Chart of Intervals, Inversions, and More

The tables below list details on common and not so common intervals.

Unisons

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
unison P1 0 1 octave Interval - unison
augmented unison A1 1 1 diminished octave Interval - augmented unison

Seconds

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished second d2 0 2 augmented seventh Interval - diminished second
minor second m2 1 2 major seventh Interval - minor second
major second M2 2 2 minor seventh Interval - major second
augmented second A2 3 2 diminished seventh Interval - augmented second

Thirds

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished third d3 2 3 augmented sixth Interval - diminished third
minor third m3 3 3 major sixth Interval - minor third
major third M3 4 3 minor sixth Interval - major third
augmented third A3 5 3 diminished sixth Interval - augmented third

Fourths

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished fourth d4 4 4 augmented fifth Interval - diminished fourth
perfect fourth P4 5 4 perfect fifth Interval - perfect fourth
augmented fourth A4 6 4 diminished fifth Interval - augmented fourth

Fifths

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished fifth d5 6 5 augmented fourth Interval - diminished fifth
perfect fifth P5 7 5 perfect fourth Interval - perfect fifth
augmented fifth A5 8 5 diminished fourth Interval - augmented fifth

Sixths

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished sixth d6 7 6 augmented third Interval - diminished sixth
minor sixth m6 8 6 major third Interval - minor sixth
major sixth M6 9 6 minor third Interval - major sixth
augmented sixth A6 10 6 diminished third Interval - augmented sixth

Sevenths

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished seventh d7 9 7 augmented second Interval - diminished seventh
minor seventh m7 10 7 major second Interval - minor seventh
major seventh M7 11 7 minor second Interval - major seventh
augmented seventh A7 12 7 diminished second Interval - augmented seventh

Octaves

Interval Shorthand # of Half Steps # of Letters Inversion Example
diminished octave d8 11 8 augmented unison Interval - diminished octave
octave P8 12 8 unison Interval - octave
augmented octave a8 13 8 diminished unison Interval - augmented octave

Note that the tables given above are not an exhaustive list of all intervals. It covers most intervals, including some that are less common, but you should keep in mind that other intervals are possible. Intervals such as a diminished third or augmented unison don't occur frequently in actual music, but are worth learning. If you take a college-level music theory course, you will have to identify intervals like this on tests.