Chords in the Key of A Minor

The key of A minor is built on the notes A – B – C – D – E – F – G. Every chord below is drawn from that scale, so they all sound at home together.

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The seven chords in A minor

Numeral	Chord	Notes	Quality
i	Am	A C E	Minor
ii°	Bdim	B D F	Diminished
III	C	C E G	Major
iv	Dm	D F A	Minor
v	Em	E G B	Minor
VI	F	F A C	Major
VII	G	G B D	Major

Seventh chords in A minor

Adding the next third on top of each triad gives the seventh chords of the key — the harmonic vocabulary most jazz and soul writing starts from.

Numeral	Chord	Notes
i7	Am7	A C E G
iiø7	Bm7b5	B D F A
IIImaj7	Cmaj7	C E G B
iv7	Dm7	D F A C
v7	Em7	E G B D
VImaj7	Fmaj7	F A C E
VII7	G7	G B D F

Common chord progressions in A minor

Numerals	Chords in A minor	Why it works
i – VI – III – VII	Am – F – C – G	A bright, anthemic minor progression.
i – iv – v	Am – Dm – Em	The natural-minor equivalent of the classic cadence.
i – VII – VI – VII	Am – G – F – G	A modal, folk-leaning loop.
i – iv – VII – III	Am – Dm – G – C	Moves toward the relative major for a lift.

Relative major key

A minor shares all of its notes with C major, so switching between the two changes the mood of a piece without changing a single note. See C major.

Scale reference

See the full A Natural Minor scale for its fingering, key signature, degrees and step pattern.

Other scales for this key: A harmonic minor, A melodic minor, A minor pentatonic and A blues.

Other keys

C minor C# minor D minor Eb minor E minor F minor F# minor G minor Ab minor Bb minor B minor

Frequently asked questions

What chords are in the key of A minor?

The key of A minor contains Am, Bdim, C, Dm, Em, F, G. These are the triads built on each degree of the A minor scale.

What is the relative major of A minor?

The relative major of A minor is C major. Both keys use exactly the same notes but resolve to a different tonic.

How many sharps or flats does A minor have?

The A minor scale is spelled A, B, C, D, E, F, G, which gives it 0 sharps and 0 flats.