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The Dsus4 chord on guitar, and how it pulls back to D

Dsus4 is a D chord holding its breath. The F# that makes it major is replaced by G, one half step higher, and the ear waits for that G to fall back down. On the guitar it is one finger different from D, on the high E string. Played on its own it sounds unfinished; dropped into a bar of D, it is the little hammer-on flourish you hear in countless acoustic songs.

Dsus4 chord: notes and shapes at a glance

  • Name: D suspended fourth
  • Symbol: Dsus4
  • Notes: D, G, A

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
Dsus4, open xx0233 D A D G The standard shape: the D chord with G on the high E string in place of F#.
Dsus4, with the open A x00233 A D A D G Same fingers, open A added. A in the bass gives a bigger, less settled sound for hard strumming.
Dsus4, fifth fret x57785 D A D G A The Asus4 shape barred at the fifth fret. Movable, and it resolves to D (x57775) when the fourth finger slides back one fret.
Dsus4, open x x 0 2 3 3 · · · 1 3 4 fingers
Dsus4, with the open A x 0 0 2 3 3 · · · 1 3 4 fingers
Dsus4, fifth fret x 5 7 7 8 5 · 1 2 3 4 1 fingers

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.

Dsus4 on the neck: every D, G, A

Standard tuning, frets 0 to 12. The highlighted notes are the notes of Dsus4: any shape you build from them, anywhere on the neck, is still Dsus4.

Fretboard notes
Swipe the fretboard sideways to see every fret.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1 - E
E
F
F#
G
G#
A
A#
B
C
C#
D
D#
E
2 - B
B
C
C#
D
D#
E
F
F#
G
G#
A
A#
B
3 - G
G
G#
A
A#
B
C
C#
D
D#
E
F
F#
G
4 - D
D
D#
E
F
F#
G
G#
A
A#
B
C
C#
D
5 - A
A
A#
B
C
C#
D
D#
E
F
F#
G
G#
A
6 - E
E
F
F#
G
G#
A
A#
B
C
C#
D
D#
E

How to play Dsus4

  1. First finger on the G string, second fret.
  2. Third finger on the B string, third fret.
  3. Fourth finger on the high E string, third fret.
  4. D string open. Strum from the D string down.

Pick the four strings one at a time. The note to check is the last one, G on the high E: it carries the suspension. If the fourth finger feels weak, keep it curved and press with the very tip, close to the fret wire.

Many players use the second finger instead of the fourth on the high E. That works for a Dsus4 held for a whole bar. For the quick move to D it is slower: the second finger has to come off fret 3 and land on fret 2, instead of simply being there already.

The Dsus4 to D move

This is why most guitarists learn Dsus4. Hold the D chord with the first, third and second fingers (xx0232). Without moving the first and third, put the fourth finger on the high E at fret 3. That is Dsus4. Lift it, and the second finger's F# rings again: D.

Loop Shapes What to watch
D, Dsus4, D xx0232, xx0233, xx0232 Only the fourth finger moves. Try it as a hammer-on: strum D, then tap the fourth finger down on the high E.
Dsus2, D, Dsus4, D xx0230, xx0232, xx0233, xx0232 The top note goes E, F#, G, F#. One bar each, then two beats each.
D, Dsus4, G, A xx0232, xx0233, 320033, x02220 Use the G with fret 3 on the B and high E: the third and fourth fingers stay on fret 3 from Dsus4.
G, Dsus4, D, Cadd9 320033, xx0233, xx0232, x32033 The third and fourth fingers stay on the B and high E strings at fret 3 the whole way through.

In the last two loops, the pair of fingers anchored at fret 3 is the whole trick. The Cadd9 chord page shows the same anchor from the C side, and the Dsus2 chord is the other half of the family.

Where Dsus4 shows up

The most famous Dsus4 is the one in Oasis's Wonderwall. The verse loop is Em7, G, Dsus4, A7sus4, with a capo at the second fret. One detail: with the capo on, the shape is called Dsus4 but it sounds a whole step higher, as Esus4. The chord names describe what your hand does relative to the capo. The capo chart shows how every shape moves with it.

Elsewhere, Dsus4 is mostly an ornament. Wherever a song sits on D for a bar or more, a beat of Dsus4 can make the accompaniment move. Use it with taste: if every D becomes a Dsus4 flourish, the trick turns into a tic.

Not to be confused with D7sus4, which adds C to the same suspension and pulls toward G rather than D.

Frequently asked questions

How do you play Dsus4 on guitar?
Play xx0233: first finger on the G string at fret 2, third finger on the B string at fret 3, fourth finger on the high E at fret 3. Leave the D string open and do not play the two bass strings. Strum from the D string down.
What notes are in Dsus4?
D, G and A. D is the root, A the fifth, and G, the fourth, replaces the third. With no F# and no F, the chord is neither major nor minor.
Why does Dsus4 want to go to D?
Because G sits a half step above F#, the third of D. The ear hears G as a note that has not landed yet, and lowering it to F# sounds like a resolution. That pull is the whole point of a sus4: you create a small tension and release it, often within the same bar.
Which fingers should I use for Dsus4?
First on the G string, third on the B string, fourth on the high E. It looks odd to skip the second finger, but it is what makes Dsus4 to D fast: the fourth finger lifts, the second finger drops onto the high E at fret 2, and the first and third fingers never move.
What is the difference between Dsus4 and Dsus2?
The note that replaces the third. Dsus4 has G, a fourth above D, and leans down toward F#. Dsus2 has E, a second above D, and leans up toward it. On the guitar only the high E string changes: fret 3 for sus4, open for sus2.
Yohann Abbou, guitar teacher and founder of Guitar Social Club

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.