B chords on guitar

About the B chords on guitar

All chords on this page share the root B. The plainest of them is B major, built from B–D♯–F♯; G sharp minor is its relative minor key.

B appears in E major (V), B major (I), F sharp major (IV), E minor (V).

Triads are three-note chords, the backbone of most songs. The B triads are B (B–D♯–F♯), Bm (B–D–F♯), B5 (B–F♯), Bdim (B–D–F), Baug (B–D♯–F𝄪).

Seventh chords add a fourth note, a seventh above the root, for a richer or more tense sound: B7 (B–D♯–F♯–A), Bmaj7 (B–D♯–F♯–A♯), Bm7 (B–D–F♯–A), Bdim7 (B–D–F–A♭), Bm7♭5 (B–D–F–A), Bm(maj7) (B–D–F♯–A♯), Baug7 (B–D♯–F𝄪–A).

Extended and added-note chords stack a sixth, ninth, eleventh or thirteenth on top. On B: Badd9 (B–D♯–F♯–C♯), Bm(add9) (B–D–F♯–C♯), B6 (B–D♯–F♯–G♯), Bm6 (B–D–F♯–G♯), B9 (B–D♯–F♯–A–C♯), Bm9 (B–D–F♯–A–C♯), Bmaj9 (B–D♯–F♯–A♯–C♯), B11 (B–D♯–F♯–A–C♯–E), B13 (B–D♯–F♯–A–C♯–G♯), B7♯9 (B–D♯–F♯–A–C𝄪), B7♭9 (B–D♯–F♯–A–C), B6/9 (B–D♯–F♯–G♯–C♯), Badd11 (B–D♯–F♯–E).

Suspended chords replace the third with a second or fourth, so they sound open and unresolved: Bsus2 (B–C♯–F♯), Bsus4 (B–E–F♯), B7sus4 (B–E–F♯–A), B9sus4 (B–E–F♯–A–C♯).

On guitar, many B chords can be played as an open shape or as a barre chord higher up the neck. The diagrams show the most comfortable shape; each chord page has several more, a capo option and strumming patterns.

Chords marked "diagram only" are less common and do not have their own page yet; the diagram and the notes above are all you need to play them.