How do I use the key finder?

Open the studio and drop a song, or several. Each one shows its key, Camelot code, Open Key, a second candidate and the BPM within a few seconds.

How accurate is the song key finder?

On public research sets the right key is one of the two candidates for 75.8% of 604 dance tracks and 79.6% of 837 song clips in nine genres, and the first answer is exactly right for about 60%. Play the chords to settle the close ones.

Why does the key detector sometimes give the relative key?

A major key and its relative minor use the same notes, so the clue is which note feels like home. The other one is offered as the second candidate; play both chords against the song.

What is a Camelot code?

A number from 1 to 12 and a letter, A for minor and B for major, from the Camelot wheel DJs use. Keys a step apart, or with the same number, mix well.

Is it a key and BPM finder in one?

Yes. The same listen gives the key and the tempo, with half and double, and the BPM finder page shows the beat grid in more detail.

Can the music key finder read a video?

Yes. Drop an MP4, MOV, MKV or WebM file and its sound track is read directly.

Can I find the key from a song title?

No, it reads files you have. For a song you can only hear, find the home note by humming it, as the guide above explains.

What if the song changes key?

The reading is the key the song spends most of its time in. Trim the part you need with the audio trimmer and read that.

Does it work on a phone?

Yes, in the browser on a phone or a computer, free and with no account.

Key Finder: Find the Key and BPM of a Song

no sign-up, nothing to install: Free
and Open Key for every song: Camelot
the runner-up beside every key: 2 candidates
play the chord against the song: By ear
from the same listen: BPM too
for a whole folder of songs: CSV

How do you find the key of a song?

Drop the song into a key finder. It measures how much of each of the twelve notes sounds through the whole song and compares that mix with the pattern every major and minor key leaves, then names the key that fits best. A good song key finder also tells you the runner up, because a song and its relative key share the same notes.

Use the key finder in three steps

One song or a whole folder, audio or video.

Drop your songs
MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A or a video file. Drop several at once if you like.
Read the key
The key finder gives each song its key, Camelot code, Open Key and BPM in a few seconds.
Check by ear and export
Play the chord against the song, switch to the second candidate if it sounds better, then download the CSV.

A key detector you can check by ear

Every reading comes with what you need to trust it, use it and mix with it.

The key in every notation

The key finder gives the key as musicians write it, A minor or E♭ major, its Camelot code for DJs, its Open Key code, which some DJ software uses, and its relative key, the one that shares the same notes.

On the Camelot wheel

The key lights up on the Camelot wheel, with the three keys that mix with it: one step either way and its relative. That is the whole rule of harmonic mixing, drawn where you can see it.

Check the key by ear

Play the song, then the key’s chord or scale: the right key sounds settled with the music, a wrong one clashes. Do the same with the second candidate and keep whichever sits better.

A second candidate, and how sure it is

Each reading says how clearly the song pointed to its key, and the music key finder always shows the second candidate next to it, often the relative key or a fifth away; one click makes it the answer.

A key and BPM finder for whole folders

Drop a crate of songs. Each one gets its key, Camelot code and tempo, the list sorts into Camelot order for mixing, and the CSV goes straight into a spreadsheet or your DJ notes.

Accuracy you can look up

Tested on public research sets: the right key is one of the two candidates for 75.8% of 604 electronic dance tracks and 79.6% of 837 song clips in nine genres; the first answer is exactly right for 59.8% and 60.8%.

Key finder samples

Two cadences made here in A minor and E♭ major, so the readings can be checked against the truth, and songs made on this site. Play one, then its chord.

Key guide: reading, checking and mixing in key

What the key of a song is

The key is the note a song feels at home on, and the scale built on it. In a major key the third note above home is four semitones up, and the music tends to sound bright; in a minor key it is three, and it tends to sound darker. So A minor and A major share their home note but not their mood.

Most pop, rock and dance music stays in one key from start to finish, which is why a single reading describes the whole song.

Why relative keys get mixed up

Every major key has a relative minor that uses exactly the same seven notes: C major and A minor, G major and E minor. A song key finder sees the notes, so the deciding clue is which note the music keeps returning to.

When a song circles between the two, the reading names one and offers the other as the second candidate. Play both chords against the chorus: the home key sounds like an ending, its relative like a pause.

Camelot, Open Key and harmonic mixing

The Camelot wheel numbers the keys like a clock, 1 to 12, with A for minor and B for major. Moving one number either way changes one note of the scale, so two songs a step apart blend smoothly; the same number with the other letter is the relative key.

Open Key is the same wheel numbered differently, with m for minor and d for major. The key detector gives both codes, so the list matches whichever DJ software you use.

1Same code: the safest blend.
2One number up or down, same letter: a smooth change of mood.
3Same number, other letter: from minor to its relative major, or back.
4Two numbers up: an energy lift that works for a short blend.

Finding the key by ear

Hum the note that would end the song, the one that sounds like home, and find it on a piano or a tuner app: that is the tonic. Then sing the third note above it: if it sounds happy, the key is probably major; if it sounds sad, minor.

The chord buttons do the same check for you: play the song, then the chord of each candidate, and listen for the one that sounds at rest.

Choosing a key for a cover

Once you know the original key, count how many semitones you need to move to fit your voice: down two from E major is D major. Keep the same mode, major or minor, and every chord moves by the same amount.

Guitarists often keep the original shapes and use a capo instead; pianists and producers transpose the whole part.

Write the original key and Camelot code next to the new one in your notes, so the band and the backing track agree.

Keys in your DAW and DJ software

Set the project key in your DAW to the key detector’s reading and the scale tools and MIDI effects follow it; most current DAWs have this setting. In DJ software, put the Camelot code in the key or comment field from the CSV so your library sorts by it.