G major the chords in the key
- Scale
- G A B C D E F#
- Key signature
- one sharp: F#
- Relative minor
- E minor
The seven chords
Seventh chords
| Numeral | Chord | Notes | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imaj7 | Gmaj7 | G B D F# | |
| ii7 | Am7 | A C E G | |
| iii7 | Bm7 | B D F# A | |
| IVmaj7 | Cmaj7 | C E G B | |
| V7 | D7 | D F# A C | |
| vi7 | Em7 | E G B D | |
| viiø7 | F#m7b5 | F# A C E |
Common progressions in G major
- I–V–vi–IV the four-chord pop loop
- I–IV–V three-chord rock, folk and country
- ii–V–I the jazz cadence, in sevenths
- vi–IV–I–V the same four chords starting on the minor one
- 12-bar blues one chord per bar; every chord a dominant 7, which the major scale alone does not give
On guitar
No capo needed. The I, IV, V and vi (G, C, D and Em) are all open-position chords already.
How the chords of G major work
G major uses the notes G A B C D E F#, one sharp: F#. Stack every other note of that scale on each degree and you get the seven chords above: three major (G, C and D: I, IV and V), three minor (Am, Bm and Em: ii, iii and vi) and one diminished (F#dim, vii°). Most songs in G lean on G, C and D, with Em as the fourth chord.
The V7, D7 (D F# A C), is the chord that sounds like it wants to come home: its F# rises a semitone to G and its C falls a semitone to B. A song that ends D7 to G is almost certainly in G major.
Em is also the home chord of E minor, the relative minor: it uses exactly the same seven notes and the same seven chords. So a chord list from this page can be in either key; it is usually in the one whose home chord it starts or ends on.
Have a list of chords and not sure of the key? The key finder scores it against all 24 keys and can transpose it.
What this page cannot do
- Only major and minor keys. Dorian, Mixolydian and the other modes are not covered: a song in D Mixolydian (D, C, G) uses the chords of G major and will look like G major here.
- Finding a key from chord names is a best fit, not a certainty. A chord list cannot tell a key from its relative minor, which shares every chord; the melody and where the song comes to rest decide it.
- Songs change key. A bridge or a last chorus a step higher is a new key, with its own page.
- The sound is a simple synthesised tone made in your browser, each chord in root position, not a recorded piano or guitar.