# Basic Guitar Chords for Beginners
> The 8 basic guitar chords every beginner should learn first — with diagrams, fingerings and practice tips.
The first question every new guitarist asks is "which chords do I actually
need?" The honest answer: eight. Five major chords and three minor chords, all
in the open position, cover more songs than you can learn in a year.

That is not a simplification. The beginner songs charted on this site are built
almost entirely from these eight shapes. Learn them properly and you have a
working repertoire; skip one and you will meet it in your first week.

## The order to learn them in

Do not learn them alphabetically. Learn them by how many fingers they need and
how easily the shape sits under the hand:

| # | Chord | Fingers | Fretted strings | Why here |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | E minor | 2 | A, D | Both fingers on the same fret, all six strings ring |
| 2 | A minor | 3 | D, G, B | The C shape with one finger moved down a string |
| 3 | E major | 3 | A, D, G | Same cluster as Em with one finger added |
| 4 | D major | 3 | G, B, high E | A tight triangle on the top three strings |
| 5 | A major | 3 | D, G, B | Three fingers in a row on fret 2 |
| 6 | C major | 3 | A, D, B | The first real stretch, ring finger out to fret 3 |
| 7 | G major | 3 | low E, A, high E | The widest stretch of the eight |
| 8 | D minor | 3 | G, B, high E | D major with the first finger pulled back one fret |

Two weeks of ten minutes a day gets you through the first five. The last three
take longer, because each one demands a stretch or a finger position that feels
backwards at first.

## The five major chords

Major chords sound bright and resolved. These five — C, A, G, E and D — are
the backbone of almost every beginner songbook.

**E major (0-2-2-1-0-0).** Middle finger on the A string fret 2, ring finger on
the D string fret 2, index on the G string fret 1. All six strings ring. This
is the friendliest major shape because the fingers sit in a tight cluster with
nothing to stretch.

**A major (x-0-2-2-2-0).** Three fingers in a row across the second fret of the
D, G and B strings. The classic beginner problem here is squeezing the fingers
together until they mute each other. Leave a hair of space between them and
arch the knuckles.

**D major (x-x-0-2-3-2).** A triangle on the top three strings: index on the G
string fret 2, ring on the B string fret 3, middle on the high E string fret 2.
Strum only the top four strings — the low E and A are marked X for a reason.

**C major (x-3-2-0-1-0).** The first chord that asks for a genuine stretch:
ring finger to the A string fret 3, middle on the D string fret 2, index on the
B string fret 1, low E silent. If your C sounds thin, the ring finger is almost
certainly lying flat and muting the open G string.

**G major (3-2-0-0-0-3).** Three fingers spread across the widest gap in the
eight. There are three common fingerings and no single correct one; the
two-finger version (3-x-0-0-0-3) is a legitimate voicing and the fastest route
to a clean sound, though you should move to the full shape once your hand can
span both E strings.

## The three minor chords

Minor chords sound darker and more emotional, and in practice they are easier
than their major counterparts.

**E minor (0-2-2-0-0-0).** The easiest chord on the guitar: two fingers, both
on fret 2, on adjacent strings. If a beginner could only play one chord, it
should be this one.

**A minor (x-0-2-2-1-0).** The C major shape with the ring finger lifted off
the A string and moved to the D string. Once you can play C, Am is a
one-finger edit rather than a new chord to memorise.

**D minor (x-x-0-2-3-1).** D major with the first finger pulled back from fret 2
to fret 1 on the high E string. That single semitone is the whole difference
between bright and sad, which makes D and Dm the cleanest demonstration of what
a third does to a chord.

