Ukulele Chords

Using the ukulele chord chart

Ukulele chords for every key are here as chord boxes: tap a root note and a chord type to see the shapes with finger numbers, easiest first, hear each one strummed, and switch between standard G C E A, low G and baritone tuning. Tap a root, then a chord type, and the ukulele shapes for that chord appear as boxes, the easiest first. Tap a box or Strum to hear it; Note by note plays the four strings one after another, which is the quickest way to find a string that buzzes or is muted by a stray finger. Space strums and the arrow keys move between shapes. The Tuning menu switches to low G, baritone or D tuning and works every shape out again.

In the box, the four lines are the strings as you see them facing the ukulele: G on the left, then C, E and A. The thick top line is the nut, and a label such as 5fr moves the box up the neck. Numbers in the dots are fingers, from 1 for the index to 4 for the little finger, and a circle over a string means it rings open. In standard tuning the G string sits above the C in pitch, so the string on the left is not the lowest note; that is why this chart names chords by their root only, with no slash names. For the shape of a chord you already play, try the chord finder, which has a ukulele setting.

How a ukulele is tuned

The usual tuning for soprano, concert and tenor ukuleles is G C E A, from the string nearest your chin to the one nearest the floor. The G string is tuned an octave higher than you might expect, so it sits between the C and the A in pitch instead of below them. This is called high G or reentrant tuning, and it gives the ukulele its bright, close sound. Some players fit a low G string (G3 instead of G4); the chord shapes stay the same but the lowest note of many chords changes. The baritone ukulele is tuned D G B E, like the top four strings of a guitar, so its shapes have different names: pick Baritone in the Tuning menu. Tune up first with the ukulele tuner.

Because of the high G, the lowest note of a ukulele chord is often not its root, so this page does not show slash names on a high G ukulele. It also means one shape can have two correct names: 0000 is both Am7 and C6.

First ukulele chords to learn

These are the shapes the tool shows first in standard G C E A tuning (strings G, C, E, A):

Chord	Shape	Chord	Shape
C	0003	Am	2000
G	0232	Em	0402
F	2010	Dm	2210
D	2220	G7	0212
A	2100	C7	0001

C, Am, F and G together cover a lot of ground, and each one needs three fingers or fewer. Once those feel easy, try the closed shapes further down each list: they use no open strings, so the same shape moves up and down the neck to give other chords.

How to practise ukulele chord changes

Change between two chords that share a finger first. From Am (2000) to F (2010), the second finger stays on the G string and you only add the first finger. From C (0003) to Am (2000), lift the third finger and put the second one down. Say the next chord name out loud one beat before you change, so your hand is already moving. Keep strumming even if a change is late: the steady strum matters more than a perfect chord at first. When you want new chords in the same key, the chord progression generator gives you sets that go together.

More for ukulele: Ukulele Tuner · Guitar Chord Finder · Fretboard Notes · Chord Chart Maker

Questions

More tools

• Ukulele Tuner
• Guitar Chords
• Chord Finder
• Capo Chart
• Banjo Chords
• Mandolin Chords
• Chord Progressions