F Natural minorScale · F Aeolian

Formula

W H W W H W W 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
The family

F Natural minor on the chromatic circle

F Natural minor is the 6th mode of the Major family. Pick another note on the circle to open the scale that starts there.

W W H W W W H ♭3 A♭I Ionian 4 B♭II Dorian 5 CIII Phrygian ♭6 D♭IV Lydian ♭7 E♭V Mixolydian 1 FVI Aeolian 2 GVII Locrian F Aeolian
The whole neck

F Natural minor across the fretboard

Every note of the scale up to the 16th fret, named by its degree. The root is a ring. Step through the five CAGED positions one at a time in the scale library.

3 5 7 9 12 15 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 1 2
Harmony

Chords in F Natural minor

Stack every other note of the scale from each degree and you get its chords. Open any of them in the chord library.

DegreeChordNotes
iFm7F A♭ C E♭
ii°Gm7♭5G B♭ D♭ F
♭IIIA♭maj7A♭ C E♭ G
ivB♭m7B♭ D♭ F A♭
vCm7C E♭ G B♭
♭VID♭maj7D♭ F A♭ C
♭VIIE♭7E♭ G B♭ D♭
Context

Where F Natural minor fits

Natural minor: rock, pop and metal in minor keys, over progressions like i–♭VI–♭VII and i–iv–v.

F Natural minor is mode 6 of the major family. The same notes played from each of its other degrees give the family's other modes:

Move one note by a half step and you get a different scale:

Natural minor scale in every key

F Natural minor scale questions

What notes are in the F Natural minor scale?

F G A♭ B♭ C D♭ E♭. As degrees from the root: 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7.

What is the F Natural minor scale formula?

1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7, or in steps between the notes, W H W W H W W (W is a whole step of two frets, H a half step of one fret, 1½ three frets).

How do you play the F Natural minor scale on guitar?

This page draws every note of F Natural minor up to the 16th fret, each named by its degree with the root as a ring. To learn it a few frets at a time, open it in the scale library and step through its five CAGED positions, from the E shape to the D shape to the C shape to the A shape to the G shape.

What chords are in the F Natural minor scale?

Fm7 (i), Gm7♭5 (ii°), A♭maj7 (♭III), B♭m7 (iv), Cm7 (v), D♭maj7 (♭VI), E♭7 (♭VII).

When is the F Natural minor scale used?

Natural minor: rock, pop and metal in minor keys, over progressions like i–♭VI–♭VII and i–iv–v.