88-Key Piano Note Chart
The full 88-key piano, A0 to C8 · every key named · tap to hear · C4 is middle C
How to play
- Tap any key to hear it and see its full name (letter + octave number).
- Pick a note above the keyboard to light up every key with that name across the octaves.
- White keys are the natural notes C D E F G A B; the black keys are the sharps/flats between them — grouped in 2s and 3s.
- A full piano has 88 keys from the lowest A0 to the highest C8 — 52 white and 36 black. The number after a letter is the octave; C4 is middle C. Scroll sideways to reach the ends. Vol sets volume.
- Keyboard — Tab to a key or control, Enter/Space to activate. Scroll the keys sideways on small screens.
A complete piano note chart from low A0 to high C8 across 88 keys to help you find your way around a typical acoustic piano on this page. There are two primary methods for interacting with it. Clicking (or tapping) the key shows you the note’s name and plays it. To have greater control over where you go and what you play, use your own computer keyboard instead.
The key range on the piano go from A0 to C8. The natural notes or white keys are: C D E F G A B with black keys between these that is sharps or flats. Scroll left or right for a complete view of the keys. On a small screen this can be useful as it doesn’t all fit in one go.
How to Use the Piano Chart
On each key are the note name (letter), and what octave number it is. Middle C is shown as C4 on this keyboard; this acts as a common focal point of reference. As you press keys they light up for a moment to allow you to follow where you are playing. Above the keyboard is an area that display the precise frequency in hertz, along with the note name itself. This enables you to relate the physical key to the theory behind it.
The next one is the Find note row which lights up all occurrences of that pitch class on the keyboard. So if you click on C then all of the C’s will light up. You can also use it like this: click A sharp, and both the A sharp and G flat keys will highlight. It is great for seeing scales and other patterns. It will clear itself once you click the same key again.
On the far right is a slider for the master volume. Dragging it right increases the volume and dragging left decreases it. This means that whatever note you play, they will be at the same comfortabley volume.
Quick reference info is available in the Help panel. To open/collapse the help, tap the How to play button. Here you’ll find some basic info about key grouping and keyboard navigation. This is handy if you’re not familiar with the layout, or just want to check how the controls operate.
The widget also supports fullscreen mode, which maximizes it across your screen. The benefit here is that you have more room to view the keys and their corresponding labels. Handy for mobile devices or small windows. To enable fullscreen mode, simply click the Fullscreen button. You can exit by tapping the same button again, or hitting the Escape key.
Focus control is available with the Tab key so that users can navigate around the controls and keys on their keyboards. Once they have a key/button in focus, pressing Space or Enter will activate it, making the tool usable without touch input or a mouse. You’ll notice an outline appearing around what’s in focus.
To gain an appreciation of where the notes fall on the keyboard, try playing some common tunes. Observe that there is no random scattering of black keys but they tend to appear in two’s or three’s. This makes it easier to find your way as you move up the octaves. The note highlighting can be used to see intervals too.
In practice when checking out note names use the chart. Not sure if it’s F5? Check straight away by looking it up on the chart. No need to count upwards or downwards from a starting note. This helps to strengthen that mental image of the keyboard as well as saving time.
To make the most of this widget I would combine visual and auditory feedback. Seeing the name of the key alongside hearing the pitch helps embed it more firmly into your mind. It helps train your ears and helps you remember. It is an easy method for reinforcing early piano literacy.
It is fine to explore the extremes of the piano keyboard. Low notes are rich and resonate well. High notes is light and have an airy quality. It is interesting how these compare. Just scroll up and down and listen as it goes from octave to octave.
This is a useful visual guide to both theory and notation. Bookmark this page so that you have it at hand when studying music. Use it as a reference point when checking an interval or a note too. As you progress through your studies just go back to this site and use it as a support tool in your learning.
Begin with locating middle C and then play a basic scale. Experiment with highlighting other notes and consider where they are placed. Set the volume to suit yourself comfortabley. Have fun listening to how the piano sounds and how it is built.