Camelot Wheel

How the Camelot System Works

• Same number, A↔B, relative major/minor. Smooth energy shift (e.g., 8A ↔ 8B)
• +1 or -1, same letter, adjacent on the wheel. Subtle key change (e.g., 8A → 9A)
• Same code, perfect harmonic match, no key change needed

Reading the Wheel

The outer ring contains major keys (B) and the inner ring contains minor keys (A). Each position on the wheel represents a key's relationship to its neighbors. Keys next to each other are harmonically compatible and will sound smooth when mixed together. The further apart two keys are on the wheel, the more dissonant they'll sound when played simultaneously.

What Is the Camelot Wheel?

The Camelot wheel is a circular chart that assigns a number (1–12) and letter (A or B) to each of the 24 musical keys, making harmonic mixing accessible to DJs who don't read music theory. Developed by Mark Davis and popularized by the software Mixed In Key, it works like a clock face where adjacent keys are guaranteed to sound smooth together. The system is now the standard for harmonic mixing in Rekordbox, Serato, Traktor, and Engine DJ. Want the full walkthrough? Read the complete Camelot wheel guide for DJs. For a printable table, see our Camelot wheel cheat sheet. Need diagrams for your own blog post or tutorial? Grab the free Camelot Wheel SVG pack with 24 per-key diagrams plus 5 rule explainers and an attribution-only license.

Camelot Wheel Rules

1. Same code, mixing two tracks with the same Camelot code (e.g., 8A to 8A) is always harmonically safe
2. Move ±1, same letter, shifting one position on the wheel (e.g., 8A to 9A or 7A) creates a subtle, natural key change
3. Switch A↔B, same number, moving between minor and major on the same number (e.g., 8A to 8B) shifts the energy without clashing
4. Avoid large jumps, keys more than 1 step apart on the wheel will likely clash unless you use EQ to isolate elements

Camelot Wheel in DJ Software

• Rekordbox, displays Camelot codes natively. Sort your library by key to plan harmonic sets
• Traktor, uses Open Key notation (1m–12d), which maps 1:1 to Camelot. Use our key converter to translate
• Serato, supports both Camelot and standard musical keys. Check our harmonic mixing chart for the full reference
• Mixed In Key, the original Camelot software. Analyzes your tracks and writes the Camelot code to the file metadata

Browse Each Key

Each Camelot code has its own page with the musical key, compatible keys, real tracks in that key, and the genres that live there:

Frequently Asked Questions