G major guitar chord (G)

How to play G

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).

1. 1st finger (index) — 2nd fret, A string
2. 2nd finger (middle) — 3rd fret, low E string
3. 3rd finger (ring) — 3rd fret, high E string

• Play open: D (4th), G (3rd) and B (2nd) — strum them without fretting anything.
• Strum all six strings. Nothing is muted in this shape, so the chord should ring from the low E right through to the high E.

Notes and intervals in G

G is built from 3 notes: G, B and D.

• G — the root (R)
• B — the major 3rd (3)
• D — the perfect 5th (5)

Across the six strings the shape sounds G · B · D · G · B · G 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 G is used for

G opens the key of G and is the V chord of C, so it partners with C, D and Em in more beginner progressions than any other shape. Its three fretted notes sit at the outside edges of the neck with three open strings running between them, which is why the hand has to spread rather than bunch.

Common mistakes with G

• The ring finger brushing the B string. It has to arch clear over two open strings to reach the 3rd fret of the high E.
• Bunching the hand toward the middle of the neck. Spread the fingers out to the two outside strings — the middle three stay open.
• Ignoring the four-finger alternative. Fretting the 6th string with the ring finger, the 5th with the middle and the 1st with the little finger keeps the index free and makes G to C and G to Cadd9 dramatically quicker.

Chords that go with G

Same-root variations first, then the chords a fourth and a fifth away — the shapes G is most often played alongside.

• G dominant 7
• C major
• D major
• D minor