Key finder

Find the key of a song in three steps

1. Choose a song as an audio or video file.
2. Wait a few seconds while the tool analyzes the notes in your browser.
3. Read the key, the Camelot code, the confidence, and the closest alternatives, and check the pitch class chart.

How the key is found

The tool first builds a chromagram. It analyzes the song in short slices, measures the energy at every note frequency, and folds all octaves together into twelve pitch classes, C through B, so every C counts toward C whether it is a bass note or a high melody. The totals show which notes the song uses most. That profile is then compared with 24 key profiles, one for each major and minor key, using the correlation method that grew out of research by music psychologist Carol Krumhansl. The best match wins, the next closest keys are listed underneath, and the twelve-bar chart shows the pitch class totals so you can see the evidence.

Camelot codes for DJs

Harmonic mixing means playing songs whose keys sound good together, so transitions do not clash. The Camelot wheel makes that easy: each key gets a number from 1 to 12 and a letter, A for minor and B for major. A minor is 8A, and its relative, C major, is 8B. Songs with the same code mix cleanly, and moving one number up or down, or switching between A and B at the same number, also blends smoothly. So a track in 8A works with 7A, 9A, and 8B. The key finder shows the Camelot code next to the key name, so you can tag your library and plan a set.

Reading the result

The confidence tells you how clearly one key stood out. High confidence with a clear gap to the runner-up means the answer is solid. Low confidence means several keys fit nearly as well, which is common with sparse or unusual music. Check the runner-up first: if it is the relative major or minor, the song uses the same notes either way, and your ear decides which one feels like home, usually the chord the song ends on. Singers who need a different key can then move the song with the pitch changer, and producers can confirm the key of a sample before building a track around it.

When the key finder struggles

A song that changes key partway through, such as a pop song that lifts for the final chorus, still gets one overall key, usually the one it spends the most time in. Drum-only loops, spoken word, noise music, and atonal pieces have no clear key, so any answer is a guess. Recordings tuned well away from A 440, such as old tapes that ran fast or bands that tune down a quarter tone, can land between two keys. The tool reports the key, not the chords or the melody. The analysis happens in your browser, and the song is not uploaded.