Piano arpeggios: notes, staff and fingering
A piano arpeggio plays a chord one note at a time: root, third, fifth and octave. When the root is a white key the right hand uses 1 2 3 5 for one octave and 1 2 3 1 2 3 5 for two. The pages below write that out for C, G, F and D major and for A, E and C minor.
What an arpeggio is
An arpeggio is a chord played one note at a time. A major or minor arpeggio in root position uses the root, the third and the fifth, then the root again at the top. C major is C, E, G, C. It is not the scale. The scale also includes D, F, A and B, and those notes are left out on purpose.
On the piano the usual one-octave right-hand fingering, when the root is a white key, is 1 2 3 5. Two octaves continue 1 2 3 1 2 3 5: the thumb passes under the third finger exactly once, on the way from the fifth back to the root. That is the shape Clef drills. The left hand for an all-white arpeggio is 5 4 2 1. If the third is a black key, the left hand uses 5 3 2 1 so a longer finger plays the black key and the thumb stays on a white key.
Major arpeggios
Every arpeggio below is spelled from its own key. F sharp major is F sharp, A sharp, C sharp, F sharp. D flat major, which uses the same piano keys as C sharp major, is written D flat, F, A flat, D flat. The spelling follows the signature, not the other enharmonic name.
| Arpeggio | Notes | On this site |
|---|---|---|
| C major | C, E, G, C | Fingering page |
| G major | G, B, D, G | Fingering page |
| D major | D, F♯, A, D | Fingering page |
| A major | A, C♯, E, A | Scale page |
| E major | E, G♯, B, E | Scale page |
| B major | B, D♯, F♯, B | Scale page |
| F Sharp major | F♯, A♯, C♯, F♯ | Scale page |
| D Flat major | D♭, F, A♭, D♭ | Scale page |
| A Flat major | A♭, C, E♭, A♭ | Scale page |
| E Flat major | E♭, G, B♭, E♭ | Scale page |
| B Flat major | B♭, D, F, B♭ | Scale page |
| F major | F, A, C, F | Fingering page |
Minor arpeggios
A minor arpeggio uses the tonic triad of the natural minor: root, minor third, fifth. The raised seventh of the harmonic minor is not part of it. E minor is E, G, B, E, not E, G, B, D sharp. D sharp belongs to the dominant chord.
| Arpeggio | Notes | On this site |
|---|---|---|
| A minor | A, C, E, A | Fingering page |
| E minor | E, G, B, E | Fingering page |
| B minor | B, D, F♯, B | Scale page |
| F Sharp minor | F♯, A, C♯, F♯ | Scale page |
| C Sharp minor | C♯, E, G♯, C♯ | Scale page |
| G Sharp minor | G♯, B, D♯, G♯ | Scale page |
| E Flat minor | E♭, G♭, B♭, E♭ | Scale page |
| B Flat minor | B♭, D♭, F, B♭ | Scale page |
| F minor | F, A♭, C, F | Scale page |
| C minor | C, E♭, G, C | Fingering page |
| G minor | G, B♭, D, G | Scale page |
| D minor | D, F, A, D | Scale page |
Which ones to learn first
Start with C, G and F major. Their chord tones are all white keys, the right hand starts with the thumb, and the left hand is 5 4 2 1. A minor and E minor use that same hand shape. D major and C minor are the next step: the third is black, the right hand still starts with the thumb, and the left hand changes to 5 3 2 1.
Arpeggios that start on a black key (B flat, E flat, A flat, D flat, G flat and F sharp) do not start with the thumb. The right hand usually begins with finger 2. Those shapes are real, and they are different enough that a copied white-key fingering would be wrong. This guide names their notes in the tables and writes the fingering out only for the white-key roots above.
- C Major arpeggio: fingering and staff
- G Major arpeggio: fingering and staff
- F Major arpeggio: fingering and staff
- D Major arpeggio: fingering and staff
- A Minor arpeggio: fingering and staff
- E Minor arpeggio: fingering and staff
- C Minor arpeggio: fingering and staff
How this connects to reading
Sight-reading gets easier when a group of notes is a chord you already know. After the arpeggio is in the hand, read the same notes on the staff without looking at the finger numbers. The scale page for the same key shows the notes the arpeggio leaves out, which is the usual place a reading error comes from.
The button below opens Clef on the App Store. There is no email step.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a scale and an arpeggio?
A scale steps through every note of the key. An arpeggio keeps only the root, third and fifth, then the octave. C major scale is C D E F G A B C. The C major arpeggio is C E G C.
What is the standard right-hand fingering?
For a root-position arpeggio that starts on a white key, one octave is 1 2 3 5 and two octaves are 1 2 3 1 2 3 5. The thumb crosses under the third finger at the start of the second octave.
Why is the left hand sometimes 5 3 2 1 instead of 5 4 2 1?
When the third is a black key, finger 3 plays it and the thumb still lands on the white root. D major and C minor use 5 3 2 1. All-white arpeggios such as C, G and F major use 5 4 2 1.
Does a minor arpeggio include the raised seventh?
No. The minor arpeggio is the tonic triad. The raised seventh belongs to the harmonic minor scale and to the major chord on the fifth degree, not to the tonic arpeggio.