Learning to figure out which chords are in key is a useful skill any musician can learn. Once you learn this skill, you will be able to use it all the time.
If someone says "let's improvise in the key of E", what chords could you play that would fit that key?
In this guide, we'll see how to discover major chords in any key using a few simple methods.
For more information on chords and scales, as well as some basic music theory, check out these guides:
- How to find the key of a song
- Simple Explained Ranges(a good starting point for learning music theory)
- Simple Explained Scales
- How to practice guitar chords
- How to practice guitar scales
Although this guide was written for guitarists, you can use it to find chords in a key for any other instrument.
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Find chords in the key of C (Example 1)
Let's use the key of C as an example and discover all the chords that fit in this scale. The 'key of C' uses theC major scale(link to sizing resources).
To find out which chords are used in a scale, we need to know which notes are in that scale.
The notes of the C major scale are:C D E F G A B
If you want to find out which notes are in any major or minor scale,read this guide on scales explained simply.
Once you know which notes are in the scale, you can start figuring out which chords fit that scale.
As you can imagine, the C major chord fits the C major scale. So you can easily find out the first chord in any key by looking at the scale name. The C major scale uses the C major chord, the D major scale uses the D major chord, and so on.
So let's highlight the C major chord notes from the C major scale notes below:
The notes of the C major chord areCEG🇧🇷 Notice the pattern these notes follow on the scale. We highlight the first note, skip a note, highlight the next note, skip a note, highlight the next note.
It is important to remember this pattern. The first chord of a scale always follows this pattern, as you'll see later.
Now, what if we take the same pattern and start on the second note of the scale?
We're using the same pattern of skipping every second note, but this time we're starting on the second note of the scale, D. We're done with the notesDFA.
If you know the basic major and minor chords, you can recognize these notes (don't worry if you don't).
The notesDFAform the D minor chord.
This means that the second chord in the C major scale is D minor.
Let's repeat this starting on the third note of the scale:
The three notes this time areE G B.
You may recognize these notes as part of the E minor chord. So the third chord in the C major scale is E minor.
Have you seen the pattern?
For every note in the scale, there is a chord that starts on that note. The way to find out which chords are in a key is to look at each note in the key and use a pattern to figure out each chord.
The first note, C, gives us the C major chord. The second note, D, gives us the D minor chord. There are seven notes in the major scale, so if we continue with this process, we'll have seven chords.
Here are the scale's seven highlighted chords (the dark green circles show the root of each chord):
By following the same pattern on each note of the scale, we can easily discover the seven major chords that fit the key.
For example, the fourth chord in the key of C uses the notes: F A C, which gives us the F Major chord.
Here are all the chords highlighted above:
- TO BEG:make mayor
- DFA:D minor
- EG B:E minor
- FAC:he is older
- GBD:sun major
- LIKE:a minor
- B D F:b diminished(minor triad over a minor triad)
Now we know that the chords in the key of C are:C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim.
What we just did is calledharmonizing the scale.It's a fancy name for figuring out which chords fit in a scale.
Don't worry if this still doesn't make 100% sense, once you go through the rest of the examples below it will become clearer.
Find chords in the key of G (Example 2)
Let's move on to another scale to practice with. The key of G uses thesun major scale(link to sizing resources)
The G major scale uses the notes:G A B C D E F #
We can use the same pattern shown in the previous example to find out which chords fit the key of G.
Try to figure out all the chords in that key on your own before continuing.
Here is the G major scale with all the chord notes highlighted:
Here is a breakdown of each chord in the scale:
- G major: G D
- A minor: A C E
- si menor: si re fa#
- from the mayor: from mi sol
- D major: D F# A
- And minor: GBS
- F# diminuto: F# A C
Going through each note, we now know that the chords in the key of G are: G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em, F#dim.
If you compare chords in the key of C and chords in the key of G, you can see a pattern in the order and type of chords.
These are the C major scale chords:C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim
These are the G major scale chords:G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em, F#dim
Carefully observe the chord type order (for example: major, minor, diminished).
Quick method to discover chords in a key
Don't worry if the theory seems overwhelming at first. Once you get used to the pattern used in the previous two examples, you'll get the hang of it.
Here's a different way to see what kind of chords are used in a key.
If you compared the chords of the C major scale and the G major scale, you might have noticed that the order of the chords remains the same.
The order of chords in a Major scale when harmonizing the scale are:greater, lesser, lesser, greater, greater, lesser, diminished
Let's compare the results of the two scales we developed earlier:
If you memorize this order, you won't have to worry about trying to figure out whether a chord should be major or minor.
The first chord in a major scale is major, the second chord is minor, the third is minor, the fourth is major, the fifth is major, the sixth is minor, the seventh is diminished.
This means you can easily figure out the chords in any scale by applying that chord order to the notes in the scale.
What is a diminished chord?
You may have noticed that the seventh chord in any major scale is a 'diminished' chord. If you're a beginner or intermediate guitarist, maybe you've never come across diminished chords.
If you find a chord diagram for a diminished chord and play it, the chord may sound strange or horrible to your ears.
While diminished chords are certainly used in music, they are not as common as major or minor chords.
