The 28 Most Useful Beginner Guitar Chords to Learn First
If you know 3 or more beginner chords on the guitar, plug them into this Search Engine. You'll find loads of easy songs.
But if you don't know any guitar chords yet - start with the sequence below by clicking the:
- First diagram for 1-chord songs with G.
- Second diagram for 2-chord tunes with G & D.
- Third diagram for 3-chord guitar songs with G & D & C.
Click Any Beginner Chord
Diagram to See Songs
1-Chord Songs with G Major
Click any song below to play along with the video.
- Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley - 1955
- My Jack Don't Drink No Water - Shortstuff Macon - 1964
- Dance to the Music - Sly & the Family Stone - 1968
- Everyday People - Sly & the Family Stone - 1969 - (Slightly out of tune.)
- It's a Rainy Day Sunshine Girl - Faust - 1972
- Low Rider - War - 1975
- Bad to The Bone - George Thorogood - 1982
- One Chord Song - Keith Urban - 2000
- U.S. 41 - Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - 2010
- Pretty Polly - Traditional - NA
- Row, Row, Row Your Boat - Traditional - NA
- The Farmer in the Dell - Traditional - NA
- Make New Friends - Traditional - NA
- Frère Jacques - Traditional - NA
To see chord diagrams for guitar, ukulele, mandolin, or banjo, click here.
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2-Chord Songs with D & G
Click any title to see the chords and notation.
Click any artist for a video.
- Take Me Back To Tulsa - Bob Wills - 1940
- How Much Is That Doggie in the Window - Patti Page - 1952 - This song modulates.
- Hot Corn, Cold Corn - Flatt and Scruggs - 1962
- Lively Up Yourself - Bob Marley - 1971
- Feel Like Making Love - Bad Company - 1975 - Not sure if this counts or not. There's an extra C in the notation.
- Waymore Blues - Waylon Jennings - 1975
- Copperhead Road - Steve Earle - 1988 - The G5 in the notation is optional.
- Snowstorm - Galaxie 500 - 1989
- The Cowboy Song - Joe vs. the Volcano - 1990
- Sweet Potato - Cracker - 1993
- Stop Whispering - Radiohead - 1993
- Three Is a Magic Number - Blind Melon - 1996
- What I Got - Sublime - 1996
- Gimme That Girl - Joe Nichols - 2009
- Best Day of My Life - American Authors - 2013 - The notation includes a Bm, but this song still works with D & G.
- Blurred Lines - Robin Thicke - 2013
There are also lots of folk tunes & nursery rhymes with these 2 chords.
To see chord diagrams for guitar, ukulele, mandolin, or banjo, click here.
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Why These 28 Chords (and Why This Order)?
The Chord Genome Project is a search engine of songs - organized by the chords they use. For example, here’s a list of 3-chord songs with G, C, D.
There are 500,000+ songs in the database. And to play all this music, you need to learn over 2,000 guitar chords. But to play roughly half the database (i.e. 250,000+ songs), you only need the 28 beginner chords above. These guitar chords let you play the most music (with the least effort). So start with them first.
But…
You can also map out your own chord path. To learn how, keep reading.
Find Songs Using Your Own Guitar Chords?
You don’t have to start with G major. Many beginners on the guitar learn A, E, D first - or D, G, A. With this site’s Song Search Engine, you can quickly find easy tunes using whatever beginner chords you want. Then use the Next Best Chord tool to see what new chord to add to your practice.
If you’re still not sure where to begin, the resources below cover some other great starting places:
Looking for Other Guitar Chord Diagrams?
The 28 guitar chords above are the most useful ones to learn first. But if you’d like to see even more chord diagrams for beginners, check out the resources below:
- Major Guitar Chords (e.g. G)
- Minor Guitar Chords (e.g. Gm)
- Dominant 7th Guitar Chords (e.g. G7)
- Minor 7th Guitar Chords (e.g. Gm7)
You can also find alternate guitar chord fingerings here.
Already know a few chords?
Do a search to find songs that use your chords.
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Thanks for Reading
I hope you found this chord guide helpful. If you did, please share it with other beginner guitarists.
Thank you so much for reading. And happy strumming.
-Austin