F chord on guitar

F is the F major chord, made of the notes F A C. Most guitarists play it as 1 3 3 2 1 1, a barre chord at fret 1. Below are all 6 ways to hold F on the guitar, from the lowest on the neck to the highest, and the same chord in Drop D and DADGAD. The TabTunix app plays each one. Check out our full chord library.

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1fr342
F

1 3 3 2 1 1

Notes

Degrees: R 3 5. Notes: F A C.

Tuning

Inversions

Voicings

How to play F

The shape most players use is 1 3 3 2 1 1, from the lowest string to the highest. Hold it like this:

  1. Lay your index finger flat across all six strings at fret 1.
  2. Put your ring finger on the A string at fret 3.
  3. Put your little finger on the D string at fret 3.
  4. Put your middle finger on the G string at fret 2.
1fr342
F
1 3 3 2 1 1

6 ways to play F

Every shape the chord library holds for F in standard tuning, from low on the neck to high. In each one F is the lowest note; they differ in where your hand sits and in which strings ring.

More shapes, for every chord: all guitar chords.

  • 1fr342
    F
    1 3 3 2 1 1
    barre at fret 1
  • 3fr1243
    F
    X X 3 5 6 5
    closed shape at fret 3
  • 5fr432
    F
    X 8 7 5 6 5
    barre at fret 5
  • 8fr234
    F
    X 8 10 10 10 8
    barre at fret 8
  • 10fr324
    F
    13 12 10 10 10 13
    barre at fret 10
  • 13fr342
    F
    13 15 15 14 13 13
    barre at fret 13

An easier way to play F

F is the first barre chord most players meet, and the one that stops many of them: the stand-in below gets you through a song while the barre comes.

Fmaj7, held as X X 3 2 1 0, often stands in for F. It needs no barre and three fingers. It is a different chord: it adds E to F, A and C, so it sounds close to F but not the same.

1fr321
Fmaj7
X X 3 2 1 0

The notes in F

R35
FAC

A major chord is the root, the major third and the fifth: R 3 5.

Put another of its notes in the bass and F becomes an inversion, written with a slash: F/A and F/C. Below, the first shape of each.

  • 1fr4312
    F/A
    X 0 3 2 1 1
  • 1fr342
    F/C
    X 3 3 2 1 1

Keys and progressions with F

F is one of the chords of these keys, with its number in each. The chords of a key are the chords built on the notes of its scale.

  • IV in C major
  • I in F major
  • V in Bb major
  • bIII in D minor
  • bVII in G minor
  • bVI in A minor

It stands in these chord progressions of the app, in the key each opens in:

  • 50s Progression in C major: C, Am, F, G
  • Aeolian Vamp in A minor: Am, G, F
  • Aeolian Descent in A minor: Am, F, C, G
  • Andalusian Cadence in A minor: Am, G, F, E
  • Phrygian Vamp in E minor: Em, F

F in Drop D, Drop C, Drop B and DADGAD

  • In Drop D, F is 3 3 3 2 1 1, where Standard has 1 3 3 2 1 1.
  • In Drop C, F is 5 5 5 4 3 3, where Standard has 1 3 3 2 1 1.
  • In Drop B, F is 6 6 6 5 4 4, where Standard has 1 3 3 2 1 1.
  • In DADGAD, F is 3 0 3 2 3 X, where Standard has 1 3 3 2 1 1.

More on each tuning: Drop D, Drop C, Drop B and DADGAD, all under guitar tunings.

  • 1fr2
    F in Drop D
    3 3 3 2 1 1
  • 3fr2
    F in Drop C
    5 5 5 4 3 3
  • 4fr2
    F in Drop B
    6 6 6 5 4 4
  • 1fr2314
    F in DADGAD
    3 0 3 2 3 X

Get the change up to tempo

A chord is yours when you can change to it in time. In TabTunix, put F and the chord before it into a chord-change exercise, set a target tempo, and play the change to a click that counts you through it. Rate each take, and the app keeps your best tempo, so you see it climb.

More on how to change chords faster.

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Questions about F

F, A and C. As degrees they are R 3 5: the root, the major third and the fifth.