D Major Scale, Chords & Songs

D major has 2 sharps (F♯ and C♯) and a bright, anthem-like quality. Common in rock, pop, and country. Bach and Handel wrote many works in D major for its trumpet-bright character.

The D Major scale

The D Major scale contains seven notes: D – E – F# – G – A – B – C#. Key signature: 2 sharps (F♯, C♯).

DEGABDEGC#F#C#F#

All notes in the D Major scale highlighted on the keyboard.

Diatonic chords in D Major

These seven chords are built on each scale degree. They're the natural chord palette for songs in D Major — most pop progressions like I-V-vi-IV use only these.

RomanChordQualityOpen
IDMajorLearn D
iiEmMinorLearn Em
iiiF#mMinorLearn F#m
IVGMajorLearn G
VAMajorLearn A
viBmMinorLearn Bm
vii°C#dimDiminishedLearn C#dim

Quick facts

Key signature
2 sharps (F♯, C♯)
Relative minor
B minor
Difficulty on piano
Intermediate — 2 sharps, common pop key.
Songs in our catalog
1,112 pieces

Popular songs in D Major

1,112 songs total — top picks below.

Explore other keys