You can learn to use diminished chords in your music later on, but if you're just starting out, you can safely ignore them for now. Concentrate on the other six chords in the tonality and you'll be fine.
Let's try this on the F major scale that uses notes:F G A Bb C D E
If we follow the previous chord order, we get: F major, G minor, A minor, Bb major, C major, D minor, E diminished.
Let's check if this is correct by harmonizing the F major scale:
It doesn't matter if you memorize the chord order or use the note pattern, you should always end up with the same chords.
Practice this method using the A major scale (link to scale resources). The A major scale uses the notes:ABCDEFG#
Try to find out for yourself which chords fit the key of A using the information above.
Harmonizing the minor scale
All the above information explains how to discover chords in a major scale. But we can use a similar method to find chords in a minor scale.
We can use the same note-jumping pattern to figure out which chords fit in a minor scale.
Let's see an example with the C minor scale, which uses the notes:C D Eb F G Ab Bb
Here is the C minor scale with all the chord notes highlighted:
If we look at the intervals between these chord notes, we get:
- C Eb G:of the smallest
- DF Ab:d diminished
- Mib Sol Sib:E flat major
- F Ab C:make it smaller
- Sol Sib Re:G minor
- Ab C Eb:mayor of ab
- Bb D F:B flat major
Unsurprisingly, the chord order has changed because it's a different type of scale. But it's the same chord order forallminor scale.
The chord pattern for minor scales is:smaller, lessened, greater, lesser, lesser, greater, greater
So if we apply this pattern to the A minor scale (A B C D E F G), we end up with the chords: Am, Bdim, C, Dm, Em, F, G.
If we apply this same pattern to the E minor scale (E F# G A B C D), we end up with the chords: Em, F#dim, G, A, Bm, C, D.
Now you know how to discover chords in any key (major or minor). It might take some practice to get used to this, but after you've done it a few times, it should feel easy. You'll be able to use this knowledge to jump into any jam and start writing songs in any key.
chords in a key chart
Once you learn how to use the methods explained above, you will be able to easily discover the seven major chords of any key.
In the meantime, the chart below offers a quick way to find chords in any major scale:
If you want to find the chords used in any minor scale, you can find the relative minor scale by looking at the sixth note in any major scale. Look at the sixth column in the chart above to find any minor scales.
For example, the sixth note in the C major scale is A (C D E F GONEB). This means that the A minor scale and the C major scale use the same notes.And the same chords.
Finding chords in a key summary
To find the major chords used in a major scale, the order starting from the root note will be Major, Minor, Minor, Major, Major, Minor, Diminished.
To find the major chords used in a minor scale, the order starting from the root note will be minor, diminished, major, minor, minor, major, major.
Alternatively, you can look at the notes used in the scale and use the note skip pattern to figure out the notes used in each chord.
Key points to remember:
- You can easily discover chords in any key by harmonizing the scale.
- There are seven chords for each key, one for each note in the scale.
- Harmonized chords in a Major scale always follow this pattern: Major, Minor, Minor, Major, Major, Minor, Diminished
- Harmonized chords in the minor scale always follow this pattern: minor, diminished, major, minor, minor, major, major
The more you learn about music theory, the easier it will be to understand how chords and scales relate to each other. Even if you don't know anything about music theory, you can use the methods covered in this guide to figure out all the chords in any key.
Check out these scaling resourcesfor useful charts and diagrams for common scales you can use.
For more information on chords and scales, as well as some basic music theory, check out these guides:
- Simple Explained Ranges(a good starting point for learning music theory)
- Simple Explained Scales
- How to practice guitar chords
- How to practice guitar scales
- How to find the key of a song
Related guides and lessons:
FAQs
How do you find the chords in a key easy methods chart? ›
For every note in the scale, there is a chord that starts on that note. The way to figure out what chords are in a key is to look at each note in the key and use a pattern to figure out each chord. The first note, C, gives us the C Major chord. The second note, D, gives us the D minor chord.
How do you find all the chords in a guitar key? ›Figuring out the chords in a key is simply a matter of stacking 3rds on each of the seven notes of the Major scale, to produce seven chords. Let's take the C Major scale for example. If we stack thirds on top of C, we get the notes C, E and G. This is basically what we did before, when producing the C Major triad.
What is the easiest way to find chords? ›- To do that, you can clap or count along with the beat of the song. Listen along and see if this makes sense.
- You should hear “C-2, change-2, change-2-3-4.” That's two beats of the C chord, two beats of the second chord, and four beats of the third chord.
- Write down all of the chords.
- Write down the scales associated with each chord. (ie: If you have E minor, write down the E minor scale. ...
- Look at each scale and see if the chords' root notes are within that scale. If they are, that is the key you are in.
Major Chord Formula
Major chords consist of the root, major 3rd, and perfect 5th. Its formula is 1-3-5.
Chordify is your #1 platform for chords for guitar, piano and ukulele. We give you the chords for 22 million songs and align them to the music in an easy to use player. Chordify helps musicians of all levels to learn to play the music they love.
