Piano chords: how they are built, with all 24 major and minor chords
A piano chord is three or more notes played together, built by counting semitones up from a root. A major triad adds 4 and then 3 semitones (C–E–G), a minor triad 3 and then 4 (C–E♭–G). Diminished is 3 + 3, augmented 4 + 4, and a seventh chord adds a fourth note 10 or 11 semitones above the root.
Chord charts are much easier to remember once you see that every chord comes from the same few distances. This guide gives the formulas, writes out all 12 major and 12 minor chords, explains seventh chords, inversions and chord symbols, and shows two progressions in C to start with. Each chord can be lit up and heard on the free online piano of VITON13 SCHOOL.
Key ideas
- Count semitones from the root, one key at a time, white or black: a major triad is 0–4–7, a minor triad 0–3–7.
- Diminished is 0–3–6, augmented 0–4–8, sus2 is 0–2–7 and sus4 is 0–5–7.
- C7 adds the note 10 semitones up (C E G B♭), Cmaj7 the note 11 semitones up (C E G B), and Cm7 is C E♭ G B♭.
- An inversion puts a different note at the bottom without changing the chord: C–E–G, E–G–C and G–C–E are all C major.
How are piano chords built?
Piano chords are built by stacking intervals on a root note, and the basic chord, the triad, has three notes: the root, the third and the fifth. Measure the distances in semitones, one key at a time, black keys included. A major triad puts a major third (4 semitones) on the root and a minor third (3) above it, so its notes sit 0, 4 and 7 semitones above the root: C–E–G. A minor triad reverses the order, 3 and then 4, giving 0–3–7: C–E♭–G.
Two more triads stack two thirds of the same size. Two minor thirds (3 + 3, or 0–3–6) make a diminished triad, C–E♭–G♭; two major thirds (4 + 4, or 0–4–8) make an augmented triad, C–E–G♯. Suspended chords replace the third: sus2 uses the second (0–2–7, C–D–G) and sus4 the fourth (0–5–7, C–F–G), so they sound neither major nor minor.
Seventh chords add a fourth note on top of a triad. A dominant seventh (C7) is a major triad plus the note 10 semitones above the root: C–E–G–B♭. A major seventh chord (Cmaj7) takes the note 11 semitones up instead: C–E–G–B. A minor seventh chord (Cm7) is a minor triad plus the note 10 semitones up: C–E♭–G–B♭.
What are the notes of all major and minor piano chords?
Every major chord has the same 4 + 3 shape, started on a different key. The 12 major chords are: C = C E G; D♭ = D♭ F A♭; D = D F♯ A; E♭ = E♭ G B♭; E = E G♯ B; F = F A C; F♯ = F♯ A♯ C♯; G = G B D; A♭ = A♭ C E♭; A = A C♯ E; B♭ = B♭ D F; B = B D♯ F♯.
Every minor chord is 3 + 4 semitones. The 12 minor chords are: Cm = C E♭ G; C♯m = C♯ E G♯; Dm = D F A; E♭m = E♭ G♭ B♭; Em = E G B; Fm = F A♭ C; F♯m = F♯ A C♯; Gm = G B♭ D; G♯m = G♯ B D♯; Am = A C E; B♭m = B♭ D♭ F; Bm = B D F♯.
A quick check: the major and the minor chord on the same root differ by one note, the middle one, which drops by a semitone. C major is C–E–G and C minor is C–E♭–G; A major is A–C♯–E and A minor is A–C–E. Only three major chords, C, F and G, and three minor chords, Dm, Em and Am, use the white keys alone, which is why beginners usually start with them.
What are inversions, progressions and chord symbols?
An inversion plays the same notes with a different one at the bottom. C major in root position is C–E–G; in first inversion the C moves up an octave and E is lowest (E–G–C); in second inversion G is lowest (G–C–E). It is still C major, and inversions let the hand move between chords in small steps instead of jumps.
A progression is a series of chords, named with Roman numerals for the steps of the scale: capitals for major chords, lower case for minor. In C major, I–IV–V is C–F–G, the three major chords of the key, and I–V–vi–IV is C–G–Am–F, a progression used across many genres of popular music. With inversions, I–IV–V can be played as C–E–G, C–F–A and B–D–G, so the right hand hardly moves.
A chord symbol is a root letter plus a suffix. A letter alone (C) means a major triad; m means minor (Cm); 7 means a dominant seventh (C7); maj7 means a major seventh (Cmaj7, also written CΔ7); m7 means a minor seventh (Cm7); dim and aug mean diminished and augmented; sus2 and sus4 replace the third. A slash names the lowest note, so C/E is C major with E in the bass, which is its first inversion.
How to practise piano chords on the online piano
Open the free online piano of VITON13 SCHOOL and switch to the Chords mode. Choose one of the 12 roots, then a type: major, minor, 7, maj7, m7, dim, aug, sus2 or sus4. The keys of the chord light up with their note names, spelled the way musicians write them, so C minor shows E♭ rather than D♯, and the panel lists the notes, the degrees and the semitones from the root. Press Play to hear the chord at once, or One by one to hear its notes in turn.
Then play it yourself with the mouse, with several fingers on a touch screen, or on the computer keyboard: the bottom row from Z plays one octave and the top row from Q the next. Work through the 12 major chords in the order of the list above, then the 12 minor ones, and finish with C–F–G and C–G–Am–F. The Scales mode shows the major and minor scales the chords come from, and Record lets you hear a progression back.
In everyday language
A chord formula is like a recipe that works in any kitchen: root, plus 4, plus 3 makes a major chord whether you start on C, F♯ or B♭. The ingredients change with the root; the recipe stays the same.
Try it yourself
Open the online piano, choose Chords, pick the root D and the type Major, play the chord, then switch the type to Minor.
Expected result
D major lights up D, F♯ and A; D minor lights up D, F and A. Only the middle note moves, one semitone down.
Check your answer: Using the 4 + 3 formula, which notes make up E major? And E minor?
E major is E–G♯–B: 4 semitones above E is G♯, and 3 more is B. E minor is E–G–B, because the third drops one semitone, from G♯ to G.
Questions
What are the easiest piano chords for beginners?
C major (C–E–G), F major (F–A–C), G major (G–B–D) and the minor chords Am (A–C–E), Dm (D–F–A) and Em (E–G–B) use only white keys. With C, G, Am and F you can already play the I–V–vi–IV progression in C.
What is the difference between C7 and Cmaj7?
Both add a seventh to the C major triad. C7 adds B♭, 10 semitones above C, while Cmaj7 adds B, 11 semitones above C; the two chords are one key apart and sound clearly different.
Learn the two formulas, 4 + 3 for major and 3 + 4 for minor, then open the VITON13 SCHOOL online piano, light up each of the 24 chords in the Chords mode and play them yourself until the shapes sit in your hand.