B natural minor scale
B natural minor scale is B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ – G – A, with C♯ and F♯. Formula 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7. Press play and follow the keys.
The notes, one step at a time
Counted in steps it goes W H W W H W W (W = whole step, H = half step). The half steps fall between C♯–D and F♯–G.
| Degree | Note | Interval from B | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | root | |
| 2 | C♯ | major second | |
| ♭3 | D | minor third | |
| 4 | E | perfect fourth | |
| 5 | F♯ | perfect fifth | |
| ♭6 | G | minor sixth | |
| ♭7 | A | minor seventh |
What B natural minor sounds like
Play B natural minor next to B major and three notes drop: the 3rd, 6th and 7th. That lowered 3rd is what makes it sound minor; the lowered 6th and 7th make it softer and less pushy at the top.
Its signature sound is G and A, the major chords on the ♭6 and ♭7, stepping back to Bm: G – A – Bm.
Compared with B major scale, B natural minor scale has D, G and A where the other has D♯, G♯ and A♯; the other four notes are shared. Hear B major scale and compare.
B natural minor scale uses the same seven notes as D major, starting from B instead of D.
Playing B natural minor
Keyboard players: two black (C♯ and F♯), five white.
The guitar box starts with the root at the 7th fret of the low E string and spans frets 5–11: 17 notes, low string to high.
The key of B minor
Songs in B minor are built from these notes, so the key signature has two sharps (F♯, C♯). The relative major is D major: same notes, starting on the 3rd degree. The parallel major, B major, starts on the same note with different notes above it.
Chords and progressions in B minor
Chords built on each note
Stack every other note of the scale on each degree and you get 7 chords. These are the chords of the key. Tap to hear each one.
If you know B natural minor scale, you already know the notes of C♯ Locrian (starting on the 2nd note, C♯), D major (starting on the 3rd note, D), E Dorian (starting on the 4th note, E), F♯ Phrygian (starting on the 5th note, F♯), G Lydian (starting on the 6th note, G) and A Mixolydian (starting on the 7th note, A).
B natural minor scale across the fretboard
Anchor points for B: low E string fret 7, A string fret 2 and 14. Five overlapping fingerings cover the neck, starting near frets 2, 4, 7, 9 and 12 on the low E string. On guitar it shares every note with the relative major, so the same boxes work with a different root in mind.
On the piano, B natural minor scale uses 2 black keys (C♯ and F♯) and 5 white.
A good drill once the scale is under your fingers: play it in thirds, skipping one note each time. Here that's B–D, C♯–E, D–F♯, E–G, F♯–A, G–B, A–C♯.
Drills for B natural minor
Running a scale straight up and down only teaches the order. These patterns use the same 7 notes and train your ear and fingers to jump around inside B natural minor scale.
- Three-note runs: B C♯ D · C♯ D E · D E F♯ · E F♯ G · F♯ G A · G A B.
- Land on G: B G B G B: the ♭6 is what makes natural minor darker than Dorian.
Scales to compare with B natural minor
Natural minor scale in every key
B natural minor scale: questions
What are the notes of the B natural minor scale?
B, C♯, D, E, F♯, G and A, then B again at the octave. Formula: 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7.
How many sharps or flats are in the B natural minor scale?
Two: C♯ and F♯. That matches the key signature of B minor.
What chords are in the B natural minor scale?
Stacking thirds on each note gives Bm (i), C♯dim (ii°), D (III), Em (iv), F♯m (v), G (VI) and A (VII).
What's the difference between B natural minor scale and B major scale?
D, G and A in B natural minor; D♯, G♯ and A♯ in the other. Everything else is the same.
Which major scale has the same notes as B natural minor scale?
D major. B natural minor is D major played from its 6th note, B.
Generated from the step pattern 2-1-2-2-1-2-2 and checked by the site's tests. Updated September 2026.