12 scales (including enharmonic equivalents)
C Blues Scale
C – D# / Eb – F – F# / Gb – G – A# / Bb
C# or Db Blues Scale
C# / Db – E – F# / Gb – G – G# / Ab – B
D Blues Scale
D – F – G – G# / Ab – A – C
D# or Eb Blues Scale
D# / Eb – F# / Gb – G# / Ab – A – A# / Bb – C# / Db
E Blues Scale
E – G – A – A# / Bb – B – D
F Blues Scale
F – G# / Ab – A# / Bb – B – C – D# / Eb
F# or Gb Blues Scale
F# / Gb – A – B – C – C# / Db – E
G Blues Scale
G – A# / Bb – C – C# / Db – D – F
G# or Ab Blues Scale
G# / Ab – B – C# / Db – D – D# / Eb – F# / Gb
A Blues Scale
A – C – D – D# / Eb – E – G
A# or Bb Blues Scale
A# / Bb – C# / Db – D# / Eb – E – F – G# / Ab
B Blues Scale
B – D – E – F – F# / Gb – A
ANATOMY
Blues Scale Formula
The 6 scale degrees that build every blues scale — in any key.
The blues scale is the minor pentatonic with one extra note — the ♭5, added between the 4th and 5th. That single chromatic tone is the "blue note", the source of the scale's tense, vocal cry. The other five notes (1, ♭3, 4, 5, ♭7) are exactly the minor pentatonic, which is why the blues scale shares its box shapes and works over the same minor and dominant-7th backing.
Applied to A: A – C – D – Eb – E – G (A minor pentatonic plus the Eb blue note). Applied to E: E – G – A – Bb – B – D. Applied to G: G – Bb – C – Db – D – F.
About Blues Scales on Guitar
The blues scale is the six-note backbone of blues and rock lead guitar. Take any minor pentatonic scale and add the ♭5 — the "blue note" — between the 4th and 5th degrees, and you get a scale built for expression: the added chromatic tone creates the tense, crying sound that defines the blues. On guitar it maps onto the neck in the same five overlapping box shapes as the minor pentatonic, so learning one quietly teaches the other. The blue note works best as a passing tone — bent or slid through rather than held — and the scale sits naturally over minor chords, dominant 7ths, and twelve-bar blues progressions in any key.
- 01Built from 6 notes — scale degrees 1, ♭3, 4, ♭5, 5, ♭7
- 02Formed by adding the ♭5 "blue note" to the minor pentatonic
- 03The blue note is a chromatic passing tone between the 4th and 5th
- 04Tense, vocal, expressive sound that defines blues and rock
- 05Maps onto the guitar fretboard in the same 5 box positions as the minor pentatonic
- 06Works over minor chords, dominant 7ths, and twelve-bar blues
- 0712 unique blues scales cover every possible root note
Frequently Asked Questions
The blues scale is a six-note scale — the minor pentatonic with one extra note, the ♭5 "blue note", added between the 4th and 5th. In A that gives A, C, D, Eb, E, G. The added blue note is what creates the tense, vocal sound the blues is known for.
The notes depend on the root. A blues is A, C, D, Eb, E, G; E blues is E, G, A, Bb, B, D; G blues is G, Bb, C, Db, D, F. Every blues scale follows the same 1, ♭3, 4, ♭5, 5, ♭7 pattern — pick any of the 12 roots above to see and hear its exact notes.
There are 12 blues scales — one for each note in the chromatic scale: C, C#/Db, D, D#/Eb, E, F, F#/Gb, G, G#/Ab, A, A#/Bb, and B. Each contains the same six-note pattern starting from a different root.
The blues scale uses scale degrees 1, ♭3, 4, ♭5, 5, and ♭7 — in semitones, 0, 3, 5, 6, 7, 10 from the root. It is the minor pentatonic with the ♭5 added between the 4th and 5th.
The blues scale is the minor pentatonic with one extra note — the ♭5 "blue note" between the 4th and 5th. Otherwise the two scales are identical and share the same box shapes on the fretboard.
The blue note is the ♭5 — the flattened fifth that sits between the 4th and 5th degrees. It is a chromatic passing tone: used in motion (bent or slid through) it gives the blues its signature crying, vocal quality, but held too long it sounds tense and unresolved.
A blues and E blues are the classic starting points. The A blues box at fret 5 is the most-played shape in rock and blues, and E blues has open strings as scale tones — both sit under a huge amount of blues and rock lead guitar.
Yes — the major blues scale adds a ♭3 to the major pentatonic (degrees 1, 2, ♭3, 3, 5, 6) and sounds brighter, common in country and major-key blues. But "the blues scale" on its own almost always refers to the minor (hexatonic) blues scale shown here.