Minor chord · F# root
F#m chord
- F#1
- A♭3
- C#5
The F# minor chord (also written Gbm, same notes, different spelling) is built from the notes F#, A, C#. It turns up 9 times in the 80 songs on this site, including Hey There Delilah and Someone Like You.
By Chiye · Updated
What is the F#m chord?
The F#m chord (F# minor) is a minor chord built from three notes: F#, A, C# — the 1–♭3–5 of the F# scale, 3 semitones and 7 semitones above the root. On guitar it is most often played as a movable shape from fret 2 (2-4-4-2-2-2), so the same fingering works at any fret. It is rated intermediate. The darker, moodier counterpart of the major chord. It is one of the most-used chords in this site's library: across the 80 song sheets charted here, F#m appears 9 times in 3 songs, most often in the keys of D and A, and the chord it most often moves to is D. 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 F#m chord on guitar?
Fret 2 barre — a movable shape, so this same fingering works for every root note.
- Lay your index finger flat across the low E to high E strings at fret 2, rolled slightly onto its bony edge.
- Press the A string at fret 4 with your ring finger.
- Press the D string at fret 4 with your pinky finger.
- Strum all six strings and let every one ring.
Drop the lowest fretted note (low E string) and play the rest as a four- or five-string shape. You lose the bass note but keep every note that gives the chord its name, and there is no barre left to fight. x-4-4-2-2-2
How do you make F#m sound clean?
F#m needs a full barre at the 2nd fret, and beginners try to do it with a straight index finger and a bent wrist.
Slide the Bm shape up two frets — same fingers, same pressure. That slide is the whole lesson.
In real songs
What songs use the F#m chord?
- chord changes
- 9
- songs
- 3
- common keys
- D · A
Across the 80 chord sheets on this site, F#m appears 9 times in 3 songs — most often in the keys of D and A.
DF#m
DF#mDF#m
AC#mF#mD
Chord flow
What chord comes after F#m?
Every number here is a count from the progressions in our song sheets, not a generalisation: 1560 chord changes are behind these figures.
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 F#m 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 4
Every note here is fretted, which means the shape transposes anywhere on the neck without changing your fingers.
At fret 4 the neck is still wide enough to keep your thumb behind it, which gives the fingers more reach than a thumb-over grip.
Position 3 · 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.
Position 4 · Fret 11
Because nothing rings open, you can move this whole shape to any fret and it keeps the same quality — only the letter name changes.
Up at fret 11 the frets are close together, so use a lighter touch than you would in the open position — squeezing here pulls the notes sharp.
The theory behind F#m
F#m is spelled F# – A – C# — the 1 – ♭3 – 5 of the F# scale, which is the root plus 3 semitones, 7 semitones. The darker, moodier counterpart of the major chord.
The flattened third is what makes it minor, so if F#m sounds wrong the third is almost always the note being muted — check the string carrying it before you change anything else.
What key is the F#m chord in?
F#m is the i chord in F# minor, the ii chord in E major and the vi chord in A major — the three keys where F#m appears naturally.
the home chord of the minor key
the gentle predominant — often before the V
the relative minor — the major key’s shadow
F#m on other instruments
F# – A – C# — 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
