The Circle of Fifths: A Complete Guide
Master the fundamental relationship between keys in Western music theory. Learn how sharps and flats accumulate, understand key signatures, and discover the patterns that connect all major and minor keys.
New to Musical Notes?
If you're not familiar with musical notes, sharps (♯), flats (♭), or basic music theory concepts, I recommend starting with my comprehensive guide to notes on the guitar.
Read: Beginner's Guide to Notes on the Guitar →What is the Circle of Fifths?
The Circle of Fifths is one of the most important concepts in music theory. It's a visual representation of the relationships between the 12 tones of the chromatic scale, their corresponding key signatures, and the associated major and minor keys.
Moving clockwise around the circle, each key is a perfect fifth (7 semitones) above the previous key. This creates a pattern where sharps are added one by one. Moving counterclockwise, each key is a perfect fourth (5 semitones) above the previous key, adding flats one by one.
Circle of Fifths
Click any key to see its sharps and flats. The fundamental relationship between keys in Western music theory.
How to Read
• Click any key to see its sharps and flats
• Clockwise: Each key is a perfect fifth above the previous
• Counterclockwise: Each key is a perfect fourth above the previous
• Key signatures: Show the number of sharps or flats
• Enharmonic names: Some keys have two names (e.g., F♯/G♭)
How Sharps and Flats Work on the Circle
Sharps (Clockwise from F):
Sharps start from F and move clockwise around the circle, adding the sharp symbol (♯):
Each key adds one more sharp in this order.
Flats (Counterclockwise from B):
Flats start from B and move counterclockwise around the circle, adding the flat symbol (♭):
Each key adds one more flat in this order.
Important Note About Enharmonic Spellings:
The keys F♯ and G♭ contain the notes E♯ and C♭ respectively. These are actually F and B, but because scale spelling requires each letter to be used only once, they get spelled this way. For example, if F♯ major wasn't spelled with E♯, it would be F♯ G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ F, which repeats F.
Chromatic Scale Between Fifths
Click any key to see the chromatic scale between that note and its fifth (7 semitones higher).
How to Read
• Click any key to see its chromatic scale to the fifth
• Green circles: Notes that are in the key (diatonic)
• Gray circles: Chromatic passing tones (not in the key)
• 7 semitones: Always the distance between a note and its fifth
• 8 notes total: Including start and end notes in the chromatic sequence
Circle of Fifths with Chords
Click any key to highlight its diatonic chords. Major keys (outer circle) and relative minor keys (inner circle) are shown together. The relative minor is the circle underneath the major - e.g., Am is relative minor of C major, Bm is relative minor of D major. Relative major and minor keys share the same notes.
How to Use
• Click any key to see its diatonic chords highlighted
• Outer circle: Major keys
• Inner circle: Relative minor keys
• Each key pair has its own unique color
• Major keys show I, IV, V (major) and ii, iii, vi (minor)
Understanding Key Signatures
Key signatures tell us which notes are sharp or flat throughout a piece of music. They appear at the beginning of each staff and apply to every octave of the specified notes.
Sharp Keys
Sharp keys are found on the right side of the circle. The order of sharps is: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯. You can remember this with the mnemonic: Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle.
Flat Keys
Flat keys are found on the left side of the circle. The order of flats is: B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭. You can remember this with the mnemonic: Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father.
Enharmonic Keys
Some keys have two names because they sound the same but are written differently. For example, F♯ major and G♭ major are enharmonic equivalents. The choice between them often depends on the musical context and which spelling makes the music easier to read.
In this guide, we choose the spelling that uses the least accidentals (sharps/flats). For example, D♭ major (5 flats) is preferred over C♯ major (7 sharps) because it avoids the confusing B♯ (actually C) and E♯ (actually F). However, I show F♯/G♭ and D♯/E♭ as enharmonic pairs because they have equal amounts of accidentals (6 sharps vs 6 flats), making both theoretically just as difficult to remember and apply. The choice is yours.
Practical Applications
Songwriting
Use the circle to find closely related keys for modulation, create chord progressions, and understand which keys work well together.
Transposition
Quickly transpose music by moving around the circle. Each step clockwise raises the key by a perfect fifth, each step counterclockwise lowers it by a perfect fourth.
Key Signatures
Memorize key signatures by understanding the pattern. The number of sharps or flats increases as you move around the circle.
Chord Progressions
The circle shows the most common chord progressions. Keys next to each other are closely related and work well together. For example, C major shares 4 chords with its neighbors F and G: F major shares F, C, Am, and Dm with C major, while G major shares C, G, Am, and Em with C major. This pattern works for every key on the circle.
Quick Reference
Color coding: Keys with the same color have the same notes but different spellings (sharps vs flats).
Important Rules:
- 1. All keys must use either sharps or flats consistently - never both.
- 2. Each letter must only be used once. For example, if you use F♯, then the note F would have to be written as E♯. If you use C, then C♯ can't be used and should be spelled as D♭ instead.
- 3. Choose the spelling that uses the fewest number of accidentals. For example, prefer B♭ major (2 flats) over A♯ major (10 sharps).
