Free printable reference
All 15 major and 15 minor key signatures, with the sharps and flats in order.
| Major | Relative minor | № | In order |
|---|---|---|---|
| C major | A minor | 0 | — |
| G major | E minor | 1 | F♯ |
| D major | B minor | 2 | F♯ C♯ |
| A major | F♯ minor | 3 | F♯ C♯ G♯ |
| E major | C♯ minor | 4 | F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ |
| B major | G♯ minor | 5 | F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ |
| F♯ major | D♯ minor | 6 | F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯ |
| C♯ major | A♯ minor | 7 | F♯ C♯ G♯ D♯ A♯ E♯ B♯ |
| Major | Relative minor | № | In order |
|---|---|---|---|
| F major | D minor | 1 | B♭ |
| B♭ major | G minor | 2 | B♭ E♭ |
| E♭ major | C minor | 3 | B♭ E♭ A♭ |
| A♭ major | F minor | 4 | B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ |
| D♭ major | B♭ minor | 5 | B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ |
| G♭ major | E♭ minor | 6 | B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭ |
| C♭ major | A♭ minor | 7 | B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ C♭ F♭ |
Order of accidentals
Sharps: F C G D A E B — “Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle”. Flats are the same letters backwards: B E A D G C F — BEAD, then Greatest Common Factor. A signature never skips one, so five flats is always B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭.
Naming a signature at sight
Sharp keys: the last sharp sits one semitone below the tonic — four sharps ending on D♯ means E major. Flat keys: the second-to-last flat names the key — B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ means A♭ major. F major is the exception you memorise.
Relatives & enharmonics
Every major shares its signature with the minor three semitones below — C major with A minor. Three pairs sound identical but are spelled differently: B/C♭, F♯/G♭ and C♯/D♭. Fifteen signatures, twelve sounds.