B7 is the chord that sends a song in E back home. It turns up in folk, blues and campfire songs right before an E or an E minor, and, unlike plain B major, it has a real open shape with no barre. Four fingers, five strings, one string left open in the middle. Learn that shape first, then the two barre versions that let you play it higher up the neck.
B7 chord: notes and shapes at a glance
- Name: B dominant seventh
- Symbol: B7
- Notes: B, D#, F#, A
- Where it belongs: V7 in E major, V7 in E 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.
| Shape | Frets, low E to high E | Notes, low to high | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| B7, open | x21202 | B D# A B F# | The B7 everyone learns first. Five strings, one open B in the middle, no barre. |
| B7, top four strings | xx4445 | F# B D# A | No open strings, so you can choke it short. F# is the lowest note, so it sounds lighter than the open shape. |
| B7, A7 shape barre | x24242 | B F# A D# F# | A7 moved up two frets, first finger as the nut. Brighter and tighter than the open shape, good for blues. |
| B7, seventh fret | 797877 | B F# A D# F# B | The E7 barre shape at the seventh fret. All six strings, with the root in the bass. |
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.
B7 on the neck: every B, D#, F#, A
Standard tuning, frets 0 to 12. The highlighted notes are the notes of B7: any shape you build from them, anywhere on the neck, is still B7.
How to play the open B7, finger by finger
The open shape is x21202. It uses all four fingers, so place them in an order that builds the chord from the bass up.
- Second finger on the A string, fret 2. That is B, the root and the lowest note you play.
- First finger on the D string, fret 1. That is D#, the major third.
- Third finger on the G string, fret 2. That is A, the seventh, the note that gives B7 its pull.
- Leave the B string open. It doubles the root, and it only rings if the third finger stays on its tip.
- Fourth finger on the high E, fret 2. That is F#, the fifth.
Strum from the A string down. If the four fingers feel like a lot, start with the short version x212xx: B, D# and A on three strings. It has no fifth, but it already sounds like B7 and already pulls to E.
B7 to E and E minor: the change that matters
B7 is the V7 chord of both E major and E minor. Its D# wants to rise a half step to E, and its A wants to fall to the third of the next chord. That is why the change is so satisfying, and why it is worth practicing until it is automatic.
| Change | Shapes | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| B7 to E | x21202 to 022100 | The second finger stays on the A string at fret 2. The first finger hops from the D string to the G string at fret 1, and the third finger lands on the D string at fret 2. |
| B7 to Em | x21202 to 022000 | Same anchor: second finger on the A string at fret 2 in both chords. Lift the rest and drop the third finger on the D string. |
| Em, Am, B7, Em | 022000, x02210, x21202, 022000 | The i iv V7 i of E minor. Four beats per chord, then two. |
| E7, A7, B7, E7 | 020100, x02020, x21202, 020100 | The three chords of a blues in E. All three are open, so the left hand can stay relaxed and the right hand can swing. |
The two barre versions of B7
x24242 is the A7 shape moved up two frets. The first finger lies across the second fret from the A string down, the third finger takes the D string at fret 4 and the fourth finger the B string at fret 4. The G string stays under the barre and gives you A, the seventh. It is tighter and brighter than the open B7, which is why blues players like it.
797877 is the E7 barre shape at the seventh fret: the first finger across all six strings, the third finger on the A string at fret 9 and the second finger on the G string at fret 8. The D string under the barre is the seventh. It is the version to use when the rest of the song already lives around the seventh fret, or when you want the B in the bass on the low E string.
If you already play B major as a barre, compare them side by side: x24442 becomes x24242 when the third finger lets go of the G string. That single note, B down to A, is the whole difference. The idea behind both barres is explained on the barre chords page.
Where B7 shows up
Anywhere a song is in E or E minor, B7 is the chord that leads home. You will find it next to E, E minor, E7 and A7 in blues and folk, and in minor keys it often replaces a plain B to make the return to Em stronger.
To hear it in context, Stevie Wonder's Isn't She Lovely loops through C#m7, F#7, B7 and E: each chord is the V7 of the next, and B7 is the last step before E. The F#7 that comes before it is the V7 of B, the same relationship one step earlier. For a richer color on the same chord, try B9.
Frequently asked questions
How do you play a B7 chord on guitar?
What notes are in a B7 chord?
Why is B7 easier than B major?
What chord comes after B7?
Why does my open B7 sound muddy?
Who made this
Guitar Social Club is the work of Yohann Abbou, a guitar teacher in Paris who teaches adults. Every shape on this page is written string by string and checked against standard tuning, and the diagrams are drawn from those same fret numbers. The rest of our free guitar tools, including the chord finder, work the same way.
More about Yohann on his page, and about why Guitar Social Club exists.