How to Build Guitar Chords: Major Chord Shapes Explained

Have you ever wondered how chords are built or why your fingers go exactly here? Why these frets, and not others?

Once you see where it comes from, you’ll understand the chords you already play and start building them yourself.

E · B · E · G♯ · B · E

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E · B · E · G♯ · B · E

What is a major chord made of?

Every major chord, also called a major triad, is built from just three different notes.

In our E major shape, we play all six strings, but some of those notes repeat.

First comes the root, the note the chord is named after.

Then there’s a note 4 frets higher than the root, and another note 7 frets higher than the root.

You just need to remember this: root, plus 4, plus 7.

Build E major: root, plus 4, plus 7

Let’s build the E major chord.

Start on the open low E string. That’s our root. Move 4 frets higher and you land on G sharp. Move 7 frets higher from the root and you land on B.

E, G sharp, B. Those three notes make an E major chord.

E: the root

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E + G♯ + B = E major

Move the major-chord pattern

The recipe we just learned works from any root note.

If you play this pattern anywhere on the neck it still sounds like a major chord.

E major · E, G♯, B

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B major · B, D♯, F♯

How the strings relate: the unison shape

Playing all three notes on one string isn’t practical, though. Real chord shapes spread their notes across several strings. To do that, we need to know how the strings relate to each other.

The low E string is tuned to E. The next string above is tuned to A. From E to A is 5 frets.

So the A string starts at the same pitch as fret 5 on the low E string. In practice, that means any note on the low E string can also be found on the A string, 5 frets lower.

Same note name, same pitch. It is called a unison.

Remember this shape and let’s use it to move our chord notes onto other strings.

Low E: open E

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B: 5 frets lower on the string above

Move B onto the A string

Start with the B, at fret 7 on the low E string. Go 5 frets lower on the A string and we land on fret 2.

Look familiar? That’s exactly where one of your fingers sits in the E major shape.

Now let’s try the G sharp. It’s at fret 4 on the low E string. Five frets lower would be fret minus 1. Fret minus 1 doesn’t exist. So instead of moving the G sharp directly, let’s find another E at a higher fret and build from there.

B: fret 7 on low E

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G♯: 4 − 5 = −1

Find another E, one octave higher

Here’s the trick. Twelve frets higher than any note is the same note again, one octave higher. So there’s another E at the 12th fret of the low E string.

Now apply the unison move twice. Fret 12 on the low E string becomes fret 7 on the A string. Fret 7 on the A string becomes fret 2 on the D string.

That gives us a new E, on the D string. And that’s another finger in our chord shape.

E: open low E

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E: fret 2 on D

Complete the open E major chord

Since this is another E, we can apply our major recipe from here too.

From the E at fret 2, move 4 frets higher to reach G sharp at fret 6.

Now move that G sharp one string above. The D string and the G string are also 5 frets apart, so the same rule applies: 5 frets lower.

Fret 6 becomes fret 1 on the G string. That’s the last finger of the E major chord.

The B and high E strings are already in our chord, so we let them ring open.

E: fret 2 on D

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The open high E completes E major

Think in roles: root, major third and fifth

Now that you’ve seen how it works, you don’t need to do this math every time you play.

If you remember a few small shapes, you can build chords yourself.

Instead of thinking in note names, think in roles. R is the root. The 3, or major third, is the note 4 frets higher. The 5, or fifth, is the note 7 frets higher. These numbers mean the first, third, and fifth notes of the major scale.

E · G♯ · B

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B → 5: fifth

Find the interval shapes

Once you find the root, everything else falls into place:

• The 5 sits one string above and two frets higher.
• Another root sits two strings above and two frets higher.
• From that second root, the 3 sits one string above and one fret lower.

R · 3 · 5

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R → 3: one string above, one fret lower

When you build a shape of your own, the guitar chord identifier tells you its name from the frets you play.

Recognize the shapes in familiar chords

These relationships aren’t exclusive to E major. You can already see them in chords you know.

A major

Take A major. The open A string is the root.

The 5 sits one string above and two frets higher.

And another root sits two strings above and two frets higher.

Those same root-to-fifth and root-to-root shapes appear in E major.

A major

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A major · A, C♯, E

G major

Now G major. The root is at fret 3 on the low E string, and the 3 sits one string above and one fret lower.

G major

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G major · G, B, D

C major

C major uses the same shape, one string above. Root at fret 3 on the A string, 3 at fret 2 on the D string.

G: R → 3

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C major · C, E, G

The relationships we’ve traced stay on the low E, A, D and G strings. Crossing between G and B changes the shapes slightly. We’ll explore that in another lesson.

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Watch the complete lesson

Watch The hidden geometry of guitar chords on YouTube.