The Easiest Guitar Chords to Learn First (Ranked by Difficulty)

When you first pick up a guitar, chords are where the music starts. The good news is that some chords are genuinely easy: two fingers, one fret, and every string rings. Others, like F and B, can take weeks. If you learn them in the right order, you'll be strumming real songs long before you face a barre chord.

This guide ranks the easiest guitar chords from easiest to hardest, explains what makes each one easy (or tricky), and gives you simplified one-finger versions for days when your fingers just won't cooperate.

What makes a guitar chord easy?

Not all beginner chords are equal. A chord is easy when it scores well on four things:

• Few fingers. Two fingers are easier than three, and three are easier than four.
• Fingers close together. Shapes that sit within two frets don't stretch your hand.
• All strings strummed. If you can strum all six strings, you don't have to aim your pick. Chords that skip the low strings (like D) take more control.
• No barre. Pressing one finger across several strings needs strength you don't have yet. Every chord in this guide avoids it.

All of the chords below are open chords: they use some open (unfretted) strings and live in the first three frets. That's what makes them the natural starting point.

The 10 easiest guitar chords, ranked

Here's the full list at a glance. "Fingers" is how many fretting fingers you need; "strum" tells you which strings to play.

Let's go through each one.

1. E minor (Em): the easiest chord on guitar

Place your middle finger (2) on the 2nd fret of the A string and your ring finger (3) on the 2nd fret of the D string. Strum all six strings. Em has a moody, full sound, and because every string rings, it's very forgiving. If you only learn one chord today, make it this one. See the E minor chord page to hear it.

2. E minor 7 (Em7): one finger, all strings

Lift your ring finger off Em and you have Em7: just your middle finger on the 2nd fret of the A string. It's a great "first chord" for kids or anyone whose fingertips are still sore. Many players use a fuller Em7 that adds the 3rd fret of the B string; that version is on our Em7 chord page.

3. A sus2 (Asus2): two fingers on one fret

Put your index (1) and middle (2) fingers on the 2nd fret of the D and G strings. Strum from the A string down, skipping the low E. Asus2 sounds bright and open, and it flows beautifully into Em and A.

4. A minor (Am): your first three-finger chord

Index finger on the 1st fret of the B string, middle on the 2nd fret of the D string, ring on the 2nd fret of the G string. Strum from the A string. The shape is compact, which makes it the best introduction to three-finger chords. More on the A minor chord page.

5. E major (E): the Am shape, one string over

Take your Am shape and move every finger up one string (toward the ceiling). Now you're playing E major: index on the 1st fret of the G string, middle on the 2nd fret of the A string, ring on the 2nd fret of the D string. Strum all six. Learning Am and E together is a smart shortcut, because it's the same hand shape. See the E major chord page.

6. A major (A): three fingers in a row

Index, middle and ring fingers line up on the 2nd fret of the D, G and B strings. The shape is easy to remember, but three fingers squeeze into one small space. If your fingers feel crowded, angle them slightly, or try the two-finger Asus2 first. Later, some players flatten one finger across all three strings instead. Hear the chord on our A major chord page.

7. D major (D): easy shape, careful strum

Index on the 2nd fret of the G string, ring on the 3rd fret of the B string, middle on the 2nd fret of the high e string. The triangle shape is simple. The challenge is the strum: play only the top four strings. Start your strum on the open D string and you'll get a clear, bright chord. Details on the D major chord page.

8. C major (C): the first real stretch

Ring finger on the 3rd fret of the A string, middle on the 2nd fret of the D string, index on the 1st fret of the B string. Strum from the A string. C asks your fingers to span three frets, which is a stretch at first. Keep your thumb low on the back of the neck and arch your fingers so the open G and high e can ring. If it fights you, play Cmaj7 for now (just lift your index finger). See the C major chord page.

9. G major (G): the full-reach chord

Middle finger on the 3rd fret of the low E string, index on the 2nd fret of the A string, ring on the 3rd fret of the high e string. Strum all six. G covers the whole width of the neck, which is why it ranks lower, but it's one of the most-used chords in music, so it's worth the effort. See the G major chord page.

