle of fifths is
The circle of fifths puts the 12 major keys around a circle like the hours on a clock. C major sits at the top. Each step clockwise goes up a perfect fifth, seven half steps on the piano: C, G, D, A, E, B, then F♯ at the bottom. Keep going and the fifths climb through D♭, A♭, E♭, B♭ and F, back to C.
The inner ring holds the minor keys. Each one sits next to the major key that has the same key signature, its relative major. Together the two rings are a map of all 24 major and minor keys: their key signatures, which keys are close to each other, and which chords belong together.
How to read the circle of fifths
- Clockwise adds a sharp. C major has no sharps or flats, G major has one sharp (F♯), D major two (F♯ C♯), A major three, E major four, B major five, F♯ major six and C♯ major seven.
- Counterclockwise adds a flat. F major has one flat (B♭), B♭ major two (B♭ E♭), E♭ major three, A♭ major four, D♭ major five, G♭ major six and C♭ major seven.
- Neighbours differ by one note. G major is C major with F♯ instead of F. Keys next to each other share six of their seven notes, so music moves easily between them.
- The bottom has two names. Where the sharp side meets the flat side, B and C♭, F♯ and G♭, and D♭ and C♯ are the same keys on the piano, written two ways. They are called enharmonic keys.
The order of sharps and flats
Sharps and flats in a key signature always appear in the same order, and the order is the circle of fifths itself.
- Sharps: F C G D A E B. Remember it as Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle. A key with three sharps has the first three: F♯, C♯ and G♯.
- Flats: B E A D G C F. The same letters backwards: Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father. A key with two flats has B♭ and E♭.
To name a major key from its signature: with sharps, go a half step up from the last sharp (the last of two sharps is C♯, so the key is D major). With flats, the second to last flat is the key (of B♭, E♭ and A♭, the second to last is E♭, so the key is E♭ major). One flat is F major, and no sharps or flats is C major.
Relative minor keys
Every major key shares its key signature with one minor key, its relative minor. The relative minor starts on the sixth note of the major scale, three half steps below the major tonic: A minor for C major, E minor for G major, D minor for F major. On the wheel above, each relative minor sits on the inner ring next to its major key.
Music in a minor key often raises the seventh note to make a stronger pull back home. In A minor that note is G♯. It is written as an accidental in the music, not in the key signature, which is why A minor still has no sharps or flats.
A minor key with the same tonic as a major key is its parallel minor, and it sits three places counterclockwise: C major has no flats, C minor has three, the same as E♭ major.
How to use the circle of fifths at the piano
- Read key signatures before you play. Find the key on the circle, say its sharps or flats out loud, and you know which black keys the piece uses before the first note.
- Find the chords that go together. In any major key, the six most used chords sit side by side: the key and its two neighbours (I, IV and V) on the outer ring, and the three minor chords inside them (vi, ii and iii). In C major that is C, F and G with Am, Dm and Em. Tap a key above to see them light up.
- Start with I, IV and V. These are the three major chords of a key, enough to accompany a lot of folk songs, blues and rock. In G major they are G, C and D.
- Practise scales around the circle. After C major, the scales of G, D, A, E and B major each add one sharp, and F, B♭, E♭ and A♭ major each add one flat. Every new scale changes just one note from the last, so your hands build on what they already know. See every scale with its fingering on the piano scales page.
- Expect pieces to move next door. A piece in C major often moves to G major (its V) or to A minor (its relative minor) and comes back. Knowing the neighbours tells you which new sharps or flats to expect.
Common progressions, shown in C major:
| Numerals | In C major |
|---|---|
| I V vi IV | C G Am FThe four-chord loop behind many pop songs. |
| I vi IV V | C Am F GThe doo-wop progression of the 1950s. |
| ii V I | Dm G CThe core cadence of jazz standards. |
| vi ii V I | Am Dm G CEach chord a fifth below the last: a walk counterclockwise. |
Build any of these chords on the keyboard with the piano chords tool.
Key signature chart
All 15 major key signatures, with the relative minor that shares each one.
| Major key | Relative minor | Key signature |
|---|---|---|
| C major | A minor | No sharps or flats |
| G major | E minor | 1 sharpF♯ |
| D major | B minor | 2 sharpsF♯ C♯ |
| A major | F♯ minor | 3 sharpsF♯ C♯ G♯ |
| E major | C♯ minor | 4 sharpsF♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ |
| B major | G♯ minor | 5 sharpsF♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ |
| F♯ major | D♯ minor | 6 sharpsF♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯ |
| C♯ major | A♯ minor | 7 sharpsF♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯ B♯ |
| F major | D minor | 1 flatB♭ |
| B♭ major | G minor | 2 flatsB♭ E♭ |
| E♭ major | C minor | 3 flatsB♭ E♭ A♭ |
| A♭ major | F minor | 4 flatsB♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ |
| D♭ major | B♭ minor | 5 flatsB♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ |
| G♭ major | E♭ minor | 6 flatsB♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭ |
| C♭ major | A♭ minor | 7 flatsB♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭ F♭ |
Keep practising
Put key signatures to work in real music
MasterPiano gives you new music to read at your level and listens as you play, through a MIDI keyboard or your device's microphone, marking each note right or wrong.
Start freeQuestions
What is the circle of fifths?
The circle of fifths is a diagram of the 12 major keys, each a perfect fifth above the one before it. Going clockwise from C at the top, each key adds one sharp to its key signature. Going counterclockwise, each key adds one flat. The inner ring shows the relative minor key that shares each signature.
How do you memorize the circle of fifths?
Learn the order of sharps with the phrase Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle (F C G D A E B), and read it backwards for the flats: Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father. The sharp keys follow the same order from G: G, D, A, E, B, F sharp, C sharp. The flat keys run F, B flat, E flat, A flat, D flat, G flat, C flat. A few short rounds of the key signature quiz each day help the order stick.
How do I find the key from a key signature?
With sharps, the major key is a half step above the last sharp: two sharps end on C sharp, so the key is D major. With flats, the major key is the second to last flat: three flats are B flat, E flat and A flat, so the key is E flat major. One flat is F major, and no sharps or flats is C major. The relative minor is three half steps below the major key.
Why is it called the circle of fifths?
Each step clockwise moves up a perfect fifth, seven half steps: C to G, G to D, and so on. After 12 steps you are back at C, so the keys close into a circle. Each step counterclockwise moves up a perfect fourth, which is why that direction is sometimes called the circle of fourths.
What is a relative minor key?
A relative minor key has the same key signature as a major key and starts on the sixth note of its scale, three half steps below the major key's tonic. A minor is the relative minor of C major, and neither has sharps or flats. On the circle of fifths, each relative minor sits on the inner ring next to its major key.
Can I print the circle of fifths?
Yes. Press Print chart above the wheel to print a one-page circle of fifths with every major and minor key, the key signature of each key on a staff, the order of sharps and flats, and a table of all 15 key signatures.