Major & Minor Chord Library
These eight chords are enough for thousands of songs. Tap each box to hear the target sound, then try to match it on your guitar. A printable version is in the cheat sheets.
Major chords — bright, happy
Minor chords — sad, soft
| Chord | Watch out for |
|---|---|
| A | Three fingers crowd into one fret; angle them slightly so the high e string still rings. |
| C | Don't play string 6 (×). Your 3rd finger should press string 5 only. |
| D | Only the top four strings. Your thumb can lightly mute string 6. |
| E / Em | All six strings ring — the easiest, fullest chords. Make Em your very first chord. |
| G | A wide stretch from string 6 to string 1. Fingering it with 2-3-4 makes the change to C easier. |
| Am / Dm | Am is the E shape moved one string over. In Dm the 1st finger takes the high e string. |
"One-minute changes": pick two chords (e.g. Em ↔ G). For 60 seconds switch between them and count the clean changes. Log your score daily — it usually doubles within a week.
The "Anchor Finger" System
Fast changes come from finding fingers that never leave the string between two chords. These "anchor" fingers stay put while the others move. Amber dots are anchors.
C ↔ Am: two anchors
Finger 1 (string 2, fret 1) and finger 2 (string 4, fret 2) stay. Only finger 3 moves from string 5 to string 3.
D ↔ Dm: one anchor
Finger 3 (string 2, fret 3) stays; the other two swap places.
Am ↔ E: same shape, shift one string
The finger arrangement is identical; move your whole hand one string toward the thick side.
G ↔ Em: a sliding anchor
Finger G with 2-1-3 and your 1st finger (string 5, fret 2) stays in place for Em. Playing Em with fingers 1-2 makes this change effortless.
Dominant 7th Chords
Dominant 7th chords add one note (the ♭7) to a major chord. They sound tenser and bluesier and "want" to resolve to the next chord. They're everywhere in blues and country.
| Chord | Compared with the major shape | Usually goes to |
|---|---|---|
| A7 | Lift the finger off string 3 of A (open G = ♭7) | D |
| D7 | The D shape flipped upside down | G |
| E7 | Lift the finger off string 4 of E (open D = ♭7) | A / Am |
| B7 | B major needs a barre; B7 is the open-position lifesaver | E / Em |
Hear it: → →