The B flat minor chord (Bbm) on guitar

You mostly meet B flat minor as the key of a song rather than a chord dropped into a progression in G. Pop records cut on keyboards, and songs sung a half step above A minor, land there. For a guitarist it is almost always A minor one fret higher: either the A minor shape barred at the first fret, or open A minor shapes with a capo on fret 1. Both are on this page, along with a four string version that needs no barre at all.

Bbm chord: notes and shapes at a glance

• Name: B flat minor
• Symbol: Bbm
• Notes: Bb, Db, F
• Where it belongs: vi in Db major, iii in Gb major, ii in Ab major, iv in F minor, i in Bb minor

Each shape below is written from the thickest string to the thinnest: a number is the fret, 0 an open string, x a string you do not play. New to this? See how to read chord diagrams.

Read each diagram from the thickest string on the left to the thinnest on the right. A cross means the string is not played, a circle means it rings open.

Bb, Bbm or Bm: which chord do you need?

Three neighbors get mixed up on chord sheets and on the neck. Their shapes are almost the same; their notes are not.

Between Bb and Bbm, one note moves: the B string goes from fret 3 (D) to fret 2 (Db). Between Bbm and Bm, the whole shape moves up one fret. If you can play Bm, you can already play Bbm.

How to play Bbm, one layer at a time

1. Four strings: xx3321

First finger on the high E at fret 1, second finger on the B string at fret 2, third finger on the D string at fret 3, fourth finger on the G string at fret 3. Strum the top four strings only. You hear F, Bb, Db and F.

2. Add the root: x1332x

Move the first finger to the fifth string at fret 1: that is Bb. Keep the other three fingers where they were and leave the high E out.

3. The barre: x13321

Now lay the first finger flat from the fifth string to the first. It only has to sound two notes on its own, Bb on the fifth string and F on the first. This is the hardest place on the neck for a barre, because the strings are stiffest near the nut. Press with the bony side of the finger, keep the thumb low behind the neck, and do not squeeze harder than the notes need.

Getting in and out of Bbm

In the key of B flat minor, the chords around Bbm are Gb, Db and Ab, plus F as the V. The barre shapes keep the hand in two zones.

Where Bbm shows up

Bbm is home in B flat minor and the vi chord of D flat major, its relative major; the key list at the top of the page gives the rest. The scale it comes from, B flat natural minor, has five flats: Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, Ab.

To hear it: Imagine Dragons' Believer is recorded in B flat minor. Most guitarists play it with a capo on the first fret and open A minor shapes, which is the clearest demonstration that Am plus one fret is Bbm.