C Guitar Chord
Welcome to our tutorial on the C Major chord - a fundamental chord that belongs to the Major Chords family. The C Major chord, like all major chords, is composed of three notes: the root, the major third, and the perfect fifth. In this case, those notes are C, E, and G.
Understanding the structure of the C Major chord requires a basic knowledge of music intervals. In the C Major chord, the intervals are the 1st (root), 3rd (major third), and 5th (perfect fifth). If you are unfamiliar with these terms, we recommend checking out our tutorial about fretboard intervals and our tutorial on how to denote chords depending on the intervals that compose it.
In this tutorial, we will be providing chord diagrams and fretboard patterns to help you visualize and understand the structure of the C Major chord. We will also be discussing how these tones interact to create the distinctive sound of the C Major chord. If you're interested in how chords are built, you may find our tutorial that teaches how to build chords by stacking intervals helpful.
By the end of this tutorial, you will not only know how to play the C Major chord, but you will also understand its structure and why it sounds the way it does. Whether you're a beginner just starting out or an intermediate player looking to deepen your understanding, this tutorial has something for you. Happy playing!
C maj chord Notes:
CEG
How the Major chord is built:
The C Guitar Chord On Guitar
The C Major chord is built on the C Major scale, stacking the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes:
C D E F G A B C
So, counting 1, 3 and 5, we get: C E and G.
Keys Where You Can Find The C Major Chord
The C major chord contains natural notes only, so it's present in different keys:
C Major Key
| Key | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | C | Dm | Em | F | G | Am | B dim |
G Major Key
| Key | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | F# dim |
F Major Key
| Key | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F | F | Gm | Am | Bb | C | Dm | E dim |
E Minor Key
| Key | i | ii | III | iv | v | VI | VII |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E | Em | F# dim | G | Am | Bm | C | D |
A Minor Key
| Key | i | ii | III | iv | v | VI | VII |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Am | B dim | C | Dm | Em | F | G |
Progressions That Use The C Major Chord
There are probably thousands of songs with a C major chord somewhere. Here are some of the most popular:
- 1 4 5: C F G
- 1 6m 4 5: C Am F G
- 1 5 6m 4: C G Am F
My full tutorial on common chord progression will give you a detailed view on how put chords together.
Scales To Play Over a C Major Chord
Basically any scale that has a Major Third and a Perfect Fifth will be a great fit for this chord, for example:
- C major scale
- C Lydian scale
- C Mixolydian scale
- C Major Pentatonic scale
To learn more about this concept, check my complete ebook Scales Over Chords | Learn How To Play The Right Scales Over Any Chord.
Songs With The C Major Chord
The C major chord is one of the most used, and you can find it in songs like Imagine, The House Of The Rising Sun, Hallelujah, Time After Time, Ain't No Sunshine, Blowin’ in the Wind and many others.
You definitely want to learn it!
How To Play The C Major Chord | Guitar Shapes
Chord boxes are sorted from the easiest to the hardest. Learn how to read chord diagrams.
If you have difficulties with bar chord shapes, check the Bar Chords Tips tutorial.
You can also use this accessible chords page with written diagrams instruction.
Position 1
Open
Position 2
Movable
Position 3
Movable
Position 4
Open
Position 5
Movable
Position 6
Open
Position 7
Open
Position 8
Open
Position 9
Open
Position 10
Open
Position 11
BarreMovable
Position 12
Open
Position 13
Open
Position 14
BarreMovable
Position 15
BarreMovable
Position 16
BarreMovable
Position 17
BarreMovable
Position 18
BarreMovable
You can find more shapes in our all guitar chords online library. If you prefer a printable pdf, download
the Free Guitar Chords Chart Pdf
Play This Chord With Other Roots
C maj | D maj | E maj | F maj | G maj | A maj | B maj | C#maj | D#maj | F#maj | G#maj | A#maj | Abmaj | Bbmaj | Dbmaj | Ebmaj | Gbmaj
How to build the C maj chord on guitar
You can create any fingering you like on any part of the fretboard, just play some of the chord tones shown in the map below. Some shapes will sound good, some less, let your ears decide!