How to Play the F Chord on Guitar
To play the F chord, lay your index finger flat across all six strings at the 1st fret, put your middle finger on the 2nd fret of the G string, your ring finger on the 3rd fret of the A string and your pinky on the 3rd fret of the D string, then strum all six strings.
No open string appears in any of the 16 voicings of the F major chord, which is built from F, A and C, so every shape here is fretted and eight of them are barres.
With no open-string version, F is a natural place to meet barre chords. Musically it is the I chord of the key of F major, the IV chord of C major and the V chord of Bb major. The F major scale contains all three notes.
The fretboard player at the top labels each note of every shape, so you can see exactly where the root, the A and the C sit under your fingers.
F major guitar chord is also written as F, Fmaj, FM or FΔ.
F Chord Notes and Formula
Notes that compose the F maj chord:
Chord Formula:
Formula: 1 3 5
F Chord Interactive Fretboard
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F Guitar Chord Diagrams
Position 1 Barre Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the low E, B and high E strings at the same time
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 2 of the G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 3 of the D string
Position 2 Barre Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the 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
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 8 of the A string
Position 3 Barre Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the A string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the D, G and B strings at the same time
Position 4 Barre Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A string
- 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
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the D string
Position 5 Barre Movable Slash Chord
F/C Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- 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
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 3 of the D string
The lowest note is C, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/C.
Position 6 Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A 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 G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 5 of the high E string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 6 of the B string
Position 7 Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the D string
- Mute the G string
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the B string
Position 8 Barre Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the A and high E strings at the same time
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 10 of the D string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the G string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the B string
Position 9 Barre Movable Slash Chord
F/A Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A string
- Mute the D string
- 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
The lowest note is A, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/A.
Position 10 Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A string
- Mute the D string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the high E string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the G string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the B string
Position 11 Movable Slash Chord
F/A Major Finger Positions
- Mute the A 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 low E 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
The lowest note is A, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/A.
Position 12 Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A string
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the B string
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 2 of the G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the D string
Position 13 Barre Movable Slash Chord
F/A Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 10 of the D, G and B strings at the same time
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 12 of the A string
The lowest note is A, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/A.
Position 14 Movable Slash Chord
F/A Major 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
The lowest note is A, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/A.
Position 15 Movable
F Major Finger Positions
- Mute the B string
- Mute the high E string
- Place your index finger (1) on the fret 1 of the low E string
- Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 2 of the G string
- Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the A string
- Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 3 of the D string
Position 16 Movable Slash Chord
F/C Major Finger Positions
- Mute the low E string
- Mute the A string
- Mute the D string
- 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
The lowest note is C, not the root, so this voicing is the slash chord F/C.
Find more shapes in our all guitar chords online library. If you
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Chords That Go With F
One key where F fits is F major, where it works as the I chord. These are the main chords of that key, the ones you will often hear around it:
See every key in the guitar keys chart, or build a progression with these chords in the chord progression generator.
More F Chords
Want to know how this chord is built? Read major and minor triads, or browse all F guitar chords.
Created by
Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher
FAQ
What notes make up F major?
F major is F, A and C. A is four semitones up from F, a major third, and C is seven semitones up, a perfect fifth.
How many voicings does F major have?
F major has 16 voicings, 8 of them using a barre and none using open strings. The highest one reaches the 12th fret.
In which keys does F major work as a main chord?
F major is the I chord of F major, the IV chord of C major and the V chord of Bb major. Its notes F, A and C are in all three scales.
Which scale works over F major?
The F major scale: F, G, A, Bb, C, D, E. It contains F, A and C, so melodies in this scale fit over the chord.