What are the 3 main chords in the key of A? ›A Major Key naturally has 3 Major chords (I, IV, and V), 3 minor chords (ii, iii, and vi), and 1 diminished chord (viiΟ). Both keys and chords have roots. The root of a key is the name of the key, and the root of a chord is the name of the chord.
What are the 7 chords in the key of A major? ›- I – A major, A major seventh (Amaj, Amaj7)
- ii – B minor, B minor seventh (Bm, Bm7)
- iii – C sharp minor, C# minor seventh (C#m, C#m7)
- IV – D major, D major seventh (D, Dmaj 7)
- V – E major, E dominant seventh (E, E7)
- vi – F sharp minor, F# minor seventh (F#m, F#m7)
- ChordJam Lite.
- Ableton Live.
- MIDI Chord packs.
- Captain Chords Epic.
- Xfer Cthulu.
- Chord Prism.
The three-chord trick refers to an idea in music theory where a song, phrase, or musical idea is most likely to be based on the tonic, sub-dominant, and dominant chords (I-IV-V) of the major scale. These three chords can either work as the structural basis for a song or as an accompanying melody.
Is the first chord always the key? ›
One thing to keep in mind is that the first chord of a song isn't always the key. It can be any of the chords in the song, and you'll want to be listening intently for that tonal center.
What is the easiest way to identify a key? ›- Color Code Key Head: Paint both sides of the head of the key with brightly colored nail polish. ...
- File Notch in Key Head: Use a triangular file to cut a small (1/8″ deep) notch in the head of your most used key, so you can find it by feel, even in the dark.
Chords of C major
By doing this we get the chords C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am, Bdim, by going the extra step and adding another note (stacking on another 3rd) to the chord, we get all the 7th chords in C major: Cmaj7, Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7, G7, Am7, and Bdim7.
Relation to other chords with the ninth
The 6/9 chord is a pentad with a major triad joined by a sixth and ninth above the root, but no seventh. For example, C6/9 is C–E–G–A–D. It is not a tense chord requiring resolution, and is considered a substitute for the tonic in jazz.
The intersecting chords theorem or just the chord theorem is a statement in elementary geometry that describes a relation of the four line segments created by two intersecting chords within a circle. It states that the products of the lengths of the line segments on each chord are equal.
What are the 5 basic guitar chords? ›The 5 chords we'll look at are the C major, A major, G major, E major, and D major. The reason we use all major chords is that the minor versions of any of these chords just require tiny adjustments.
Is there a free guitar chord app? ›Free (Guitar Chords) (Free) Android. The Chord! set of apps for iOS and Android provide “the simplest and the most complete chords and scales app for guitar or any fretted instrument like bass, ukulele, banjo, etc.”
How do you identify 7 chords? ›Within major and minor keys, seventh chords have particular qualities that correspond to scale degrees. These are the same in every major and minor key, which makes memorizing them useful. Seventh chords are identified by their root , quality of triad and seventh, and inversion .
Do all chords have 3 notes? ›A chord is a combination of three or more notes. Chords are built off of a single note, called the root. In this lesson, we will discuss triads. They are created with a root, third, and fifth.
What Capo is the key of a? ›Key of A: capo 2 and play in G, capo 7 and play in D, or capo 9 and play in C. To get to A#/Bb, B, or C, move the capo up one, two, or three frets from these locations.
What chords go with the key of G? ›
The G Major key uses the scale degree chords of the G major scale, which are G, Am, Bm, C, D, Em, and F#mb5.
How many chords are in each key? ›In western music chords are traditionally built by using every other note beginning on each scale degree - giving you a choice of 7 diatonic chords in a Major scale. The formula to make a Major scale is the same for every single Major key. The I, IV, and V are the only major chords in a traditional major scale.
What does Delta mean in chords? ›In music, a major seventh chord is a seventh chord in which the third is a major third above the root and the seventh is a major seventh above the root. The major seventh chord, sometimes also called a Delta chord, can be written as maj7, M7, Δ, ⑦, etc.
What is the major 7 chord formula? ›The formula for a major 7th chord is major third, minor third, and another major third. The second way to think about building a major 7th chord is to just add a major 7th interval to an existing major chord. G, A, B, C, D, E, and F# are the notes in the G major scale.
Is it okay to steal chords? ›Chord progressions are one of those song elements that aren't usually protected by copyright, so it's fine to take progressions that you like in other songs and use them in your own.
What are the 3 chords in every song? ›The I (tonic), IV (subdominant) and V (dominant) chords (primary triads) together encompass all seven tones of the tonic's major scale. These three chords are a simple means of covering many melodies without the use of passing notes. There are tens of thousands of songs written with I, IV and V chords.
What is the hardest guitar chord to learn? ›The six-string F chord is one of the hardest standard chord shape to play on the guitar. When many people try to play the F chord on guitar (and often succeed), it's with far too much struggle and effort than is actually necessary. Even extremely influential guitarists can have a hard time with barre chords.
What is the easiest way to find the key of a song? ›The easiest way to figure out the key of a song is by using its key signature. The number of sharps/flats in the key signature tell you the key of the song. A key signature with no sharps or flats is the key of C (or A minor). The table below summarizes the key signatures.