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New Released in April 2026

Easy Guitar Chords for Beginners

The easiest guitar chords for beginners are the open chords: G, C, D, Em and Am use only the first frets and some open strings, and together they play a huge number of songs. Learn the shapes below, then practise the changes between them, the part that really takes practice.

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MIDI keyboard
Digital or acoustic piano
Guitar
Computer, phone or tablet

ChordRunner running on a phone next to an acoustic guitar, above a piano being played

8 easy guitar chords for beginners

Strings from low E (left) to high e (right). Yellow dots = frets to press, ○ = open string, × = do not play.

Em E G B

Am A C E

C C E G

G G B D

D D F# A

E E G# B

A A C# E

Dm D F A

Basic guitar chords: in which order?

Em and Am: two fingers and three, the friendliest shapes.
C and G: wider stretches, but they unlock most beginner songs.
D: three fingers close together on the top strings.
E, A and Dm: complete the set of open major and minor chords.

With G, C, D, Em and Am you can play songs in G major; add A and E for songs in A and D. F, the first barre chord, can wait until these feel easy.

Key	Easy chords in that key	Common order
G major	G, C, D, Em, Am	G, D, Em, C
C major	C, F (small), G, Am, Dm, Em	C, G, Am, F
D major	D, G, A, Em	D, A, Em, G
A major	A, D, E	A, D, E, A
E minor	Em, Am, C, D, G	Em, C, G, D

Each row is a set of chords that belong together, so practising them as a group prepares you for real songs. Once one key is easy, the next one only adds one or two new shapes. Strum each chord four times, change, and keep the strumming hand moving even when the change is late: the rhythm is what makes it sound like music, and your fretting hand will catch up within a few days of practice.

How to practise guitar chord changes

Two chords, one minute: switch between them slowly and cleanly, then faster.
Keep shared fingers down: C to Am keeps two fingers in place.
Look at the symbol, not your hand: songs give you Am or G7, so read the name and let the hand find the shape.
Random order: once pairs are easy, mix all eight in an order you cannot predict.
Ten minutes a day: changes improve with short daily practice, not long rare sessions.

Beginner guitar chord tips

Press just behind the fret

Place each fingertip close to the metal fret, not on top of it and not in the middle of the space. You need far less pressure there, and the note rings clean instead of buzzing.

Curve your fingers

Keep your fingers arched so they touch only their own string. A flat finger mutes the string below it, the most common reason a beginner chord sounds dull.

Check every string

Play the chord one string at a time. If a string buzzes or is silent, adjust that finger, then strum again. Ten seconds of checking saves weeks of a muddy chord.

Sore fingertips are normal

The first two weeks hurt a little. Short daily sessions build calluses faster and more gently than one long session; stop when it stings and come back tomorrow.

Easy versions of hard chords

F is the first barre chord most beginners meet. Until you are ready, play a small F on the top four strings (xx3211), or swap it for Dm in simple songs. G7 and C7 are also good early chords: one finger moved from G and C.

ChordRunner on a phone next to an acoustic guitar, with a chord block on screen

Practise easy guitar chords as a game

ChordRunner shows the chord name, you strum it, and the microphone hears whether it was right. The game shows chord symbols, like songbooks do; use the diagrams above to learn the shapes.

Random chord changes

Chords come in an order you cannot predict, with a little time pressure: the best workout for changes.

Beginner to pro

Major and minor first, then sus, 7th and 9th chords as your hit rate goes up. See the guitar chord game.

Microphone or MIDI

Guitar through the microphone; on piano, a USB MIDI keyboard is detected automatically.

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Common questions

What are the easiest guitar chords?

Em and Am, then C, G and D. They are open chords: they use the first frets and some open strings, so they need little strength and sound full straight away.

What 5 guitar chords should a beginner learn first?

G, C, D, Em and Am. Together they play a very large number of songs, and the changes between them are the classic first workout for the fretting hand.

How long does it take to learn basic guitar chords?

Most beginners can play the shapes in one or two weeks of daily practice. Clean, fast changes take longer and come from short daily sessions switching between chords.

How can I practise guitar chord changes?

Switch between two chords for a minute, keep shared fingers down, then mix all your chords in a random order. In ChordRunner the chord name appears and the microphone checks your strum.

Your instrument is the controller.

ChordRunner is a browser game that teaches piano and guitar chords: a chord appears on screen, you play it on a real instrument, and your runner jumps. MIDI keyboard or microphone, both work.

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