PianoForge

Piano chords chart

Twelve chord types on all twelve notes — 144 chords, spelled correctly, drawn on the keys and playable. Pick a root, then open any chord for its inversions.

C

C major · 1 – 3 – 5

CEG
C – E – G

Cm

C minor · 1 – ♭3 – 5

CGE♭
C – E♭ – G

Cdim

C diminished · 1 – ♭3 – ♭5

CE♭G♭
C – E♭ – G♭

Caug

C augmented · 1 – 3 – ♯5

CEG♯
C – E – G♯

Csus2

C suspended 2nd · 1 – 2 – 5

CDG
C – D – G

Csus4

C suspended 4th · 1 – 4 – 5

CFG
C – F – G

C7

C dominant 7th · 1 – 3 – 5 – ♭7

CEGB♭
C – E – G – B♭

Cmaj7

C major 7th · 1 – 3 – 5 – 7

CEGB
C – E – G – B

Cm7

C minor 7th · 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7

CGE♭B♭
C – E♭ – G – B♭

Cm7♭5

C half-diminished 7th · 1 – ♭3 – ♭5 – ♭7

CE♭G♭B♭
C – E♭ – G♭ – B♭

Cdim7

C diminished 7th · 1 – ♭3 – ♭5 – 𝄫7

CB♭bE♭G♭
C – E♭ – G♭ – B𝄫

Cadd9

C add 9 · 1 – 3 – 5 – 9

CEGD
C – E – G – D

All chords at a glance

Rootmajorminordiminishedaugmentedsuspended 2ndsuspended 4thdominant 7thmajor 7thminor 7th
CC E GC E♭ GC E♭ G♭C E G♯C D GC F GC E G B♭C E G BC E♭ G B♭
C♯C♯ E♯ G♯C♯ E G♯C♯ E GC♯ E♯ G𝄪C♯ D♯ G♯C♯ F♯ G♯C♯ E♯ G♯ BC♯ E♯ G♯ B♯C♯ E G♯ B
DD F♯ AD F AD F A♭D F♯ A♯D E AD G AD F♯ A CD F♯ A C♯D F A C
E♭E♭ G B♭E♭ G♭ B♭E♭ G♭ B𝄫E♭ G BE♭ F B♭E♭ A♭ B♭E♭ G B♭ D♭E♭ G B♭ DE♭ G♭ B♭ D♭
EE G♯ BE G BE G B♭E G♯ B♯E F♯ BE A BE G♯ B DE G♯ B D♯E G B D
FF A CF A♭ CF A♭ C♭F A C♯F G CF B♭ CF A C E♭F A C EF A♭ C E♭
F♯F♯ A♯ C♯F♯ A C♯F♯ A CF♯ A♯ C𝄪F♯ G♯ C♯F♯ B C♯F♯ A♯ C♯ EF♯ A♯ C♯ E♯F♯ A C♯ E
GG B DG B♭ DG B♭ D♭G B D♯G A DG C DG B D FG B D F♯G B♭ D F
A♭A♭ C E♭A♭ C♭ E♭A♭ C♭ E𝄫A♭ C EA♭ B♭ E♭A♭ D♭ E♭A♭ C E♭ G♭A♭ C E♭ GA♭ C♭ E♭ G♭
AA C♯ EA C EA C E♭A C♯ E♯A B EA D EA C♯ E GA C♯ E G♯A C E G
B♭B♭ D FB♭ D♭ FB♭ D♭ F♭B♭ D F♯B♭ C FB♭ E♭ FB♭ D F A♭B♭ D F AB♭ D♭ F A♭
BB D♯ F♯B D F♯B D FB D♯ F𝄪B C♯ F♯B E F♯B D♯ F♯ AB D♯ F♯ A♯B D F♯ A

Holding notes and don’t know the name? Use the chord finder.

Questions

How many piano chords do I need to know?

The 24 major and minor triads (one of each on all 12 notes) cover most pop, folk and rock songs. Add dominant 7ths, major 7ths and minor 7ths and you can play most jazz standards and ballads — that’s the 60 chords in the first five columns of this chart.

How do you build a chord on the piano?

Start on the root and count half steps (every key, black or white, is one half step). A major chord is root + 4 + 3 half steps (C–E–G); a minor chord is root + 3 + 4 (C–E♭–G). Add another 3 or 4 half steps on top for a 7th chord.

What is a chord inversion?

The same chord with a different note in the bass. C major in root position is C–E–G; first inversion is E–G–C; second inversion is G–C–E. Inversions let you move between chords without jumping around the keyboard.

Why are some chords spelled with flats and others with sharps?

Each chord tone is a specific letter: the 3rd of an E♭ chord must be a G (not F𝄪), and the 3rd of B major must be D♯ (not E♭). This chart spells every chord correctly, which is what you’ll see in sheet music.