Chords in the Key of F: The 7 Chords, Easy Shapes and the Capo Shortcut

The chords in the key of F major are F, Gm, Am, Bb, C, Dm and Edim. The three you will use most are F, Bb and C (the I, IV and V), and Dm is the most common minor chord. F has one flat in its key signature: Bb.

F is a lovely key for singers and for piano, but it is awkward on guitar, because both F and Bb are barre chords in their standard shapes. This guide gives you all seven chords, easier versions of the hard ones, and two capo shortcuts that let you play in F with open chords you already know.

The seven chords

Degree	I	ii	iii	IV	V	vi	vii°
Chord	F	Gm	Am	Bb	C	Dm	Edim
Notes	F A C	G Bb D	A C E	Bb D F	C E G	D F A	E G Bb
Easiest shape	xx3211	xx5333	x02210	x13331	x32010	xx0231	x7898x

The pattern is the same in every major key: major, minor, minor, major, major, minor, diminished. Learn it once and you can work out the chords of any key.

The chord shapes

Easier options for the three hard chords:

• F: the small F on the top four strings (x x 3 2 1 1) or Fmaj7 (x x 3 2 1 0). The full barre is 1 3 3 2 1 1.
• Gm: the top four strings of the barre (x x 5 3 3 3), with a small barre at the 3rd fret, or the full barre at the 3rd fret (3 5 5 3 3 3).
• Bb: the A-shape barre at the 1st fret (x 1 3 3 3 1). Many players use their ring finger flat across the D, G and B strings at the 3rd fret instead of three separate fingers.

On the chord difficulty index, the small F scores 43, the full F barre 62 and Bb in its A shape at the 1st fret is among the hardest common shapes, which is exactly why the capo trick below is so popular.

The capo shortcut

A capo lets you play in F with shapes from an easier key. All three options below sound in F:

Capo on	Play these shapes	They sound as
1st fret	E, A, B7, C#m	F, Bb, C7, Dm
3rd fret	D, G, A, Bm	F, Bb, C, Dm
5th fret	C, F, G, Am	F, Bb, C, Dm

The capo on the 3rd fret with D-shape chords is the most common choice: D, G and A are easy and sound bright. With a capo on the 5th fret you still need an F shape, so it helps less. Read more in how to use a capo, or use the free chord transposer to move any song.

Common progressions in F

Progression	In F	Feel
I – IV – V	F – Bb – C	Folk, country, rock and roll
I – V – vi – IV	F – C – Dm – Bb	Modern pop
I – vi – IV – V	F – Dm – Bb – C	1950s doo-wop
ii – V – I	Gm – C – F	Jazz and standards
vi – IV – I – V	Dm – Bb – F – C	Darker pop

The V chord is often played as a dominant seventh, C7, which pulls strongly back to F. C7 is an open chord (x 3 2 3 1 0) and easy to reach from C.

F major scale and where to solo

The F major scale is F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E. For soloing over a song in F, the F major pentatonic (F, G, A, C, D) is the safe choice; it has the same notes as D minor pentatonic, which you can play as the familiar box starting at the 10th fret of the low E string. Over darker progressions that sit on Dm, use the D minor pentatonic and treat D as home. More in the major pentatonic scale.

How F relates to other keys

• Relative minor: D minor. Same notes, same chords; see chords in the key of D minor.
• Neighbors on the circle of fifths: C major (no flats) and Bb major (two flats). F shares six of seven notes with each, which is why F, C and Bb chords mix so easily. See the circle of fifths guide.

Other keys: C, G, D, A and E.

Frequently asked questions