No Sharps or Flats
- C major: No sharps or flats
Scale: (1) C, (2) D, (3) E, (4) F, (5) G, (6) A, (7) B
Sharp Keys
- G major: 1 sharp (F♯)
Scale: (1) G, (2) A, (3) B, (4) C, (5) D, (6) E, (7) F♯ - D major: 2 sharps (F♯, C♯)
Scale: (1) D, (2) E, (3) F♯, (4) G, (5) A, (6) B, (7) C♯ - A major: 3 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯)
Scale: (1) A, (2) B, (3) C♯, (4) D, (5) E, (6) F♯, (7) G♯ - E major: 4 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯)
Scale: (1) E, (2) F♯, (3) G♯, (4) A, (5) B, (6) C♯, (7) D♯ - B major: 5 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯)
Scale: (1) B, (2) C♯, (3) D♯, (4) E, (5) F♯, (6) G♯, (7) A♯ - F♯ major: 6 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯)
Scale: (1) F♯, (2) G♯, (3) A♯, (4) B, (5) C♯, (6) D♯, (7) E♯ - C♯ major: 7 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯) D♭ major has 5 flats so we use it instead
Scale: (1) C♯, (2) D♯, (3) E♯, (4) F♯, (5) G♯, (6) A♯, (7) B♯
Flat Keys
- F major: 1 flat (B♭)
Scale: (1) F, (2) G, (3) A, (4) B♭, (5) C, (6) D, (7) E - B♭ major: 2 flats (B♭, E♭)
Scale: (1) B♭, (2) C, (3) D, (4) E♭, (5) F, (6) G, (7) A - E♭ major: 3 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭)
Scale: (1) E♭, (2) F, (3) G, (4) A♭, (5) B♭, (6) C, (7) D - A♭ major: 4 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭)
Scale: (1) A♭, (2) B♭, (3) C, (4) D♭, (5) E♭, (6) F, (7) G - D♭ major: 5 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭)
Scale: (1) D♭, (2) E♭, (3) F, (4) G♭, (5) A♭, (6) B♭, (7) C - G♭ major: 6 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭)
Scale: (1) G♭, (2) A♭, (3) B♭, (4) C♭, (5) D♭, (6) E♭, (7) F - C♭ major: 7 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭) B major has 5 sharps so we use it instead
Scale: (1) C♭, (2) D♭, (3) E♭, (4) F♭, (5) G♭, (6) A♭, (7) B♭
Why Don't We Use A♯, D♯, G♯, C♯, or C♭ Major?
These keys exist but are rarely used because they have too many sharps, making them impractical:
- A♯ major: 10 sharps (F##, C##, G##, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯) - enharmonic to B♭ major (2 flats)
- D♯ major: 9 sharps (F##, C##, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯) - enharmonic to E♭ major (3 flats)
- G♯ major: 8 sharps (F##, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯) - enharmonic to A♭ major (4 flats)
- C♯ major: 7 sharps (F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯) - enharmonic to D♭ major (5 flats)
- C♭ major: 7 flats (B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭) - enharmonic to B major (5 sharps)
Why this is so impractical:
- Double sharps (##):
These are the same notes as natural notes:
- • F## is actually G
- • C## is actually D
- • G## is actually A
So why write F## when you could just write G?
This creates absurd situations like G♯ major having 8 sharps (6 single sharps + 1 double sharp F## = 6 + 2 = 8 total) for a 7-note scale!
That's why we use A♭ major (4 flats) instead.
- Confusing notation: Reading F## when you could just write G is unnecessarily complex
- Performance difficulty: Musicians have to mentally translate double sharps while reading
- Error-prone: More accidentals = more chances for mistakes in reading and writing
Instead, we use their enharmonic equivalents with fewer accidentals, making the music much easier to read and play.
What About Minor Keys?
Minor keys follow the same spelling rules as their relative major keys. For example, G♯ minor is not written as A♭ minor because its relative major is B major, and B major uses a sharp spelling.
Important rule: All keys must use either sharps or flats consistently - never both. The choice depends on the relative major key's spelling.
Example: G♯ minor uses sharps because its relative major (B major) uses sharps. If we called it A♭ minor instead, we'd have to call B as C♭, and we want to avoid that.
Enharmonic Equivalents
These notes sound the same but are written differently depending on whether we're using sharp or flat spellings:
Sharp Spellings
Flat Spellings
Note: The choice between sharp and flat spellings depends on the key signature and musical context. We generally choose the spelling that uses fewer accidentals and follows the key signature pattern.
Note: Red background indicates spellings that are generally avoided as they create confusing notation (like E♯ instead of F, or C♭ instead of B). However, these problematic spellings still exist in music theory because they cannot always be avoided - for example, the key of F♯ major needs an E♯, or we would have to use the letter F twice (not allowed).
Continue Your Music Theory Journey
Explore Chords in Every Key
Now that you understand the Circle of Fifths, dive deeper into how chords work in different keys. Learn about chord progressions, Roman numerals, and how to use this knowledge in your playing.
Explore Chords in Every Key →Ready to Master Music Theory?
Take your guitar playing to the next level with personalized lessons from Mike Nelson.