The short version
- It's a free online piano and music keyboard. Play it with a mouse, touchscreen, computer keyboard or MIDI keyboard. No signup, no download, no "free trial".
- Computer keys: the home row A S D F G H J K plays the white keys C D E F G A B C, and W E T Y U plays the black keys. Z/X change octave.
- Middle C is C4. Find any group of two black keys. The white key just left of them is a C.
- Major chord = root + 4 + 3 semitones. C–E–G is C major. Minor is +3 +4: A–C–E is A minor. The keyboard names whatever you hold.
- First songs to try: Hot Cross Buns, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle Twinkle. All white keys, all close to middle C, all in the song trainer.
- The sounds are yours. They're synthesised in your browser, not sampled, so your WAV recordings carry no sample licence.
How to play piano with your computer keyboard
Your laptop is secretly a piano. Set Labels to Computer keys and every piano key shows the letter that plays it. The keys in your current playing zone get a faint blue lip along the bottom.
| Computer key | Piano note | Computer key | Piano note |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | C4 (middle C) | W | C♯4 / D♭4 |
| S | D4 | E | D♯4 / E♭4 |
| D | E4 | T | F♯4 / G♭4 |
| F | F4 | Y | G♯4 / A♭4 |
| G | G4 | U | A♯4 / B♭4 |
| H | A4 (440 Hz) | O | C♯5 |
| J | B4 | P | D♯5 |
| K L ; ' | C5 D5 E5 F5 | Space | Sustain pedal (hold) |
Laptop keyboards have limits. Many can't register more than three or four keys at once, so big chords may drop a note. That's your keyboard's hardware, not the piano. A cheap USB MIDI keyboard fixes it, and so does using your mouse and keys together.
Piano keys 101: names, octaves and middle C
A piano looks like 88 keys of chaos, but it's really one pattern of 12 keys (7 white, 5 black) repeated over and over. Learn one octave and you've learned the lot.
- White keys go C D E F G A B, then start again at C.
- Black keys come in groups of two and three. A C is always the white key just left of a group of two. That's how pianists find their way around without counting.
- Each black key has two names. The one between C and D is C♯ (sharp, a bit higher than C) and D♭ (flat, a bit lower than D). Same key, same sound, two names. Music theory loves that sort of thing.
- Octave numbers tell you which C you mean. Middle C is C4, the C above it is C5, and the A above middle C, A4, is the 440 Hz tuning note your guitar tuner cares about.
- A semitone is the step from one key to the very next one, black or white. Two semitones make a tone. Chords and scales are just recipes written in semitones.
Easy piano songs to learn first (with the notes)
All of these are public domain and in the song trainer above. Here are the notes if you'd rather work them out the old-fashioned way. Every one starts near middle C and stays on the white keys, except Für Elise, which is showing off.
| Song | Level | First notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hot Cross Buns | Warm-up | E D C · E D C · CCCC DDDD · E D C |
| Mary Had a Little Lamb | Easy | E D C D E E E · D D D · E G G |
| Twinkle Twinkle Little Star | Easy | C C G G A A G · F F E E D D C |
| Frère Jacques | Easy | C D E C · C D E C · E F G · E F G |
| Ode to Joy | Easy-ish | E E F G G F E D · C C D E E D D |
| London Bridge | Easy-ish | G A G F E F G · D E F · E F G |
| Jingle Bells | Medium | E E E · E E E · E G C D E |
| Happy Birthday | Medium | G G A G C B · G G A G D C |
| Für Elise | Show-off | E D♯ E D♯ E B D C A |
Finish a song and it gets a ✓ in the list. Finish it with no wrong notes and it gets a 🌟. I'm not saying you need all nine stars. I'm just saying the list notices.
Piano chords in 30 seconds
A chord is three or more notes played together. The two you'll use most are built by counting keys, black ones included:
- Major (happy): root, up 4, up 3. C → E → G
- Minor (sad, or "moody indie"): root, up 3, up 4. A → C → E
| Chord | Notes | Chord | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| C major | C E G | A minor | A C E |
| F major | F A C | D minor | D F A |
| G major | G B D | E minor | E G B |
| D major | D F♯ A | G7 | G B D F |
Try this: play C, then G, then Am, then F, and loop it. Congratulations, you now know the chords to about four hundred hit songs. The chord progression generator has plenty more where that came from.
Play the notes in a different order, say E–G–C, and you get an inversion. It's still C major, just wearing a different hat. The keyboard shows it as C/E, meaning "C chord, E in the bass".
Scales without the boring bit
A scale is the set of notes that "belong" to a key. Pick one in Show me a scale or chord and dots appear on the keys. Then just noodle around on the dotted notes. It's very hard to sound bad there, which is the whole point.
- C major is every white key. That's why beginners start there.
- A minor is also every white key. It just starts on A, so it feels sadder.
- Minor pentatonic (5 notes) is the cheat code behind most guitar solos and a lot of improvising. Try it in A and you can't play a wrong note.
- Blues is minor pentatonic with one extra "blue" note. Put on sunglasses before you use it.
The five sounds, and what they're good for
- Grand piano: the default. Bass notes ring longer and every note gets darker as it fades, like a real one.
- Electric piano: that warm, bell-ish 70s sound. Perfect for lo-fi chords and pretending you're in a soul band.
