Need to know about Music
Key Signatures?

Music key signatures tell you what sharps or flats to play in a key. One way to learn how to play chords is by knowing the key signature of the root note of the chord. Key signatures also tell you what notes to play in a scale.

If this is your first time learning about key signatures. Check out my learn key signatures easy page. Or if you only need to memorize the key signatures, click here.

Music key signatures can have only sharps or only flats. Pick any key on the piano and it has a key signature. We’re going to focus on major keys here. If you need to know the key signatures in only the bass clef, you can click here.

Key Signatures With Sharps

C major is the only key that has no sharps or flats.

There are 7 key signatures that have sharps in them. Here they are:

Notice that all the keys repeat the sharps from the keys before.

An easy saying to remember the order of the sharps is:

Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle.

The last sharp of the key is always the note before the name of the key. For example, F# is the last note before G. D# is the last note before E. If you remember the saying, you can figure out how many sharps are in each key.

For example, “Father Charles Goes Down And”. A comes before B so, B major has 5 sharps. Because of the saying you know they are F, C, G, D, and A sharp.

Here’s what the sharps look like on a staff. This is the key of C# Major.

Music Key Signatures on Grand Staff - Sharps

Key Signatures with Flats

Now for the flats. There are also 7 keys that have key signatures with flats in them.

Here’s a list:

Here’s an easy way to remember the order of the flats. The first 4 flats spell the word “bead”. Then, you just need to remember G C F.

Also, the last flat in the previous key tells you what the next key with one more flat will be. For example, Eb major has 3 flats – Bb, Eb, Ab. So the key that has 4 flats is Ab.

Here’s how all of the flats look on the staff. This is the key of Cb Major.

Music Key Signatures on Grand Staff - Flats

Other Important Key Signatures Info

Music key signatures are always written the same on the staff. So, if you need to write them, always put them on the same lines or spaces you see here.

When playing in a specific key signature, remember to always play a sharp or flat if it’s in the key signature. If something sounds a little off while you’re playing, check that you’re playing the right sharps or flats. If the key signature says to play an F#, every F should be an F#.

If you'd like to learn some more of the theory behind key signatures, check out the theory page for key signatures. You'll learn about a neat and easy pattern for learning music key signatures.

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More pages that might help:

Key Signatures Free Video Lesson
Which key signatures have sharps or flats? How many and which ones? Where do you write them? Find out here.
Minor Key Signatures: Learn Which Sharps & Flats Go With Each Key
Need to know a bit more about minor key signatures, what they're called and which sharps & flats go in each? Learn here + pictures of each key.
Minor Key Signatures Quiz (On Treble Clef)
Do you know your minor key signatures? Let's find out and see if you've got them down with this quiz using the treble clef.
Key Signatures Quiz (On Treble Clef)
Test yourself with this key signatures quiz. You'll see the key signature on the treble clef and will need to name the key.
Key Signatures Quiz (What Is The Key Signature?)
Do you know which sharps or flats belong to a key? Test yourself with this key signatures quiz and find out!
Minor Key Signatures Quiz (Name the Sharps or Flats)
Take the minor key signatures quiz and see if you can correctly guess the sharps or flats in the minor keys. Ready? Let's go!
Learn Key Signatures Easy
Need to learn key signatures easy? Start here with the basics.
Memorize Key Signatures
Need to memorize key signatures? This page shows you how to memorize the order of the keys, sharps and flats, and where they go.
Music Theory Key Signatures (Circle of 5ths & 4ths)
Learn music theory key signatures by learning neat and easy patterns called the circle of 5ths and the circle of 4ths.
Key Signatures Bass Clef
See the key signatures of the bass clef on the staff for all major keys.