Chord finder
Choose a root note and a chord type, then switch between guitar, ukulele and piano. You get the notes of the chord, its interval formula and playable diagrams. Guitar and ukulele show four different shapes, from the easy open one up the neck. Piano shows the keys, with inversions.
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How to use it
- Pick the root note and the chord type. The chord symbol, its notes and its interval formula appear straight away.
- Choose Guitar, Ukulele or Piano.
- For a fretted instrument, read the diagrams: strings run from left to right, the top row is the nut or the first fret shown, and filled dots are fingers.
- For piano, choose the inversion. Highlighted keys show the chord, with the root key in a different colour.
How chords are built
A chord is a stack of intervals above the root, written as scale degrees. A major chord is 1 3 5, a minor chord is 1 ♭3 5, a dominant seventh adds a ♭7 and a major seventh adds a 7. The tool spells the notes with the correct letters, so the third of E major is G♯ and not A♭, and the seventh of C diminished 7 is B𝄫.
Worked example
C major is C, E and G. The open guitar shape x32010 plays: the low E string muted, the A string at fret 3 (C), the D string at fret 2 (E), the G string open (G), the B string at fret 1 (C) and the high E string open (E). Every sounded note is C, E or G, and the lowest note is the root.
Tips
- Seventh and ninth chords on a ukulele have only four strings, so one of the notes is always left out. The tool keeps the notes that define the chord and may drop the fifth.
- If a shape looks like a stretch, try the next diagram. Higher shapes are usually movable barre shapes.
- To change key without learning new shapes, the capo transposer shows which chords you play with a capo.
Frequently asked questions
How does the chord finder pick its guitar and ukulele shapes?
It tries every combination of open, muted and fretted strings inside a four-fret window and keeps those where every sounded string is a chord tone and all essential notes are present. The fifth may be left out of chords with four or more notes. The shapes are ranked by fingers needed, open strings, muted strings, bass note and position, and near-duplicates are removed.
Why do I see a different fingering than in my chord book?
Most chords can be played in many ways. The tool shows four of the easiest, so the first diagram is often the familiar open shape, but a book may prefer another voicing or a different fingering of the same notes. Any shape shown contains only notes of the chord.
What do the × and the circle above the strings mean?
A × means the string is not played, and a circle means it rings open. When the shape sits higher up the neck, the number at the left of the diagram is the fret of its top row.
Why is a ukulele chord's lowest note not always the root?
A standard ukulele is tuned G C E A with a high G, so the C string is the lowest-sounding one. The chord finder therefore does not judge ukulele shapes by their bass note.
What are inversions on the piano?
In root position the root is the lowest note. In the first inversion the next chord tone is lowest and the root is moved up an octave, and so on. The notes are the same, only the order changes, which makes chord changes smoother.