Major seventh chords, written maj7, are among the most useful colors on the guitar. They take a plain major chord and add one note, the seventh, which sits just one fret below the octave. The result is soft, bright and a little dreamy, the sound of a lot of soul, bossa, jazz and mellow pop. This page explains how they are built, how they differ from the 7 chord they are often confused with, and how to play them.
How a maj7 chord is built
Formula: 1 3 5 7, a major triad plus a major seventh. Cmaj7 is C, E, G and B. The B is the major seventh of C: one fret under the next C. That half step between the seventh and the root is where the color comes from.
| Family | Formula | In C | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| maj7 | 1 3 5 7 | C E G B | Soft, open, at rest |
| 7 | 1 3 5 b7 | C E G Bb | Dominant, tense |
| m7 | 1 b3 5 b7 | C Eb G Bb | Minor, rounded |
In a major key, two chords are naturally maj7: the I and the IV. In C major, that is Cmaj7 and Fmaj7. That is why the maj7 sounds like home rather than like a chord on its way somewhere else.
Open and movable maj7 shapes
Most open maj7 shapes are an open major chord with one finger lifted or moved, which makes them easier than they look. Cmaj7 is C with the first finger lifted. Dmaj7 lowers one note of D. Fmaj7 is the friendliest version of F there is, with no barre and the high E open.
Gmaj7, 3x0002, is not drawn here but is worth knowing: G in
the bass, the fifth string muted, F# on the high E.
The movable shape on the fifth string
x24342 is Bmaj7, with the root on the fifth string. Slide it and
the fret of the root names the chord. It is one shape, not six:
| Chord | Root fret (fifth string) | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Bmaj7 | 2 | x 2 4 3 4 2 |
| Cmaj7 | 3 | x 3 5 4 5 3 |
| Dmaj7 | 5 | x 5 7 6 7 5 |
| Emaj7 | 7 | x 7 9 8 9 7 |
| Fmaj7 | 8 | x 8 10 9 10 8 |
| Gmaj7 | 10 | x 10 12 11 12 10 |
If the barre is uncomfortable, leave the high E out and play only the four strings from the fifth to the second: the chord stays complete. The notes on the fretboard help you find each root fast.
Every major seventh chord
- Cmaj7 chord (C E G B)
- C#maj7 chord (C# E# G# B#)
- Dmaj7 chord (D F# A C#)
- Emaj7 chord (E G# B D#)
- Fmaj7 chord (F A C E)
- Gmaj7 chord (G B D F#)
- G#maj7 chord (G# B# D# F##)
- Amaj7 chord (A C# E G#)
- Bmaj7 chord (B D# F# A#)
Progressions to practice
| Progression | What to hear |
|---|---|
| Cmaj7, Fmaj7 | I to IV, both at rest: the easiest maj7 loop. |
| Dmaj7, Gmaj7 | The same move in D, open shapes only. |
| Amaj7, Dmaj7 | I to IV in A. |
| Bmaj7, Emaj7 | The movable shape against an open one. |
| C, Cmaj7, C7, F | The bass stays on C while one inner voice falls C, B, B flat, then lands on A, the third of F. You hear maj7 and 7 side by side. |
Practice the changes slowly with the online metronome. To hear maj7 against the other sevenths, read seventh chords; for the closely related open, airy sound with no seventh, try add9 chords.
Frequently asked questions
What is a maj7 chord?
What is the difference between maj7 and 7?
Which maj7 chords should I learn first?
Can I replace every major chord with a maj7?
Who made this
Guitar Social Club is the work of Yohann Abbou, a guitar teacher in Paris. He teaches adults, many of whom fall for the maj7 sound before they know its name. This page gives the name, the formula and the shapes. All the chord families are gathered on the guitar chords page.
More about Yohann on his page, and about why Guitar Social Club exists.