10. D minor (Dm): tight and twisty

Middle on the 2nd fret of the G string, ring on the 3rd fret of the B string, index on the 1st fret of the high e string. Strum the top four strings. Dm's fingers twist into a tight cluster, so give it a few extra days. More on the D minor chord page.

One-finger chords for your very first day

If even two fingers feel like a lot, start with these simplified chords. You strum only the thinnest three or four strings, so aim your strum carefully. They're not full chords, but they sound right in songs and they build the habit of pressing cleanly.

• Easy C: index finger on the 1st fret of the B string; strum the top three strings.
• Easy G: ring finger on the 3rd fret of the high e string; strum the top three strings.
• Easy G7: index finger on the 1st fret of the high e string; strum the top three strings.
• Easy Em: middle finger on the 2nd fret of the D string; strum the top four strings.

Easy C, G and G7 are enough to play many simple folk and children's songs. Within a week or two, swap each one for its full version.

Two "pretty" chords that are easier than they look

Two more chords deserve a mention because they sound great and are easier than their full cousins:

• Cmaj7: play C, then lift your index finger off the B string. It has a soft, dreamy sound and is easier to ring cleanly than C.
• Dsus2: play D, then lift your middle finger off the high e string. Index on the 2nd fret of the G string, ring on the 3rd fret of the B string.

Both work as stand-ins for C and D while you're learning, and you'll keep using them long after for their sound. Our guide to sus chords has more like them.

The best order to learn them

Rankings are useful, but the order you learn chords should also depend on which ones work together in songs. Here's a plan that builds musical groups as you go:

1. Week 1: Em and Asus2, then Am and E. Two pairs that change smoothly.
2. Week 2: A and D. Now you have A, D and E, the classic rock and blues trio.
3. Week 3: C and G. With G, C, D and Em you can play a huge number of pop and folk songs.
4. Week 4: Dm, and start polishing your changes.

Practice each new chord in a pair with one you already know. Our step-by-step guide on how to play guitar chords covers finger placement in detail, and how to change chords faster has drills for the switches.

Easy chord pairs to practice

The fastest way to make chords feel easy is to practice changing between two of them. These pairs share fingers or shapes, so the change is short:

Set a one-minute timer and switch back and forth, strumming once per chord. Count your clean changes and try to beat your score tomorrow.

Making easy chords sound clean

An easy chord can still sound messy. If a string buzzes or goes dead, check these four things:

• Press just behind the fret, not in the middle of the space between frets.
• Use your fingertips and arch your fingers so they don't lean on the string below.
• Keep your thumb on the back of the neck, roughly behind your middle finger.
• Tune up first. Even a perfect chord sounds wrong on an out-of-tune guitar. Our free online guitar tuner takes thirty seconds.

Then do the "ring test": strum the chord, then pick each string one at a time and listen. Fix any string that doesn't ring. If buzzing keeps happening, our guide to why guitar chords buzz walks through every cause.

Which chords should you avoid at first?

A few chords look innocent on a chart but are genuinely hard for beginners. It's fine to skip them for your first month:

• F major: the full version is a barre chord. Our F chord guide has four easier versions.
• B major and B minor: both are barre chords. Use the simplified shapes in easy versions of hard guitar chords.
• Any chord with a sharp or flat in its name (F#m, C#m, Bb): almost always a barre chord in its full form.

When a song you love uses one of these, look for an easy version or use a capo to move the song to friendlier chords.

What to learn after the easy chords

Once these ten chords ring cleanly and you can change between them in rhythm, you're ready for the next step. Most players go on to seventh chords (A7, D7, E7, G7), then power chords, then their first barre chord. Our guitar chords for beginners guide covers the core eight in depth, and the guitar chord chart collects 34 essential shapes in one place.

Most of all, start using your chords in music. Even two chords and a simple down-strum count as playing a song. Our list of easy guitar songs for beginners is sorted by the chords each song needs.

Fretwork's beginner path teaches these open chords step by step, with a check that each one rings cleanly before you move on. The first two stages are free, no card required.

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