Circle of Fifths

Tap a key on the ring to see its key signature and hear its seven chords as guitar shapes.

Circle of fifths · C major

Tap a key
CIAmviGVEmiiiDBmAF♯mEC♯mBC♭G♯mA♭mF♯G♭D♯mE♭mD♭C♯B♭mA♯mA♭FmE♭CmB♭GmFIVDmiiCno ♯/♭

Outer ring: major keys. Inner ring: their relative minors. Numerals mark the selected key's chords.

C major has no sharps or flats. Chords: C Dm Em F G Am Bdim. Relative minor: A minor.

Chords in the selected key

Chords in C major · tap to hear
Reading the numbers

1 home chord of the key

35 on the 3rd and 5th

2 other degrees

Now sounding

Notes
C D E F G A B
Key signature
no sharps or flats
Relative minor
A minor
Neighbours
F major (IV) · G major (V)

How to read the circle of fifths

  • Clockwise = a fifth up, one sharp more. C has no sharps, G has 1 (F♯), D has 2, and so on to C♯ with 7.
  • Anticlockwise = a fourth up, one flat more. F has 1 (B♭), B♭ has 2, and so on to C♭ with 7.
  • Inner ring = relative minor. A minor uses exactly the notes of C major; every inner key shares the key signature of the major key outside it.
  • A key's chords sit together. The selected key plus one wedge either side, on both rings, gives the I, IV, V (outer) and ii, iii, vi (inner) chords. The numerals on the ring show them for the key you tap.

The order sharps are added in follows the circle too: F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯ B♯. Flats come in the reverse order: B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭ F♭.

Using the circle on guitar

The open-chord keys sit together at the top of the circle: C, G, D, A and E major and A, E and D minor all have an open shape as their home chord.

Keys on the flat side need barre chords: F major has F, Gm, B♭. Put a capo on and play the shapes of a key from the top of the circle instead: capo 3 with G shapes sounds in B♭, capo 1 with E shapes sounds in F. The capo calculator works out the fret for any key.

Neighbouring keys share six of their seven notes (C and G major differ only in F against F♯), so a key change to a neighbour sounds smooth.

DJs use the same circle with numbers instead of key names: on the Camelot wheel C major is 8B and A minor is 8A, and a step round the wheel is a step round this circle.

All 24 keys at a glance

In circle order. Chords are the seven diatonic triads, I to vii° for the major key.

Major key♯/♭Relative minorChords in the major key
C major – A minor C Dm Em F G Am Bdim
G major 1♯
F♯		 E minor G Am Bm C D Em F♯dim
D major 2♯
F♯ C♯		 B minor D Em F♯m G A Bm C♯dim
A major 3♯
F♯ C♯ G♯		 F♯ minor A Bm C♯m D E F♯m G♯dim
E major 4♯
F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯		 C♯ minor E F♯m G♯m A B C♯m D♯dim
B major 5♯
F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯		 G♯ minor B C♯m D♯m E F♯ G♯m A♯dim
F♯ major 6♯
F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯		 D♯ minor F♯ G♯m A♯m B C♯ D♯m E♯dim
D♭ major 5♭
B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭		 B♭ minor D♭ E♭m Fm G♭ A♭ B♭m Cdim
A♭ major 4♭
B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭		 F minor A♭ B♭m Cm D♭ E♭ Fm Gdim
E♭ major 3♭
B♭ E♭ A♭		 C minor E♭ Fm Gm A♭ B♭ Cm Ddim
B♭ major 2♭
B♭ E♭		 G minor B♭ Cm Dm E♭ F Gm Adim
F major 1♭
B♭		 D minor F Gm Am B♭ C Dm Edim

FAQ

Why is it called the circle of fifths?

Each step clockwise is a perfect fifth up: seven semitones, or seven frets on one string. C to G is a fifth, G to D is a fifth, and after twelve steps you are back at C.

How do I find the relative minor of a key?

It sits on the inner ring next to the major key and uses the same notes and key signature. It starts on the 6th note of the major scale, three semitones (three frets) below the major key's root: A minor for C major, E minor for G major.

Which chords go together in a key?

The key itself and its two neighbours on both rings. For C major that is F, C, G on the outer ring and Dm, Am, Em on the inner ring: six of its seven chords. The seventh, Bdim, is diminished and is not on the circle.

Why are some keys written two ways?

At the bottom of the circle the sharp and flat sides meet. F♯ major (6 sharps) and G♭ major (6 flats) sound the same on a guitar; so do D♭ and C♯, and B and C♭. Use whichever the music you read uses.

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