How many sharps does C# major have?

Seven: F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, E#, and B#.

The C# major scale — notes, intervals, and pattern

The C# major scale has seven sharps — F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, E#, and B# — and is the most extreme key on the sharp side of the circle of fifths. It's the enharmonic equivalent of D♭ major (five flats), and the latter is what almost all music in this pitch uses in print.

Interval pattern

The C# major scale is built from this fixed pattern of whole steps (W) and half steps (H):

Wwhole
Wwhole
Hhalf
Wwhole
Wwhole
Wwhole
Hhalf

Every major scale uses this same pattern, transposed to start on a different tonic. The half-steps fall between scale degrees 3–4 and 7–8.

Scale degrees and intervals

Each note of the scale, with its scale-degree name and interval from the root:

Degree	Note	Interval from root	Function
1	C#	Root	Tonic
2	D#	M2	Supertonic
3	E#	M3	Mediant
4	F#	P4	Subdominant
5	G#	P5	Dominant
6	A#	M6	Submediant
7	B#	M7	Subtonic / Leading tone

In melody and improvisation

C# major exists primarily as a theoretical scale. Bach's Prelude and Fugue in C# major (Well-Tempered Clavier I) is the canonical reason it has any practical existence — Bach wrote it specifically to prove the key was musically viable.

Relative key

The C# major scale shares its notes with A# minor. Same seven pitches, different tonal centre — when a piece moves between them, no accidentals change.

Common mistakes

Every letter of the C# scale is sharpened — including E# (= F natural) and B# (= C natural). If you find yourself writing in C# major, double-check whether D♭ major would notate more cleanly. It usually does.

Drill it

The Interval Trainer gives you a root note and an interval, and asks you to name the result. Practising the intervals of the C# major scale is the fastest way to internalise it as a melodic shape rather than a memorised string of notes.

Open the Interval Trainer →Or drill key signatures

Frequently asked

What are the notes in the C# major scale?: C#, D#, E#, F#, G#, A#, B#.
How many sharps does C# major have?: Seven: F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, E#, and B#.
What is the relative minor of C# major?: A# minor.