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Piano & guitar chord finder

Pick a root note and a chord type to see the notes on a piano keyboard and a guitar fretboard, and hear how the chord sounds.

Root note

Chord type

C

C

Notes
C – E – G
Formula
1 – 3 – 5

Piano

Guitar

Shape 1 / 1

Chords in C major

How to use the chord finder

  1. Choose the root note (C, D, E…) and the chord type (major, minor, seventh…).
  2. Read the notes and the formula, and press Play to hear the chord, or Arpeggio to hear the notes one by one.
  3. Look at the guitar shape and use the arrows to see other ways to play it higher up the neck.
  4. Below, "Chords in this key" lists the chords that fit together, a great starting point for writing a song.

How chords are built

Most chords are built by stacking thirds on a root note. A major chord uses the root, a major third (4 half steps up) and a perfect fifth (7 half steps up). A minor chord lowers the third by one half step, which gives it a darker sound.

Seventh chords add one more third on top. Major sevenths (maj7) sound soft and dreamy, minor sevenths (m7) warm and mellow, and dominant sevenths (7) bluesy and restless. These are the chords behind jazz, bossa nova and lo-fi.

The formula shows each note’s position in the major scale of the root: 1 is the root, ♭3 a minor third, 5 the fifth, ♭7 a minor seventh, and so on. Learn a few formulas and you can build any chord in any key.

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in a C major chord?

C major has three notes: C, E and G (root, major third and perfect fifth).

What is the difference between maj7 and 7 chords?

A maj7 chord adds the major seventh (for C: B), giving a soft, jazzy sound. A 7 (dominant seventh) chord adds the minor seventh (for C: B♭), which sounds bluesy and wants to resolve.

Why are some guitar shapes higher up the neck?

Every chord can be played in several places on the guitar. Lower shapes often use open strings; higher shapes use barres and are easy to move to other keys.

Which chords go together?

Chords built from the same scale fit together. The "Chords in this key" row shows them; for example, in C major: C, Dm, Em, F, G, Am and Bdim.

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