E Major: Notes, Chords and Scale

E major is a major key. Its key signature has 4 sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯. Its scale is E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C♯, D♯, and its seven diatonic chords are E, F♯m, G♯m, A, B, C♯m, D♯dim. Below are the 7th chords, Roman numerals, related keys, the Camelot code and a keyboard diagram.

Key signature

4♯

Relative key

C♯ minor

Parallel key

E minor

Camelot code

12B

Notes

E F♯ G♯ A B C♯ D♯

The E major scale on a keyboard, root highlighted.

Chords in E major

IEE G♯ B
iiF♯mF♯ A C♯
iiiG♯mG♯ B D♯
IVAA C♯ E
VBB D♯ F♯
viC♯mC♯ E G♯
vii°D♯dimD♯ F♯ A

Seventh chords

Imaj7Emaj7E G♯ B D♯
ii7F♯m7F♯ A C♯ E
iii7G♯m7G♯ B D♯ F♯
IVmaj7Amaj7A C♯ E G♯
V7B7B D♯ F♯ A
vi7C♯m7C♯ E G♯ B
viiø7D♯m7♭5D♯ F♯ A C♯

How to use these chords

I, IV and V (E, A, B) are the primary chords. Together they contain all seven notes of the scale.
vi (C♯m) and iii (G♯m) each share two notes with I, and ii (F♯m) shares two notes with IV, so these minor chords often stand in for them.
V7 (B7) contains the leading tone, D♯, which pulls up to the root, so it resolves strongly to I. vii° (D♯dim) has the same upper three notes as V7 and is mostly used as a passing chord.
Common progressions, in Roman numerals: I V vi IV (E, B, C♯m, A); I vi IV V (E, C♯m, A, B); ii V I (F♯m, B, E); ii7 V7 Imaj7 (F♯m7, B7, Emaj7).

Common uses of E major

E major shares its seven notes and its key signature with its relative minor, C♯ minor.
On a piano, 4 of its seven notes are black keys.
The root note, E, is an open string on a guitar in standard tuning (E A D G B E), so it can ring under the chords.
On guitar, E, A, B7 all have common open position shapes.
In the Camelot system DJs use for harmonic mixing, E major is 12B; tracks in 11B, 1B and 12A usually mix smoothly with it.

Open E major in the Scale and Chord Finder
Find your song's key from the audio: Detect Key and BPM
Camelot Wheel: 12B
Write chords or MIDI in E major with MIDI LabMIDI Lab, from the same team as SongTools, writes chord progressions, bass, drums and melody as MIDI from a prompt.
C♯ minor: notes and chords
All 24 major and minor keys

Questions about E major

What chords are in E major?

The seven chords in E major are E, F♯m, G♯m, A, B, C♯m, D♯dim (I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii°). As seventh chords they are Emaj7, F♯m7, G♯m7, Amaj7, B7, C♯m7, D♯m7♭5.

What notes are in the E major scale?

E, F♯, G♯, A, B, C♯, D♯. Its key signature has 4 sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯.

What is the relative minor of E major?

C♯ minor. It uses the same seven notes and key signature as E major, starting from C♯. The parallel minor, E minor, starts on the same note as E major but has a different key signature.

What is the Camelot code for E major?

12B. Next to it on the Camelot wheel are 11B and 1B, and 12A is its relative minor, C♯ minor.