The circle of fifths
Goal: go round the circle of fifths without thinking. Fifths above and below, key signatures, order of sharps and flats, relative minors, neighbouring keys: pick the right answer out of three, and it lights up on a circle you can play.
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Question 1
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Understand it all, in three questions.
What is the circle of fifths for?
It shows all the keys at a glance, with their key signatures and relative minors. It also tells you which keys are close, which chords go together (I, IV and V sit side by side) and which way progressions like V → I or II–V–I turn.
How does the game work?
Click a card: three answers appear, only one is right. The answer then lights up on the circle, which you can also play: tap a segment to hear its chord, major on the outside, minor on the inside. With a free account, every answer is saved in My Arena : you’ll find your progress across all the games.
How do you memorise the circle?
Start from C, at the top, with no sharps or flats. Clockwise, each segment goes up a fifth and adds a sharp: G, D, A, E, B, F♯. The other way round, each segment adds a flat: F, B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭. To understand it all, read the article The circle of fifths explained simply.
Où voir toutes les cartes en un seul tableau ?
All the cards in the game, sorted by family. The game’s search, above, also filters this list.
| Card | Answer | Family |
|---|---|---|
| C + 1 fifth | G One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| G + 1 fifth | D One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| D + 1 fifth | A One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| A + 1 fifth | E One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| E + 1 fifth | B One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| B + 1 fifth | F♯ One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| F + 1 fifth | C One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| B♭ + 1 fifth | F One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| E♭ + 1 fifth | B♭ One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| A♭ + 1 fifth | E♭ One step clockwise: a perfect fifth up (7 semitones), and one more sharp or one fewer flat in the key signature. | A fifth above |
| C − 1 fifth | F One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| F − 1 fifth | B♭ One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| B♭ − 1 fifth | E♭ One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| E♭ − 1 fifth | A♭ One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| A♭ − 1 fifth | D♭ One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| G − 1 fifth | C One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| D − 1 fifth | G One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| A − 1 fifth | D One step anticlockwise: a perfect fifth down, in other words a fourth up. It’s the path of the perfect cadence V → I. | A fifth below |
| No sharps or flats | C major · A minor C major sits at the top of the circle, with no sharps or flats. Its relative, A minor, shares the same key signature. | Key signatures |
| 1 sharp | G major · E minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 2 sharps | D major · B minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 3 sharps | A major · F♯ minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 4 sharps | E major · C♯ minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 5 sharps | B major · G♯ minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 6 sharps | F♯ major · D♯ minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 7 sharps | C♯ major · A♯ minor Each step clockwise adds a sharp. The last sharp in the key signature is the leading note: a semitone below the major tonic. | Key signatures |
| 1 flat | F major · D minor A single flat means F major: the only flat key signature you can’t work out from the second-to-last flat. Its relative is D minor. | Key signatures |
| 2 flats | B♭ major · G minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| 3 flats | E♭ major · C minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| 4 flats | A♭ major · F minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| 5 flats | D♭ major · B♭ minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| 6 flats | G♭ major · E♭ minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| 7 flats | C♭ major · A♭ minor Each step anticlockwise adds a flat. The second-to-last flat in the key signature gives the name of the major key. | Key signatures |
| Sharp no. 1 | F♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 2 | C♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 3 | G♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 4 | D♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 5 | A♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 6 | E♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Sharp no. 7 | B♯ Order of sharps: F, C, G, D, A, E, B. Each one is a fifth above the previous one: you read the circle clockwise, starting from F. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 1 | B♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 2 | E♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 3 | A♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 4 | D♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 5 | G♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 6 | C♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| Flat no. 7 | F♭ Order of flats: B, E, A, D, G, C, F. It’s the order of sharps backwards: you read the circle anticlockwise, starting from B. | Order of accidentals |
| C major | A minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| G major | E minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| D major | B minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| A major | F♯ minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| E major | C♯ minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| B major | G♯ minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| F♯ major | D♯ minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| D♭ major | B♭ minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| A♭ major | F minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| E♭ major | C minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| B♭ major | G minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| F major | D minor The relative minor has the same key signature as the major: on the circle, it’s the segment on the inner ring, just below. It lies a minor third (3 semitones) below the tonic. | Relative minors |
| Neighbours of C | G and F Neighbouring keys differ by just one accidental: they are the keys of IV and V. Modulating to them feels smooth. | Neighbours and uses |
| Neighbours of D | A and G Neighbouring keys differ by just one accidental: they are the keys of IV and V. Modulating to them feels smooth. | Neighbours and uses |
| Neighbours of E | B and A Neighbouring keys differ by just one accidental: they are the keys of IV and V. Modulating to them feels smooth. | Neighbours and uses |
| Neighbours of B♭ | F and E♭ Neighbouring keys differ by just one accidental: they are the keys of IV and V. Modulating to them feels smooth. | Neighbours and uses |
| Opposite C | F♯ or G♭ major Six steps away: it’s the most distant key, and the two tonics are a tritone apart (6 semitones). | Neighbours and uses |
| At the bottom of the circle | Enharmonic equivalence F♯ major (6 sharps) and G♭ major (6 flats) sound the same: the same keys, two names. That’s where the circle closes. | Neighbours and uses |
| I, IV and V | The tonic and its two neighbours IV sits just to the left of the tonic, V just to the right: the three major chords of the scale are side by side. In C: F, C and G. | Neighbours and uses |
| V → I | One step anticlockwise The dominant sits just to the right of the tonic: resolving V → I means taking one step anticlockwise. In C: G, then C. | Neighbours and uses |
| II – V – I | Two steps towards the tonic In C: D minor, G, then C. Each chord is a fifth above the next: you move anticlockwise until you reach the tonic. | Neighbours and uses |
| Circle of fourths | The same circle, backwards Going up a fourth or down a fifth leads to the same note. Read anticlockwise, the circle of fifths becomes the circle of fourths. | Neighbours and uses |
| 12 segments | 15 major key signatures One segment for each note of the chromatic scale. But three segments have two names (B and C♭, F♯ and G♭, D♭ and C♯): so we write 15 key signatures, from 7 flats to 7 sharps. | Neighbours and uses |
| Modulating smoothly | To a neighbouring key A neighbouring key on the circle changes just one note. The further you move round the circle, the more noticeable the modulation. | Neighbours and uses |
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