Piano scales
Choose a key and scale to see the notes on the keyboard, the whole/half-step pattern and the scale degrees. Press play to hear it up and down.
The bright, "home" scale most pop melodies use. Degrees: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Piano scales chart
| Key | Major (Ionian) | Natural minor (Aeolian) | Harmonic minor | Major pentatonic | Minor pentatonic | Blues |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | C D E F G A B | C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ | C D E♭ F G A♭ B | C D E G A | C E♭ F G B♭ | C E♭ F G♭ G B♭ |
| C♯/D♭ | D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C | C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A B | C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A B♯ | D♭ E♭ F A♭ B♭ | C♯ E F♯ G♯ B | C♯ E F♯ G G♯ B |
| D | D E F♯ G A B C♯ | D E F G A B♭ C | D E F G A B♭ C♯ | D E F♯ A B | D F G A C | D F G A♭ A C |
| E♭ | E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C D | E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ | E♭ F G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D | E♭ F G B♭ C | E♭ G♭ A♭ B♭ D♭ | E♭ G♭ A♭ A B♭ D♭ |
| E | E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯ | E F♯ G A B C D | E F♯ G A B C D♯ | E F♯ G♯ B C♯ | E G A B D | E G A A♯ B D |
| F | F G A B♭ C D E | F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ | F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E | F G A C D | F A♭ B♭ C E♭ | F A♭ B♭ B C E♭ |
| F♯/G♭ | G♭ A♭ B♭ C♭ D♭ E♭ F | F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D E | F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D E♯ | G♭ A♭ B♭ D♭ E♭ | F♯ A B C♯ E | F♯ A B C C♯ E |
| G | G A B C D E F♯ | G A B♭ C D E♭ F | G A B♭ C D E♭ F♯ | G A B D E | G B♭ C D F | G B♭ C D♭ D F |
| A♭ | A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G | G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ E F♯ | G♯ A♯ B C♯ D♯ E F𝄪 | A♭ B♭ C E♭ F | G♯ B C♯ D♯ F♯ | G♯ B C♯ D D♯ F♯ |
| A | A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ | A B C D E F G | A B C D E F G♯ | A B C♯ E F♯ | A C D E G | A C D D♯ E G |
| B♭ | B♭ C D E♭ F G A | B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A♭ | B♭ C D♭ E♭ F G♭ A | B♭ C D F G | B♭ D♭ E♭ F A♭ | B♭ D♭ E♭ E F A♭ |
| B | B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ A♯ | B C♯ D E F♯ G A | B C♯ D E F♯ G A♯ | B C♯ D♯ F♯ G♯ | B D E F♯ A | B D E F F♯ A |
Why the step pattern matters
A scale is a pattern of distances, not a list of letters. The major scale is W W H W W W H. Start it on C and you only land on white keys; start it on D and the pattern forces F♯ and C♯. That’s all a key signature is: the black keys the pattern needs in that key.
Modes reuse the same notes with a different home note. D Dorian is the white keys from D to D; it sounds minor, but brighter than D natural minor because of its B natural. Explore how the keys relate on the circle of fifths, or work backwards from notes with the scale finder.
Questions
What is the easiest piano scale?
C major: all white keys from C to C. Fingering for the right hand is 1-2-3, tuck the thumb under to F, then 1-2-3-4-5.
What is the pattern for a major scale?
Whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half. A whole step is two keys along, a half step is the very next key. Start that pattern on any key and you get its major scale.
What is the difference between natural, harmonic and melodic minor?
Natural minor uses the notes of its relative major. Harmonic minor raises the 7th note by a half step to create a leading tone. Melodic minor raises both the 6th and 7th going up (classical practice lowers them again going down).
How many scales should I learn?
The 12 major scales and 12 natural minor scales cover most music. Add the pentatonic and blues scales if you want to improvise.