Camelot Wheel
Tap a key on the wheel to see its Camelot code, the keys that mix with it and the chords it uses.
Camelot wheel · 8A A minor
Tap or use arrow keysOuter ring (B): major keys. Inner ring (A): minor keys. Outlined: keys that mix with the selected one.
8A is A minor. It mixes with 7A, 9A, 8B and 10A. Chords in the key: Am Bdim C Dm Em F G.
Keys that mix with 8A
How to use the Camelot wheel
Every key has a code: a number from 1 to 12 and a letter. B is a major key (outer ring), A is a minor key (inner ring). C major is 8B, A minor is 8A.
- Same code: the same key, the smoothest move there is.
- One number up or down, same letter: a neighbouring key that shares six of its seven notes. 8B → 9B (G major) lifts the mood a little; 8B → 7B (F major) calms it.
- Same number, other letter: the relative major or minor. Same notes, a brighter or darker home.
- Two numbers up: a whole step up, the classic energy boost. Use it at a peak, not every time.
So from 8A the safe next keys are 7A (D minor), 9A (E minor), 8B (C major), 10A (B minor). The table under the wheel lists them for whatever key you pick, and each key name links to its guitar page when there is one.
Camelot and the circle of fifths
The Camelot wheel is the circle of fifths with numbers instead of key names. One step clockwise is a perfect fifth up on both: C major (8B) to G major (9B), and every further step adds a sharp. The inner ring holds the relative minors, exactly where the circle of fifths has them. Camelot only renames the positions so that "compatible" becomes simple arithmetic: ±1 on the number, or swap the letter.
The numbering starts at 1B = B major, so C major lands on 8 rather than at the top. If you think in key names, the interactive circle of fifths shows the same keys with their key signatures and chords.
What it means for guitar players
Keys next to each other on the wheel share six of their seven notes, which makes them good targets for a medley, a key change or a second song in a set. Moving from 8A to 8B keeps every chord (Am Bdim C Dm Em F G); moving to 9A (E minor) changes one note, and 4 of the seven chords stay (Em G Am C).
If a neighbouring key puts you on barre chords, a capo usually fixes it: the capo calculator finds the fret. To try the chords of a key in order, the chord progression generator plays a progression in any of the 24 keys. Don't know a song's key yet? The song key finder gives you its Camelot code.
The wheel tells you which keys share notes. It can't tell you whether two songs feel right together; tempo, groove and melody matter as much as the key.
Camelot codes and key names for harmonic mixing
The number is the key's place round the circle of fifths, the letter its mode: A is minor, B is major. To turn a key name into a code, find the major key in the B column below; its relative minor shares the number in A. A major is 11B, F♯ minor is 11A.
The codes come from DJ practice. Harmonic mixing means blending two tracks whose keys share most of their notes, so the overlap doesn't clash, and the numbers make that check quick in a dark booth. Many DJ apps and key-detection tools now print the code next to a track's BPM. This page is an independent chart computed from music theory and is not affiliated with any of them.
Camelot wheel chart: all 24 codes
More guitar tools
- Circle of fifthshow the keys connect
- Song key finderkey of a song from audio
- BPM findertempo from an audio file
- Capo calculator and chord transposercapo fret for any key
- Fretboard notes and scale finderevery note and scale on the neck
- All guitar toolsevery tool, grouped by job