Piano notes: the name of every key
The white keys on a piano repeat seven letter names, C D E F G A B, over and over. The black keys are the sharps and flats in between. Find any C by looking for a group of two black keys: C is the white key just to its left.
Swipe sideways to see the whole keyboard.
The pattern of black keys
Look down at a piano and you will see the black keys are not evenly spaced. They come in a group of two, then a group of three, then two, then three, all the way up. That pattern is your map. You never need to count keys from the end.
- C is the white key just left of every group of two black keys. D sits between the two black keys, and E is just to the right.
- F is the white key just left of every group of three black keys. G and A sit inside the group, and B is on its right edge.
Once you can find C and F anywhere on the keyboard, the other letters fall into place, because the alphabet only runs from A to G and then starts again.
Naming the white keys
Starting from C and moving right, the white keys go C, D, E, F, G, A, B, and then the next key is C again. Moving right always means higher in pitch; moving left means lower. The eight keys from one C to the next C span an octave. Play them in order and you have the C major scale, which is why C major is the first scale most people learn.
Try it on the keyboard above: tap C4, then each white key to the right until you reach C5. Then tap C4, E4 and G4 one after another. Those three notes make a C major chord .
Sharps and flats on the black keys
Each black key has two names. A sharp (♯) means one key higher; a flat (♭) means one key lower. So the black key right of C is C♯, and because it is also just left of D, it is D♭ too.
| Black key between | Sharp name | Flat name | Hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| C and D | C♯ | D♭ | |
| D and E | D♯ | E♭ | |
| F and G | F♯ | G♭ | |
| G and A | G♯ | A♭ | |
| A and B | A♯ | B♭ |
Which name you read depends on the key of the music. A piece in a sharp key writes F♯; a piece in a flat key writes G♭. The key signature at the start of each line tells you which set to use.
Middle C and octave numbers
Because the same letters repeat, musicians add a number to say which one they mean. The count goes up by one at every C. Middle C is C4; the B just below it is B3, and the D just above it is D4. On a full 88-key piano the Cs are C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 and C8 at the very top.
Middle C matters because it sits exactly between the two staffs of piano music. It is where the treble clef (right hand) and the bass clef (left hand) meet. Most beginner pieces start with the thumb of the right hand on middle C.
How piano notes map to the staff
Written music shows the same notes on a five-line staff. Each line and each space is one white key. Moving up one step on the staff (line to space, or space to line) moves up one white key. Tap the buttons to hear each note and see it light on the staff.
Black keys use the same line or space as the white key they are named after, with a ♯ or ♭ written in front. C♯4 sits on the same ledger line as C4. For the full picture of staffs, rhythms and symbols, see how to read music.
Practice: name the key
One key is marked with a question mark. Pick its letter. You hear the note either way, so your ear learns along with your eyes. Two minutes a day is enough to make the names automatic within a week or two.
A key lights up. Pick its letter. You'll hear it either way.
Press Start.
What to learn next
Once the names feel easy, put three of them together. The first piano chords page shows the chords most songs use, and the piano chord library draws every chord on a keyboard you can play. If you have a chord under your hands and don't know its name, press the keys in the chord finder.
Piano notes questions
What are the notes on a piano in order?
Going up the white keys: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, then C again. With the black keys included, one octave is C, C♯/D♭, D, D♯/E♭, E, F, F♯/G♭, G, G♯/A♭, A, A♯/B♭, B, then C. That pattern of 12 repeats across the whole keyboard.
Where is middle C on the piano?
Find the group of two black keys closest to the middle of the keyboard (usually right under the maker's name). The white key just left of that group is middle C, called C4. On an 88-key piano it is the fourth C from the left.
How many keys does a piano have?
A full-size piano has 88 keys: 52 white and 36 black, from A0 at the bottom to C8 at the top. Many beginner keyboards have 61 keys (five octaves), which is enough for most lessons.
Is C sharp the same key as D flat?
Yes. The black key between C and D can be called C♯ or D♭. Both names point to the same key and the same sound; the key signature of the piece decides which name is written.
Why is there no black key between E and F?
E to F and B to C are already a half step apart, the smallest step on the piano, so there is no room for a key between them. Every other pair of neighboring white keys is a whole step apart, with a black key in the middle.
Updated September 2026.