Master the D Minor 7th Guitar Chord

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D m7 position 1 guitar chord diagram

Dm7 is the D minor seventh chord, spelled D, F, A and C. Fourteen voicings are listed here, nine of them using a barre and three using open strings.

It is the ii chord in C major, the iii chord in Bb major and the vi chord in F major. Because it holds only four notes, you can leave out the fifth and still keep the sound of the chord, as shell voicings do. The D minor pentatonic scale contains all four notes.

Switch on the labels in the fretboard at the top and each shape shows its notes by name.

D minor 7th guitar chord is also written as Dm7, Dmin7, D-7 or Dmi7.

Notes in the D m7 chord:

D F A C

Chord Formula:

Formula: 1 b3 5 b7

D M7 Guitar Chord Diagrams

Position 1 Barre Open

D m7 position 1 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Let the A string play without pressing any fret
  • Let the D string play without pressing any fret
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the B and high E strings at the same time
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 2 of the G string

Position 2 Barre Movable

D m7 position 2 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the A, G and high E strings at the same time
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 6 of the B string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 7 of the D string

Position 3 Barre Movable

D m7 position 3 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 10 of the low E, D, G and high E strings at the same time
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 12 of the A string
  • Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 13 of the B string

Position 4 Barre Open

D m7 position 4 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the A string
  • Let the D string play without pressing any fret
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the B and high E strings at the same time
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 2 of the G string

Position 5 Barre Movable

D m7 position 5 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the A string
  • Mute the B string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 10 of the low E string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the D and G strings at the same time

Position 6 Barre Movable

D m7 position 6 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the A string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 10 of the low E string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the D, G and B strings at the same time

Position 7 Movable

D m7 position 7 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 3 of the D string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 5 of the A string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 5 of the G string
  • Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 6 of the B string

Position 8 Movable

D m7 position 8 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the B string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 3 of the D string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 5 of the A string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 5 of the G string

Position 9 Movable

D m7 position 9 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the D string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the A string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 5 of the G string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 6 of the B string

Position 10 Barre Movable

D m7 position 10 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the A string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 3 of the D and B strings at the same time
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 5 of the G string
  • Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 5 of the high E string

Position 11 Barre Movable

D m7 position 11 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the A string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 10 of the D, G, B and high E strings at the same time

Position 12 Open

D m7 position 12 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the A string
  • Let the D string play without pressing any fret
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the G string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 5 of the high E string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 6 of the B string

Position 13 Barre Movable

D m7 position 13 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the A and G strings at the same time
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 6 of the B string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 7 of the D string
  • Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 8 of the high E string

Position 14 Movable

D m7 position 14 guitar chord diagram

Finger Positions

  • Mute the low E string
  • Mute the A string
  • Mute the high E string
  • Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the G string
  • Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 6 of the B string
  • Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 7 of the D string

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Play This Chord With Other Roots

C m7 | D m7 | E m7 | F m7 | G m7 | A m7 | B m7 | C#m7 | D#m7 | F#m7 | G#m7 | A#m7 | Abm7 | Bbm7 | Dbm7 | Ebm7 | Gbm7

Dm7 Guitar Chord | Full Tutorial

Dm7 is a versatile and emotionally rich chord that can add depth to your music.

Whether in pop, funk, or blues, its unique sound enhances musical expression, making it a valuable addition to your guitar-playing repertoire.

Experiment with different positions and listen to its use in various songs to fully appreciate and master this chord.

Here below you find important information about this chord.

The Dm7 3 Most Common Voicings

Open String Voicing

This is the most frequent shape that guitar players learn at the beginning.

  • Middle finger on the 2nd fret of the G (3rd) string
  • Partial barre across the 6th and 5th strings, with the index finger
  • Let the D string ring open
Dm7 guitar chord easy version

Movable Shape Version 1

This is a quite difficult shape that use a 5-string barre. You can move this shape up or down the fretboard to play other m7 chord, because it does not use open strings.

  • 5-strings barre (5th to 1st) with index finger at the 5th fret.
  • Middle finger on the 6th fret of the B (2nd) string
  • Ring finger on the 7th fret of the D (3rd) string
  • Mute the E lowest string
Dm7 guitar shell chord

Movable Shape - Shell Chord

This is a shell chord shape, often used in Jazz.

  • Index finger on the 10th fret of the 6th string (E string).
  • Place your middle finger on the 10th fret of the 3rd string (D string)
  • Place your ring finger on the 10th fret of the 4th string (G string)
  • Mute the 5th (A), 1st (E) and 2nd (B) strings.
Dm7 guitar chord bar shape

Keys And Roles Of Dm7 Chord

The Dm7 is common in C Major and F Major keys.

In the C Major key, Dm7 is the 2nd degree, called the supertonic, and it's quite common in ii-V-I Jazz progression

In the F Major key, D is the relative minor (6th degree), the submediant.

C Major Key

C maj7 D m7 E m7 F maj7 G 7 A m7 B m7/b5
B (7)
G (5)
E (3)
C (1)		 C (1)
A (6)
F (4)
D (2)		 D (2)
B (7)
G (5)
E (3)		 E (3)
C (1)
A (6)
F (4)		 F (4)
D (2)
B (7)
G (5)		 G (5)
E (3)
C (1)
A (6)		 A (6)
F (4)
D (2)
B (7)

F Major Key

F maj7 G m7 A m7 Bb maj7 C 7 D m7 E m7/b5
E (7)
C (5)
A (3)
F (1)		 F (1)
D (6)
Bb (4)
G (2)		 G (2)
E (7)
C (5)
A (3)		 A (3)
F (1)
D (6)
Bb (4)		 Bb (4)
G (2)
E (7)
C (5)		 C (5)
A (3)
F (1)
D (6)		 D (6)
Bb (4)
G (2)
E (7)

Typical Chord Progression With Dm7

Here are some common chord progressions in which you'll find this chord:

  • In C Major: Dm7 as ii, in a ii-V-I Jazz progression: Dm7 - G7 - Cmaj7
  • In Bb Major: Dm7 as iii, in a I-iii7-ii7 progression: Bb - Dm7 - Cm7
  • In F Major: Dm7 as vi, in a I-ii-IV-vi7 progression: F - Gm - Bb - Dm7

Giancarlo Facoetti, founder of FaChords Guitar

Created by

Giancarlo Facoetti

Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher

FAQ

What are the notes of Dm7?

Dm7 contains D, F, A and C. It is the D minor triad (D, F, A) with the minor seventh C added on top.

What does the b3 in the Dm7 formula mean?

The b3 is the note F, a minor third (three semitones) up from D. It makes the chord minor, since a major third would be F#.

Which key has Dm7 as its ii chord?

C major: Dm7 is the ii chord there. It is also the iii chord in Bb major and the vi chord in F major, and the i chord in D minor.

What scale goes with D minor seventh?

D Dorian: D, E, F, G, A, B and C. It is the C major scale started on D, and it holds all four notes of the chord.

How many voicings of Dm7 does the fingering data list?

It lists 14 voicings, between the 1st and 13th fret. Three use open strings and nine are barre voicings.