Minor 7th chord · B root
Bm7 chord
- B1
- D♭3
- F#5
- A♭7
The B minor 7th chord is built from the notes B, D, F#, A. It turns up 1 times in the 80 songs on this site, including Ain't No Sunshine.
By Chiye · Updated
What is the Bm7 chord?
The Bm7 chord (B minor 7th) is a minor 7th chord built from four notes: B, D, F#, A — the 1–♭3–5–♭7 of the B scale, 3 semitones and 7 semitones and 10 semitones above the root. On guitar it is most often played in open position (x-2-0-2-0-2) with 3 fingers while 2 strings ring open and the low E string stays silent. It is rated beginner — most players learn it in their first weeks. The smooth workhorse of funk, R&B and lo-fi. It is one of the most-used chords in this site's library: across the 80 song sheets charted here, Bm7 appears 1 times in 1 song, most often in the key of Am, and the chord it most often moves to is Em. Below you will find step-by-step fingering, 4 positions up the neck, audio of every shape, and the real progressions this chord lives inside.
How do you play the Bm7 chord on guitar?
Open position — the easiest version of Bm7 on the guitar.
- Press the A string at fret 2 with your index finger.
- Press the G string at fret 2 with your middle finger.
- Press the high E string at fret 2 with your ring finger.
- Start your strum on the A string and do not play the low E string at all.
The x mark is part of the shape, not an accident: the chord only sounds right when low E stays silent. Instead of aiming your pick around that string, let the string next to it rest on it and damp it. x-2-0-2-0-2
How do you make Bm7 sound clean?
Bm7 on the 2nd fret is the barre version of a shape that also exists open lower down — players mix the two and mute strings.
Bm → Bm7 → G: one finger moves. Find it without looking.
In real songs
What songs use the Bm7 chord?
- chord changes
- 1
- songs
- 1
- common keys
- Am
Across the 80 chord sheets on this site, Bm7 appears 1 time in 1 song — most often in the key of Am.
AmBm7EmDm
Chord flow
What chord comes after Bm7?
Those figures are counted from the 80 chord sheets on this site, so they describe what songwriters actually played rather than what theory says should come next.
Three-chord moves
Three-chord moves are where a chord really shows its character. These are the ones that actually happen in this library, counted from the sheets:
What other ways can you play Bm7 up the neck?
3 more positions below. These are the same notes in a different part of the neck. Choosing the position closest to the chord you just played is what stops your hand jumping between changes.
Position 2 · Fret 2 barre
Every note here is fretted, which means the shape transposes anywhere on the neck without changing your fingers.
The barre is the only hard part of this shape. Keep the bar finger straight and use the weight of your arm rather than the grip of your thumb.
Position 3 · Fret 7 barre
No open strings, so this is a movable shape: slide it up or down and the same fingering gives you a different chord name.
One bar does most of the work. Roll that finger onto its bony edge and pull the elbow slightly in — a barre that buzzes is almost always a position problem, not a strength problem.
Position 4 · Fret 9 barre
Because nothing rings open, you can move this whole shape to any fret and it keeps the same quality — only the letter name changes.
A single bar covers the rest of the strings here. If the inside strings stay dead, move the bar a millimetre closer to the fret wire before you try pressing harder.
The theory behind Bm7
Bm7 is spelled B – D – F# – A — the 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7 of the B scale, which is the root plus 3 semitones, 7 semitones, 10 semitones. The smooth workhorse of funk, R&B and lo-fi.
The flat seventh softens the minor third, which is why m7 chords sit comfortably under a vocal. In practice you will use Bm7 far more often than the plain minor triad in anything funky or jazzy.
Bm7 on other instruments
B – D – F# – A — the highlighted black keys are the sharps or flats; play each note once, then move them into one hand position.
Take it to the practice room