## The eight chords in real songs

This is the part that matters. Every song below uses only the eight shapes on
this page:

| Song | Key | Chords | What it drills |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Three Little Birds](/songs/three-little-birds-chords) | A | A, D, E | Three majors, no minors, slow changes |
| [Knockin' on Heaven's Door](/songs/knockin-on-heavens-door-chords) | G | G, D, Am, C | Your first four-chord loop |
| [Country Roads](/songs/country-roads-chords) | G | G, Em, D, C | Major-to-minor changes at a walking pace |
| [Stand By Me](/songs/stand-by-me-chords) | G | G, Em, C, D | The I-vi-IV-V doo-wop loop |
| [Zombie](/songs/zombie-chords) | Em | Em, C, G, D | A minor-key loop with one hard change |
| [Ain't No Sunshine](/songs/aint-no-sunshine-chords) | Am | Am, Em, G, Dm | Every minor chord you know, in one song |
| [Take It Easy](/songs/take-it-easy-chords) | G | G, D, C, Em, Am | Five of the eight, at tempo |
| [Amazing Grace](/songs/amazing-grace-chords) | G | G, G7, C, Em, D | Your first seventh chord |

Start with Three Little Birds and Knockin' on Heaven's Door. Both move slowly
enough that you hear the change coming before you have to make it.

## How to practise basic chords

1. **Fret cleanly.** Place each finger just behind the fret wire, not on top of it, and press with the fingertip.
2. **Check every string.** Pluck the strings one by one. Any buzz or dead note means a finger is touching the wrong string.
3. **Use the "hover" drill.** Form the chord shape, strum, release, and hover just above the strings. Form it again from scratch. This builds muscle memory faster than holding the chord down.
4. **Change between two chords.** Pick any pair — G and C, or Am and E — and switch back and forth with a [metronome](/tools/metronome) at 50 BPM, then speed up.

## Diagnosing a chord that buzzes

| What you hear | What it usually is | The fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A dull thud on one string | A finger is lying flat and touching the neighbouring string | Arch the knuckle and fret with the tip |
| A rattle that stops when you press harder | Finger too far behind the fret wire | Move up until you are almost touching the fret |
| One string missing from the chord | You are strumming a string marked X | Check the diagram before blaming your fingers |
| The whole chord sounds thin | The lowest string in the shape is muted | Play the strings one at a time to find it |

Buzzing is almost never a strength problem. Nine times out of ten it is
position, and the fix takes ten seconds once you know where to look.

## The basic chord chart

The diagram wall at the top of this page is the one to save, print, or
memorise. Once you can play all eight chords and change between any pair of
them, you are officially no longer a beginner.

Want it on paper? [Download the printable chord chart PDF](/guitar-chords-chart.pdf)
(36 chords across three A4 pages), or print a stack of
[blank chord boxes](/tools/blank-chord-charts) to write your own shapes into.

## What to learn after the eight

The eight open chords are a complete vocabulary for hundreds of songs, but they
run out in two places: keys that need F, Bb, Eb or Ab, and any song that moves
up the neck. Both problems have the same solution —
[barre chords](/guides/barre-chords), which turn two shapes into every major
and minor chord in existence.

Before that, though, spend a week on changing chords smoothly. Speed of change,
not the number of chords you know, is what makes a beginner sound like a
player. The [easy chords guide](/guides/easy-guitar-chords) covers the drills
that get you there.
## FAQ
### What are the 8 basic guitar chords?
The 8 basic guitar chords are C, A, G, E, D, Am, Em and Dm — five major chords and three minor chords, all playable in the open position with no barre.
### What chords should a beginner learn first?
Start with E minor and A minor (two fingers), then E, D and A major. These five chords alone unlock thousands of songs, including most four-chord pop songs.
### How long does it take to learn basic guitar chords?
Most beginners can fret the 8 basic chords within 2–4 weeks of 15 minutes of daily practice, and change between them smoothly after 4–8 weeks.
### How many guitar chords should a beginner know?
Eight open chords — C, A, G, E, D, Am, Em, Dm — cover the vast majority of beginner songs. Power chords and barre chords come later.
### Why does my C chord sound muted?
On C major (x-3-2-0-1-0) the usual cause is the ring finger on the A string fret 3 lying too flat and touching the open G string. Arch the knuckle and fret with the fingertip so the G string rings free.
### Should I learn G with two fingers or three?
The two-finger easy G (3-x-0-0-0-3) is a real voicing, not a cheat, and it is the fastest way to a clean sound. Move to the three-finger G (3-2-0-0-0-3) once your hand can span the low E and high E strings at the same fret.
Canonical page: https://openguitarchords.com/guides/basic-guitar-chords