Chords in the Key of D# Minor
The key of D# minor contains seven chords: D#m, E#dim, F#, G#m, A#m, B and C#. It is written with six sharps, and it is the rarest key in this set, because the same seven sounds are almost always written as Eb minor instead.
The seven chords on guitar
Each chord below opens its own page, with more shapes up the neck, audio for every voicing and a printable chart. Tap the play button on any card to hear it.
The seven chords on piano
The same seven chords on a keyboard, in root position. Each one opens its own page, with every inversion and the finger numbers for both hands.
iD#mE♭ G♭ B♭ 
the home chord, filed as Ebm
ii°E#dimF A♭ B 
the tense one, used sparingly, filed as Fdim
IIIF#F♯ A♯ C♯ 
the relative major, the bright lift
ivG#mG♯ B D♯ 
the darker step away from home
vA#mB♭ D♭ F 
the pull home, usually played major, filed as Bbm
VIBB D♯ F♯ 
the warm place to rest
VIIC#C♯ F G♯ 
a step below home, the rock cadence
The seventh chords in D# minor
Add one more note to each chord and the key gains its seventh chords, which is where most jazz and a good deal of soul begins.
Common progressions in D# minor
- i - VI - III - VII
D#m B F# C#
The most common minor progression there is. With a capo at the sixth fret these are Am, F, C and G shapes, which is about as easy as this key gets.
- i - iv - v
D#m G#m A#m
The plain minor cadence, and the sad one, because all three chords are minor. Songs very often play that last chord major instead, as A# or A#7, which pulls much harder back to D#m.
- i - VII - VI
D#m C# B
Three chords walking down in whole steps. This is the sound of most minor key rock, and it never resolves upward, it just falls and starts again.
- i - iv - VII - III
D#m G#m C# F#
This one keeps drifting toward F#, the relative major, so it sounds less dark than the others. Stop on F# and the music sounds like it has gone home to a major key.
Why these seven chords
On a stave, D# minor is written with six sharps, which is how a reader knows the key before playing a note.
D# minor is the natural minor scale built on D#, and its chords follow the usual minor pattern: i, ii diminished, III, iv, v, VI and VII. The home chord is D#m, and the two chords a song leans on most are G#m and A#m, the iv and the v.
Most players meet this music under a different name. Eb minor is the same seven sounds spelled with flats: Ebm, Fdim, Gb, Abm, Bbm, Cb and Db. Eb minor has six flats, D# minor has six sharps, and neither is simpler, so editors usually pick Eb minor because the surrounding music is already written in flats. One more spelling point: E#dim is the correct name for the ii chord, even though nearly every chart writes it as Fdim. A minor scale uses each letter name once, and this scale already uses F#, so its second note has to be called E#. Our site files chords under the names people search for, so clicking a chord here can land you on a page spelled the other way. That is normal, not an error: the shape and the sound are the same.
On guitar
There is no polite way to say it: D# minor is one of the hardest keys on a guitar. Not one of the seven chords has an open shape. D#m is an Am shape barred at the sixth fret or an Em shape barred at the eleventh, G#m is an Em shape barred at the fourth, A#m is an Am shape barred at the first, F# and B are the standard barres at the second, C# is an A shape barred at the fourth, and E#dim is a small diminished grip with no open strings in it.
So use a capo. Put the capo at the sixth fret and play A minor shapes: Am, Bdim, C, Dm, Em, F and G become D#m, E#dim, F#, G#m, A#m, B and C#. That turns a key of seven barres into a key with five open shapes. If the sixth fret is too high for the sound you want, a capo at the first fret with D minor shapes works the same way: Dm, Edim, F, Gm, Am, Bb and C land on the same seven chords, with two barres left in the set. Every diagram here has a left-handed toggle and prints, so you can keep the capo chart next to you.
On piano
The scale is D#, E#, F#, G#, A#, B and C#, which on the keys means five black notes and two white ones. E# is played as F and B is played as B, so the hand sits high on the black keys with two white notes falling under it. Pianists often find this comfortable rather than hard, because the raised keys give the fingers something to sit on.
The awkward chords are the ones that mix the two groups. E#dim is F, G# and B, which drops from a white key to a black key and back, and B major is B, D# and F#, one white key and two black. Both are easier once you pick a fingering and keep it. Our chord pages show every inversion for these chords with fingering for both hands, which is the quickest way to find a shape that does not make you jump.
Questions about the key of D# Minor
What are the 7 chords in the key of D# minor?
D#m, E#dim, F#, G#m, A#m, B and C#. D#m, G#m and A#m are minor, F#, B and C# are major, and E#dim is diminished.
Is D# minor the same as Eb minor?
They sound identical. D# minor is written with six sharps and Eb minor with six flats, and most sheet music uses Eb minor, so you will see these chords far more often as Ebm, Fdim, Gb, Abm, Bbm, Cb and Db.
What is the relative major of D# minor?
F# major. It has the same six sharps and the same seven chords, and only the resting chord changes: music in D# minor comes home to D#m, music in F# major comes home to F#.
Why do songs in D# minor use A# or A#7 instead of A#m?
Raising the third of the v chord gives the key a leading note and a much stronger pull back to D#m. That raised chord comes from the harmonic minor scale, and it is the one chord you will meet in this key that is not in the list of seven.
What is the easiest way to play in D# minor on guitar?
Capo at the sixth fret and play A minor shapes. Am, Bdim, C, Dm, Em, F and G then sound as D#m, E#dim, F#, G#m, A#m, B and C#, so you get the key without barring every chord.
What do the numbers next to each chord mean?
They are each chord's place in the key, written as Roman numerals. In D# minor the i is D#m, the iv is G#m and the v is A#m. The numbering holds in every key, so the v of A minor is Em. That is why progressions get written as numerals like i, VI, III, VII: learn one and you have it in all twelve minor keys.
Why are some numerals capitals and some lowercase?
The case tells you the chord quality. Lowercase are minor, which in D# minor means D#m, G#m and A#m. Capitals are major: F#, B and C#. The small circle on ii° means diminished, and here that is E#dim.
What is the relative major of D# minor?
F# major. It is written with six sharps, the same signature as D# minor, and it contains the same seven chords. Only the chord that sounds like home changes, from D#m to F#.
The relative major
F# major is written with the same six sharps and contains the same seven chords as D# minor. What changes is which one sounds like home, so the same shapes can be played brighter without learning anything new. Chords in the key of F#