Guitar chord changes, finger by finger
40 common chord changes, each worked out from the chord shapes: which fingers stay down, which slide, which lift, an easier fingering where one exists, and a one-minute trainer set to that pair.
First changes
Open chords most beginners learn in their first months.
G to CHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move.G to DMedium · Your index finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your middle finger lifts and moves.C to DHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move.G to EmMedium · Your middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your index finger comes off.Em to AmEasier · Your middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your index finger goes down fresh.Am to DHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move.C to AmEasier · Your index finger and middle finger stay down; your ring finger lifts and moves.G to AmHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move.Em to CMedium · Your middle finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger lifts and moves; your index finger goes down fresh.Em to DMedium · Your middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your index finger goes down fresh.Am to EEasier · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret.Am to DmMedium · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger lifts and moves.D to AEasier · Your ring finger slides along the string; your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret.A to EMedium · Your middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your index finger lifts and moves.Dm to GMedium · Your ring finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your index finger and middle finger lift and move.D to EMedium · Your index finger slides along the string; your middle finger and ring finger lift and move.C to DmMedium · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger lifts and moves.Em to AEasier · Your middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your index finger goes down fresh.G to AMedium · Your index finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your middle finger and ring finger lift and move.Dm to EMedium · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger lifts and moves.
Changes with 7th chords
The dominant 7th chords that lead home: blues, folk and old-time songs.
C to E7Easier · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger comes off.E7 to AmEasier · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger goes down fresh.G to E7Medium · Your index finger and middle finger lift and move; your ring finger comes off.E7 to A7Medium · Your index finger and middle finger lift and move.Em to B7Easier · Your middle finger stays down; your ring finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your index finger and little finger go down fresh.E to B7Easier · Your middle finger stays down; your index finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your little finger goes down fresh.A to B7Medium · Your index finger slides along the string; your middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your little finger goes down fresh.G7 to CEasier · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret.D7 to GMedium · Your ring finger slides along the string; your index finger and middle finger lift and move.A7 to DEasier · Your index finger and middle finger move across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger goes down fresh.C to G7Easier · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret.
F, Bm and other shapes
Barre chords and the shapes that stand in for them.
C to FMedium · Your index finger and ring finger stay down; your middle finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your little finger goes down fresh.Am to FHarder · Your index finger stays down; your middle finger moves across to another string on the same fret; your ring finger lifts and moves; your little finger goes down fresh.F to GHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your little finger comes off.G to Cadd9Medium · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret; your little finger goes down fresh.D to BmHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your little finger goes down fresh.Bm to GMedium · Your index finger stays down; your middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your little finger comes off.A to BmHarder · Your index finger, middle finger and ring finger lift and move; your little finger goes down fresh.Dm to FMedium · Your index finger and middle finger stay down; your ring finger lifts and moves; your little finger goes down fresh.C to Fmaj7Easier · Your index finger stays down; your middle finger and ring finger move across to another string on the same fret.
Questions
What is the hardest part of changing chords?
Usually not the chords themselves but the travel between them: fingers lifting too high, landing one at a time, or not knowing which finger to move first. Each page here shows which fingers can stay down or slide, so the trip is as short as possible.
How long does it take to change chords smoothly?
It varies, but most learners see their one-minute score rise every few days with daily practice. Five minutes a day on the changes in the songs you want to play is enough.
What is a one-minute change?
You switch between two chords for one minute and count every clean change. It is the quickest way to measure a change and to watch it improve. The free trainer counts you in, times the minute and keeps your best score.
Want the changes in order?
Fretwork’s lessons teach the chords one at a time, each with a one-minute change check. The first two stages are free.