Bm7 Chord on Guitar
Bm7 B D F♯ A 3 shapes Open chord
Chord diagrams
How to play Bm7 on guitar
The Bm7 chord (Bm7) is made of B, D, F♯, A - 1 b3 5 b7. On a guitar in standard tuning the easiest way to play it is the open shape x20202, with no barre. Below are 3 shapes in all, from the lowest on the neck to the highest; the same chord sounds brighter the higher you play it.
A-shape barre, fret 2 x24232
E-shape barre, fret 7 797777
Strings from the low E (left) to the high E (right). Numbers are fingers: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 little. x = do not play the string, o = open string, a bar = one finger across several strings.
Notes
What notes are in Bm7?
The Bm7 chord has 4 different notes: B, D, F♯, A. The minor triad plus a minor seventh (10 half steps above B). A guitar chord rarely has as many strings as notes, so shapes double some of them: the e-shape barre, fret 7 sounds all six strings.
| Note | Interval from the root | Half steps |
|---|---|---|
| B | Root | 0 |
| D | Minor 3rd | 3 |
| F♯ | Perfect 5th | 7 |
| A | Minor 7th | 10 |
Chords that go with it
Chords in the key of B minor
The seven chords built on the B minor scale, with the easiest shape of each. i, iv and v are the backbone; VI, III and VII are the major chords borrowed from the relative major.
A progression to strum
- i - VI - III - VIIBm - G - D - A
Questions
Frequently asked
How do you play Bm7 on guitar?
The open shape x20202: A string fret 2 (finger 2), G string fret 2 (finger 3), high E string fret 2 (finger 4); let D and B ring open, do not play low E.
What notes are in the Bm7 chord?
The Bm7 chord (Bm7) is made of B, D, F♯, A. Its formula is 1 b3 5 b7. On the guitar, some of those notes are played twice on different strings.
Is there a barre version of Bm7?
Yes: a-shape barre, fret 2 (x24232), and e-shape barre, fret 7 (797777). Barre shapes have no open strings, so you can cut the sound short with your fretting hand.
Keep playing
Strum Bm7, then build a song around it
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