Guitar chord · Open shape · Standard tuning
A dominant 7 guitar chord (A7)
Place finger 1 on the 2nd fret of the D, finger 3 on the 2nd fret of the B. Don't play the low E string.
A – C♯ – E – G
Loop strum: down, down-up, up-down-up on 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &.
Next moves
2 fingers, 5 strings, chart notation x02020. Tap the chord box to hear it strummed, then play it string by string to check every note is ringing cleanly.
How to play A7
Finger numbers run 1 for the index to 4 for the little finger. String names are given as players say them — the low E is the thickest string (the 6th) and the high E is the thinnest (the 1st).
- 1st finger (index) — 2nd fret, D string
- 3rd finger (ring) — 2nd fret, B string
- Play open: A (5th), G (3rd) and high E (1st) — strum them without fretting anything.
- Leave out: low E (6th) — start the strum below it, or damp it with the side of the thumb.
| String | Fret | Finger | Note it sounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6th — low E | Not played | — | × |
| 5th — A | Open | — | A |
| 4th — D | 2nd fret | 1 (index) | E |
| 3rd — G | Open | — | G |
| 2nd — B | 2nd fret | 3 (ring) | C♯ |
| 1st — high E | Open | — | E |
Notes and intervals in A7
A7 is built from 4 notes: A, C♯, E and G.
- A — the root
- C♯ — the major 3rd
- E — the perfect 5th
- G — the flat 7th
Across the six strings the shape sounds A · E · G · C♯ · E from low to high, so some notes are doubled in different octaves — that is what gives an open guitar chord its width compared with the same chord on a keyboard.
What A7 is used for
A7 is A major with the ring finger lifted off the G string so the open G sounds the flat 7th. That one change turns a resting chord into a restless one: A7 is the V7 in the key of D, so it leans hard toward D, and it is the standard turnaround chord in a blues in A.
Common mistakes with A7
- Smothering the open G string. That open 3rd string is the flat 7th and the entire point of the chord — if the index finger is lying flat across the D string it will kill it.
- Fretting the B string with the middle finger. Using the ring finger keeps the middle free, which makes A and A7 a one-finger swap.
- Letting the low E ring, which buries the A root under an E.
A first strum pattern
Count “1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &” — eighth notes (quavers). Strum down, down-up, up-down-up: down on 1, down on 2, up on the “&” of 2, up on the “&” of 3, down on 4, up on the “&” of 4. Keep your hand moving down and up all the time, and only touch the strings on the marked counts.
Start the strum loop above at 60–70 BPM and change chords on beat 1.
A dominant 7 FAQ
How do you play A dominant 7 on guitar?
Place finger 1 on the 2nd fret of the D, finger 3 on the 2nd fret of the B. Don't play the low E string. In chart notation it is x02020, low E string first.
What notes are in A dominant 7?
A, C♯, E and G: the root, the major 3rd, the perfect 5th and the flat 7th.
What chord comes after A dominant 7?
Common changes from A dominant 7: B dominant 7 and B minor. Practice the switch slowly with the strum loop, then speed it up.
Guitar chord data last updated . Every diagram here, in the printable PDF and in the chart image comes from one dataset, so the paper and the screen cannot disagree.