Reverse Chord Finder
Hold a shape, tap the same frets here, and see what chord it is. Works in any tuning, and names slash chords and inversions the way a chart would.
Tap a fret to hold it, tap it again to release the string. The left column mutes a string (×) or shows its open note.
This chord is
C
C major — C · E · G
The bright, resolved, "happy" sound. The most common chord in Western music.
See C shapes and theory →Notes sounded
| String | Fret | Note | Interval |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | open | E4 | 3rd |
| 2 | 1 | C4 | root |
| 3 | open | G3 | 5th |
| 4 | 2 | E3 | 3rd |
| 5 | 3 | C3 | root |
How to Use the Chord Finder
- Choose your tuning. Standard is selected by default; the fretboard re-labels its open strings for whichever you pick.
- Tap the fret you are holding on each string. The top row is the thin high E string and the bottom row is the thick low E, the same way a tab is written. Tap open for a string you play unfretted.
- Leave a string alone, or tap its held fret again, to mute it. Muted strings show an × on the left.
- The chord name appears below the neck, with every other valid name for the same notes, and a table of exactly which note each string is sounding. Press Strum to hear it.
The link in your address bar updates as you go, so Share copies a link that opens straight to the shape you built — handy for asking someone what a chord is, or for saving one you stumbled on.
How It Works Out the Name
Most chord-finder tools on the web work backwards from a list of known shapes: if your fingering is in the list, you get a name, and if it is not, you get nothing. That fails the moment you play something slightly unusual, and it fails completely in alternate tunings.
This one works from the notes. It takes the open-string note of each string in your chosen tuning, adds the fret you are holding, and gets the exact pitch each string is sounding. It then reduces those to pitch classes — a C is a C in any octave — and compares that set against the formula for every chord type on every root. A major chord is a root, a note four semitones up and a note seven semitones up; if your notes are exactly that set, starting from any of the twelve roots, it is that chord.
It is the same check our chord library runs on every diagram before it is published, only in reverse. A shape this page names will always be found under that name in the library, and every shape in the library will be named correctly here.
Choosing between valid names
Sets of notes often have more than one legitimate name, so the finder ranks them rather than picking arbitrarily:
- A complete chord outranks one that is missing its 5th.
- A chord whose root is the lowest note outranks a slash chord. With A in the bass, A–C–E–G is Am7 before it is C6/A.
- Between chords of equal standing, the simpler one comes first — a triad before a seventh, a seventh before an added-note chord.
The alternatives are still shown, because sometimes the second name is the one that fits the song. If the bass player is holding a C, the chord you are playing is C6 no matter which string is lowest under your own fingers.
Spelling
Note names are spelled from the chord, not from a fixed sharps-only table. The third of C♯ major is E♯, not F; the fifth of E♭ minor is B♭, not A♯. That is what a chart or a score would say, and it makes the interval column in the notes table read correctly — every major chord shows root, 3rd and 5th on consecutive letters.
Common Shapes Worth Trying
A few fingerings that surprise people, all in standard tuning:
- x-0-2-0-1-0 — the open Am7, which is also C6 with A in the bass. Two names, one shape.
- x-x-0-2-3-2 — D major. Lift the finger on the first string and it becomes Dsus2; move it up a fret and it is Dsus4. The finder shows each change instantly.
- 0-2-2-1-0-0 — E major. Now switch the tuning to Drop D without moving your fingers, and the low string — now a D, the 7th of E — turns the chord into E7/D.
- x-3-2-1-1-0 — C augmented, which the finder also names E aug and A♭ aug, because an augmented triad divides the octave evenly and any of its notes can be the root.
When You Have a Name and Want the Shape
This tool goes from fingers to name. For the other direction, every chord it can identify has its own page in the chord library with open and barre voicings, audio, the keys it belongs to, and the progressions it appears in. The link under each result takes you straight there.
And if the chord sounds wrong no matter what the finder says, check the tuning first — the chromatic tuner takes thirty seconds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the finder give more than one name for the same shape?
Because several chords genuinely share the same notes. A, C, E and G are Am7 if A is the lowest note and C6 if C is — the ear hears the bass note as the root. The finder lists every valid name with the most likely one first, judged by which note is in the bass and how simple the chord is.
What does a slash in the name mean, like C/E?
The letter after the slash is the lowest note you are playing. C/E is a C major chord with E in the bass rather than C. Musically it is still a C chord — an inversion — but the slash tells another player what to put on the bottom.
What does "5th omitted" mean?
Many four-note chords are played without their 5th because it adds nothing to the chord's character — the 3rd and 7th do all the work. If your shape is one 5th short of a complete 7th, maj7, m7, 6 or add9 chord, the finder still names it, and says so.
Why is my chord spelled with E♯ or B♯ instead of F or C?
Because that is how the chord is correctly written. C♯ major is C♯–E♯–G♯: every major chord is a root, a third and a fifth, so its notes must sit on three consecutive letter names. F sounds the same as E♯, but calling it F would make the chord C♯–F–G♯, which reads as a completely different structure. The finder spells each note from the chord it belongs to, exactly as our chord library does.
Does it work in alternate tunings?
Yes. Pick the tuning from the menu — Drop D, DADGAD, open G, open D and the rest — and the fretboard re-labels itself. The same fingers in a different tuning produce a different chord, and the finder works it out from the actual notes, not from a lookup table of standard-tuning shapes.
It says "no standard name". Is my chord wrong?
No. The finder recognises the thirteen chord types a guitarist meets most — major, minor, 7ths, sus, 6ths, add9, dim, aug and power chords. Plenty of useful sounds fall outside those, especially clusters from open tunings. If you want a name, try releasing one string and see what the rest spell.