Capo guide for guitarists
Is a song in a tricky key, like E♭ or F♯? With a capo you can play it with easy open chords.
Find your capo position
- Capo 1 – play the D major chord shapes
- Capo 3 – play the C major chord shapes
- Capo 6 – play the A major chord shapes
How it works
With a capo on fret 3, a C shape sounds like E♭. So the rule is: shape + capo frets = sounding key. To work backwards: sounding key − capo = shape.
The most popular shapes are C, G, D, A and E (and Am, Em, Dm for minor): they use the most open strings and sound full. A capo higher than fret 7 often sounds thin, so we only show positions 0 to 7.
Does someone prefer to sing lower or higher? Move the capo one or two frets: that changes the key without having to learn new shapes.
Capo table for all keys
| Key | Options (capo → shape) |
|---|---|
| C major | none → C · 3 → A · 5 → G |
| G major | none → G · 3 → E · 5 → D · 7 → C |
| D major | none → D · 2 → C · 5 → A · 7 → G |
| A major | none → A · 2 → G · 5 → E · 7 → D |
| E major | none → E · 2 → D · 4 → C · 7 → A |
| B major | 2 → A · 4 → G · 7 → E |
| F♯ major | 2 → E · 4 → D · 6 → C |
| D♭ major | 1 → C · 4 → A · 6 → G |
| A♭ major | 1 → G · 4 → E · 6 → D |
| E♭ major | 1 → D · 3 → C · 6 → A |
| B♭ major | 1 → A · 3 → G · 6 → E |
| F major | 1 → E · 3 → D · 5 → C |
| A minor | none → Am · 5 → Em · 7 → Dm |
| E minor | none → Em · 2 → Dm · 7 → Am |
| B minor | 2 → Am · 7 → Em |
| F♯ minor | 2 → Em · 4 → Dm |
| C♯ minor | 4 → Am |
| G♯ minor | 4 → Em · 6 → Dm |
| E♭ minor | 1 → Dm · 6 → Am |
| B♭ minor | 1 → Am · 6 → Em |
| F minor | 1 → Em · 3 → Dm |
| C minor | 3 → Am |
| G minor | 3 → Em · 5 → Dm |
| D minor | none → Dm · 5 → Am |