Guitar barre chords
Four movable major and minor shapes, with their root on the 6th or 5th string.
The four movable shapes
Each example shows the same fingering pattern moved to a fret where its root is easy to identify.
Which fret for which chord?
The number is the barre fret. The root sits on the low E string for the E shapes and the A string for the A shapes.
| Root | E-shape major | E-shape minor | A-shape major | A-shape minor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 8 | 8 | 3 | 3 |
| C# | 9 | 9 | 4 | 4 |
| D | 10 | 10 | 5 | 5 |
| Eb | 11 | 11 | 6 | 6 |
| E | 12 | 12 | 7 | 7 |
| F | 1 | 1 | 8 | 8 |
| F# | 2 | 2 | 9 | 9 |
| G | 3 | 3 | 10 | 10 |
| Ab | 4 | 4 | 11 | 11 |
| A | 5 | 5 | 12 | 12 |
| Bb | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| B | 7 | 7 | 2 | 2 |
Barre chords you need in each key
For this table, an easy shape has the root as its lowest note, no barre, three fingers or fewer, and stays within the first four frets.
| Major key | I, IV, V or vi without an easy shape | No-barre alternative when available |
|---|---|---|
| C major | F | F · xx3211 |
| G major | None | — |
| D major | None | — |
| A major | F#m | F#m · xx4222 |
| E major | B, C#m | B · x21402, C#m · x42120 |
| B major | B, F#, G#m | B · x21402 |
| F# major | F#, B, C#, D#m | B · x21402 |
| Db major | Db, Gb, Ab, Bbm | — |
| Ab major | Ab, Db, Eb, Fm | — |
| Eb major | Eb, Ab, Bb, Cm | Bb · x10331 |
| Bb major | Bb, Eb, F, Gm | Bb · x10331, F · xx3211 |
| F major | F, Bb | F · xx3211, Bb · x10331 |
F and Bm also have these no-barre alternatives in the guitar chord data: