Bass Guitar Chords Chart
Bass players usually play a chord one note at a time, as an arpeggio: root, 3rd, 5th and octave. With the root on the E string, the major shape puts the 3rd one fret lower on the A string, the 5th two frets higher on the A string and the octave two frets higher on the D string. Power chords (root and 5th) and octaves are the easiest shapes.
Works in the UK and the US. This version uses UK music words (bar, crotchet, quaver, stave); the US version uses measure, quarter note, eighth note and staff. · US version of this page
Updated · By the Classfern Music Department
Key facts
- A major chord is root, major 3rd and perfect 5th: C major is C, E, G. A minor chord lowers the 3rd: C minor is C, E♭, G.
- Seventh chords add a 4th note: C7 is C, E, G, B♭; Cmaj7 is C, E, G, B; Cm7 is C, E♭, G, B♭.
- Every shape on this page is movable: move the root along the E string and the whole shape moves with it.
- The 5th is always two frets up on the next string; the octave is two frets up and two strings up.
- Full chords sound muddy low on a bass, so bassists play two-note chords (double stops) high up or spread the notes out.
- Most bass lines start from the root of each chord, played on beat 1.
Bass chord shape finder
Choose a root note and a chord type to see the shape (root on the E string) and hear it played up and down. Self-assessed Can you play the shape along with the sound, in time?
R = G1 (E string, fret 3) · 3 = B1 (A string, fret 2) · 5 = D2 (A string, fret 5) · 8 = G2 (D string, fret 5)
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Can you play chords on a bass guitar?
Yes, but most of the time bassists spell chords out one note at a time (arpeggios) rather than strumming them. Two-note chords such as root and 5th, or 3rd and 7th, sound clearer than full chords on the low strings.
The diagrams below show each shape with G as the root (3rd fret of the E string). R is the root, 3 the major 3rd, ♭3 the minor 3rd, 5 the 5th, ♭7 the minor 7th, 7 the major 7th and 8 the octave. The top line is the G string, like tab.
Major (G)
R G (E 3) · 3 B (A 2) · 5 D (A 5) · 8 G (D 5)
Minor (Gm)
R G (E 3) · ♭3 B♭ (E 6) · 5 D (A 5) · 8 G (D 5)
Dominant 7th (G7)
R G (E 3) · 3 B (A 2) · 5 D (A 5) · ♭7 F (D 3)
Minor 7th (Gm7)
R G (E 3) · ♭3 B♭ (E 6) · 5 D (A 5) · ♭7 F (D 3)
Major 7th (Gmaj7)
R G (E 3) · 3 B (A 2) · 5 D (A 5) · 7 F♯ (D 4)
Power chord (root and 5th) (G5)
R G (E 3) · 5 D (A 5)
Octave (G)
R G (E 3) · 8 G (D 5)
What notes are in each bass chord?
Each chord type is a formula of intervals above the root. Major is root, 3, 5; minor is root, ♭3, 5; a dominant 7th adds ♭7 to major; a minor 7th adds ♭7 to minor; a major 7th adds 7.
| Chord type | Symbol | Formula | In C | In G | In E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major | (none) | R – 3 – 5 | C E G | G B D | E G♯ B |
| Minor | m | R – ♭3 – 5 | C E♭ G | G B♭ D | E G B |
| Dominant 7th | 7 | R – 3 – 5 – ♭7 | C E G B♭ | G B D F | E G♯ B D |
| Minor 7th | m7 | R – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7 | C E♭ G B♭ | G B♭ D F | E G B D |
| Major 7th | maj7 | R – 3 – 5 – 7 | C E G B | G B D F♯ | E G♯ B D♯ |
| Power chord (root and 5th) | 5 | R – 5 | C G | G D | E B |
What is a power chord on bass?
A power chord is just the root and the 5th: on bass, the root on one string and the note two frets higher on the next string up. It has no 3rd, so it fits both major and minor chords.
Bassists often play the root and 5th one after the other (root–fifth bass lines) rather than together, especially in country, folk and pop. Add the octave (two strings up, two frets up) to make the classic “root, fifth, octave” rock line.
How do you find the root note on a bass guitar?
Read the letter of the chord symbol (the root of A♭m7 is A♭), then find it on the E or A string. On the E string, fret 1 is F, 3 is G, 5 is A, 7 is B and 8 is C; on the A string, fret 2 is B, 3 is C, 5 is D and 7 is E.
| Root | E string fret | A string fret |
|---|---|---|
| C | 8 | 3 |
| C♯/D♭ | 9 | 4 |
| D | 10 | 5 |
| D♯/E♭ | 11 | 6 |
| E | 0 | 7 |
| F | 1 | 8 |
| F♯/G♭ | 2 | 9 |
| G | 3 | 10 |
| G♯/A♭ | 4 | 11 |
| A | 5 | 0 |
| A♯/B♭ | 6 | 1 |
| B | 7 | 2 |
Every fret number repeats 12 frets higher. See the full bass guitar notes chart.
How bass players use chords in a song
- Roots only: play the root of each chord on every beat.
- Root and 5th: root on beats 1 and 3, 5th on beats 2 and 4.
- Arpeggio: root, 3rd, 5th, octave – one note per beat.
- Walk to the next chord: on beat 4 play a note one fret above or below the next root.
Try all four with the bass tabs you can hear. Classfern’s free music tools on lessonplanner.info run in your browser; to hear the full chords above your bass line, use the chord player.
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