- Church-ish organ: holds for as long as you press. Add sustain and some reverb for instant cathedral.
- Retro synth: two detuned sawtooth waves through a filter. Synthwave, basically.
- Music box: tiny, twinkly, slightly haunted. Try Für Elise on it at midnight. Actually, don't.
Using it for Suno and AI music
If you make songs with Suno, the keyboard is a quick way to find chords before you prompt. Every chord you play gets logged in Chords you played. Press Copy as Suno prompt and you get a ready-made snippet like piano-led, chord progression C – G – Am – F to paste into the style box. Pair it with the style-prompt formula and the BPM cheat-sheet, and the AI has far less room to guess.
Online music keyboard vs a real keyboard: the honest bit
An online music keyboard is brilliant for learning where the notes are, working out chords and sketching a melody at 1 a.m. without waking anyone. It is free, it is already on your laptop, and it never needs new batteries.
What it can't do is feel your fingers. Laptop keys are either pressed or not, so there is no soft or loud, and that is half of what makes piano sound like piano. If you get hooked (you will), a cheap 25- or 49-key MIDI keyboard plugs straight into this page and suddenly velocity and the sustain pedal just work. When you want to loop the melody you found, drop it into the online music sequencer and put a beat under it.
How it works, and what it does with your data
There are no recordings behind this page. Every sound is built live from oscillators with the Web Audio API. The piano layers two slightly detuned tones with a filter that closes as the note decays, and the electric piano uses FM synthesis, which is how the classic 80s keyboards did it. The reverb is a generated room tail, not a recorded hall. That's why the page loads instantly and keeps working once you lose signal.
WAV export re-renders your take offline at 44.1 kHz in your browser. MIDI goes straight from your keyboard to the page. Nothing you play leaves your device. There's no account, no microphone and no uploads. Your settings and learned songs live in your own browser storage.
Online piano keyboard FAQ
What is an online music keyboard?
A piano-style keyboard that lives in your browser. Click it, tap it, play it with your laptop letters or plug in a MIDI keyboard. This one is free, names your chords and records WAVs. No download, no account, no neighbours knocking on the wall (well, fewer).
Is an online music keyboard good enough to learn on?
For note names, chords, scales and easy songs, absolutely. Your laptop keys can't feel how hard you press, though, so plug in even a tiny 25-key MIDI keyboard when you want dynamics and a real sustain pedal.
Can I play piano online for free?
Yes, completely. No account, no download and no time limit. Use the mouse, touch, computer keys or a MIDI keyboard.
How do I play it with my computer keyboard?
The home row is the white keys (A = C, S = D, D = E… K = the next C), and the row above is the black keys (W, E, T, Y, U, O, P). Z and X change octave, and holding the space bar is the sustain pedal.
Where is middle C?
It's the fourth C from the left on an 88-key piano, labelled C4 here. Any C is the white key just left of a pair of black keys.
What are the piano key names?
The white keys are C D E F G A B, repeating. The black keys are sharps and flats: C♯/D♭, D♯/E♭, F♯/G♭, G♯/A♭, A♯/B♭.
How many keys does a piano have?
88 on a full piano (52 white, 36 black). Keyboards often have 61 or 76, and small MIDI controllers 25 to 49. This one shows 1 to 5 octaves and scrolls with the ◀ ▶ buttons.
What are the easiest songs to learn?
Hot Cross Buns, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle Twinkle, Frère Jacques and Ode to Joy. They're white keys only and all in the song trainer.
How do I make a chord?
For major, count root + 4 semitones + 3 more (C E G). For minor, count 3 then 4 (A C E). Or just hold some keys and let the readout tell you what you played.
Can I connect a MIDI keyboard?
Yes, in Chrome, Edge and Firefox. Press Connect MIDI keyboard and allow access. Velocity and the sustain pedal work. Safari doesn't support Web MIDI yet.
Can I record and download what I play?
Yes. Press Record, play, press Stop, then play it back or download a stereo WAV. It's rendered in your browser and never uploaded.
Does it work on phones and iPads?
Yes, with multi-touch for chords and finger slides for glissandos. Turn your phone sideways for more keys. On iPhone, flip off silent mode, because iOS mutes web audio on silent.
Why can't I hear anything?
Tap a key first (browsers block sound until you do), check the iPhone silent switch, and check the volume slider. It's almost always one of those three.
Can I use the sounds in my own songs?
Yes, commercially too. They're synthesised by code, not sampled from someone else's instrument, so there's no sample licence on your exports.
Can I use my computer keyboard as a MIDI keyboard?
On this page, yes: your letter keys play the piano directly, no hardware needed. To send MIDI notes from your computer keyboard into music software, use its built-in typing keyboard, such as Musical Typing in GarageBand and Logic or the computer MIDI keyboard in Ableton Live (press M), or a free virtual MIDI keyboard app such as VMPK.
Do I need to buy a MIDI keyboard to start learning piano?
No. Your computer keyboard is plenty for learning note names, chords and simple songs here. When you want both hands and control over how loud each note is, a 49- or 61-key USB MIDI keyboard plugs straight into this page in Chrome, Edge or Firefox.
Found some chords you like? Turn them into a song.
The free Paddy Prompt Studio turns your chords, tempo and vibe into a full Suno style prompt, plus a matching Vidmuse music-video script.
Open the Prompt Studio →