Interactive Guitar Chord & Scale Fretboard
Visual guitar fretboard diagram generator for open chords, barre chords, pentatonic boxes, and modal scales with finger placements.
C Major Chord
Notes: C - E - G • Formula: 1 - 3 - 5🎸 Fretboard Navigation Tip: Root Note Anchoring
The colored circle markers indicate the Root note. Always anchor your index or ring finger on the lowest root note on the 6th (low E) or 5th (A) string; this gives you an instant reference point to slide chord shapes and scale boxes anywhere up the neck.
About this tool
How to use it
- Choose your Display Mode: Guitar Chord Diagram or Full Fretboard Scale Map.
- Select your Root Key / Note (e.g. C, G, A, E).
- Pick your Chord Quality (Major, Minor, 7th, Maj7, Sus4) or Scale Type (Pentatonic, Blues, Dorian, Major).
- View the generated SVG fretboard diagram with root note highlighting ('R'), open strings ('O'), and muted strings ('X').
Why it matters
Memorizing chord fingerings and scale patterns across 6 strings and 12 frets is difficult without clear visual fretboard geometry. Visually isolating the root notes allows guitarists to understand chord construction and improvise solos effortlessly.
When to use it
Use this finder when learning new songs, practicing scale runs up the neck, finding alternate barre chord voicings, or composing rhythm chord progressions.
Good to know
Standard guitar tuning is tuned in fourths with a major third between strings 3 and 2: E2 - A2 - D3 - G3 - B3 - E4.
Common questions
What does the 'R' on the fretboard diagram mean?
The 'R' represents the Root note (the tonal anchor of the chord or scale). For example, in a C Major chord, every red circle marked 'R' is a C note.
What is the difference between major and minor chords?
A major chord contains a Root, a Major 3rd (4 semitones up), and a Perfect 5th (7 semitones up), producing a bright, happy sound. A minor chord flattens the third to a Minor 3rd (3 semitones up), giving it a darker, melancholic sound.
What is the minor pentatonic scale?
The minor pentatonic is a 5-note scale (Root, b3, 4, 5, b7) that forms the foundational vocabulary for rock, blues, pop, and metal guitar solos.
What do the 'x' and 'o' symbols mean in tab notation?
An 'x' means do not strum or pick that string (mute it with your finger). An 'o' means play the open string without fretting.