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The F7 chord (F dominant seventh) on guitar

F7 is F major with one extra note, Eb, and that note changes its job: F major can rest, F7 wants to move, almost always to Bb. Like every F chord it is easier in steps. Play it on four strings first, add the bass with the thumb, and save the full barre for when the small shape rings clean.

F7 chord: notes and shapes at a glance

  • Name: F dominant seventh
  • Symbol: F7
  • Notes: F, A, C, Eb
  • Where it belongs: V7 in Bb major, V7 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.

Shape Frets, low E to high E Notes, low to high What it is for
F7, four strings xx1211 Eb A C F All four notes with no full barre. Eb sits in the bass, so it sounds light; fine in a band or over a bass player.
F7, thumb bass 1x1211 F Eb A C F The thumb adds F on the low E and mutes the fifth string. A real root without the six string barre.
F7, barre 131211 F C Eb A C F The full version: the E7 shape moved up one fret. Root, fifth, seventh, third, fifth, root.
F7, eighth fret x 8 10 8 10 8 F C Eb A C The A7 shape barred at fret 8: first finger across, second finger on the fourth string at fret 10, third finger on the second string at fret 10.
F7, four strings x x 1 2 1 1 · · 1 2 1 1 fingers
F7, thumb bass 1 x 1 2 1 1 T · 1 2 1 1 fingers
F7, barre 1 3 1 2 1 1 1 3 1 2 1 1 fingers
F7, eighth fret x 8 10 8 10 8

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.

F7 on the neck: every F, A, C, Eb

Standard tuning, frets 0 to 12. The highlighted notes are the notes of F7: any shape you build from them, anywhere on the neck, is still F7.

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
Gb
G
Ab
A
Bb
B
C
Db
D
Eb
E
2 - B
B
C
Db
D
Eb
E
F
Gb
G
Ab
A
Bb
B
3 - G
G
Ab
A
Bb
B
C
Db
D
Eb
E
F
Gb
G
4 - D
D
Eb
E
F
Gb
G
Ab
A
Bb
B
C
Db
D
5 - A
A
Bb
B
C
Db
D
Eb
E
F
Gb
G
Ab
A
6 - E
E
F
Gb
G
Ab
A
Bb
B
C
Db
D
Eb
E

From F to F7: one finger comes off

Put the two barres side by side and the seventh is easy to find.

Chord Shape Fourth string
F 133211 Fret 3, F
F7 131211 Fret 1, Eb

Lift the fourth finger off the fourth string and the barre underneath sounds Eb. Nothing else moves. The catch: that string is now held only by the barre, so press with the side of the first finger, not the soft middle of it.

Two notes to check string by string: Eb on the fourth string at fret 1, and A on the third string at fret 2. If either is muted, the chord stops sounding like F7.

The three steps, finger by finger

Four strings: xx1211

First finger flat across the top four strings at fret 1, second finger on the third string at fret 2. Strum from the fourth string down.

Thumb bass: 1x1211

Keep that shape and wrap the thumb over the neck to fret the low E at fret 1. The same thumb touches the fifth string so it stays silent.

Full barre: 131211

Lay the first finger across all six strings at fret 1, put the third finger on the fifth string at fret 3 and the second finger on the third string at fret 2. More on getting the barre to ring on the barre chords page.

Where F7 goes

F7 is the V7 of Bb: it leads there in Bb major and in Bb minor. Play the resolution and listen to the A in F7 rise a half step to Bb.

Change Shapes
F7 to Bb 131211 to x13331
F, F7, Bb 133211, 131211, x13331
Cm, F7, Bb (ii V I in Bb) x35543, 131211, x13331
F7 to Bbm 131211 to x13321
F7, Bb7, C7 (blues in F) 131211, x13131, x32310

The last row is the blues: there F7 is not a passing chord but home, and all three chords are sevenths. See chord progressions for more.

F7 next to its neighbors

  • Fmaj7: F, A, C, E. Major seventh, soft and settled.
  • F7: F, A, C, Eb. Minor seventh over a major chord: tense, bluesy, moving.
  • Fm7: F, Ab, C, Eb. The third drops too: darker and smoother.
  • F6: F, A, C, D. Same idea of a fourth note, but D does not pull anywhere: F6 can end a song, F7 rarely does.

Frequently asked questions

How do you play F7 on guitar?
The full version is 131211: first finger barred across fret 1, third finger on the fifth string at fret 3, second finger on the third string at fret 2. The fourth string stays under the barre, at fret 1: that Eb is the seventh.
What is the easiest F7 chord?
xx1211, on the top four strings: first finger flat across the fourth to first strings at fret 1, second finger on the third string at fret 2. It holds F, A, C and Eb, the whole chord.
What notes are in F7?
F, A, C and Eb. F major plus the minor seventh, Eb. That Eb against the A is what gives the chord its pull.
Where does F7 resolve?
To Bb. F7 is the V7 of Bb major and of Bb minor, so F7 to Bb or F7 to Bbm is the move to know. In a blues in F, F7 is also the home chord.
What is the difference between F7, Fmaj7 and Fm7?
Fmaj7 has E (F, A, C, E) and sounds soft. F7 has Eb with a major third (F, A, C, Eb) and sounds tense. Fm7 has Eb and Ab (F, Ab, C, Eb) and sounds dark and smooth.
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.