The G7 Chord For Guitar: The Ultimate Player's Guide

The G7 chord for guitar has been used in many a pop, rock, and country song. You can even find it in many traditional Hawaiian ukulele and guitar based songs. The best part is, it's easy to play and is very similar to a standard G chord.

If you have read any of our other 7th chord lessons, you should feel like you are in familiar territory. We have covered A7, B7, D7, and E7, as well as some minor chords too; like Gm7, Bm7, and Dm7.

This lesson will cover how to play the various forms of G7 along the guitar neck. We will also discuss how to build the chord and how to put it into a chord progression. Without further ado, let's get to playing!

How To Play The G7 Chord

This is usually the first way we all learn how to play G7.

index finger (1) on the F note of the high e string on the 1st fret
middle finger (2) on the B note of the A string on the 2nd fret
ring finger (3) on the G note of the low E string on the 3rd fret
play the D, G, and B strings open

Here is an alternate way of playing a G7 open chord.

index finger (1) on the F note of the high e string on the 1st fret
middle finger (2) on the B note of the A string on the 2nd fret
ring finger (3) on the G note of the low E string on the 3rd fret
pinky finger (4) on the D note of the B string on the 3rd fret
play the D and G strings open

If the open chord above is not your first G7, this one probably is.

index finger (1) barred across all 6 strings on the 3rd fret
middle finger (2) on the B note of the G string on the 4th fret
ring finger (3) on the D note of the A string on the 5th fret

This barre chord is the same as the one above with the addition of a high F note

index finger (1) barred across all 6 strings on the 3rd fret
middle finger (2) on the B note of the G string on the 4th fret
ring finger (3) on the D note of the A string on the 5th fret
pinky finger (4) on the F note of the B string on the 6th fret

More Variations Of The Chord

Let's explore a few more variations of the G7 chord.

This open version is very similar to an open G chord with the ring finger in a different position.

index finger (1) on the B note of the A string on the 2nd fret
middle finger (2) on the G note of the low E string on the 3rd fret
ring finger (3) on the F note on the D string at the 3rd fret
pinky finger (4) on the G note on the high e string at the 3rd fret
play the G and B strings open

This is another simple open voicing of G7

index finger (1) on the G note of the low E string on the 3rd fret
middle finger (2) on the F note of the D string on the 3rd fret
ring finger (3) on the D note on the A string on the 5th fret
play the G and B strings open
mute the high e string

index finger (1) on the B note of the G string on the 4th fret
middle finger (2) on the G note of the D string on the 5th fret
ring finger (3) on the F note on the B string on the 6th fret
pinky finger (4) on the B note on the high e string at the 7th fret
mute the top 2 strings

The Theory Behind It

There's an old stereotype that says theory and guitar players don't go well together. Truth is, that is likely untrue. Learning music theory and understanding how chords are built will not only help you become a better player but it is also pretty interesting as well.

When we build a chord, like a major chord, for example we use a formula called a major triad. When written out, a major triad looks like this: I - III - V, or the 1st, 3rd, and 5th. These are the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes of the major scale.

The G major scale looks like this:

To build a G7 chord we must first have a G major chord. The notes of G major are:

G (I)
B (III)
D (V)

To make your G chord a 7th chord, all you need to do is add in a bVII, or flat 7th, note.

G (I)
B (III)
D (V)
F (bVII)

What is the difference between a G7 and a Gmaj7?

A G7 can also be written as Gdom7 or G dominated 7. To make a major chord a 7th chord you add in a bVII, or flat 7th. A Gmaj7, or G major 7, is a major chord with a major 7th.

G (I)
B (III)
D (V)
F (bVII)

Gmaj7

G (I)
B (III)
D (V)
F# (VII)

Complementary Chords

Now that we know how to build chords, we can apply that same knowledge to building chord progressions. Almost everything in music theory works on formulas. To figure out what chords we can use in the key of G we use the formula: I - ii - iii - IV - V - vi - vii°.

Note: when a scale degree is lower case (example "iii") that means it is a minor chord. When a note contains the degree symbol (°) that means it is a diminished chord.

The chords available in a G major chord scale are:

G (I)
Am (ii)
Bm (iii)
C (IV)
D (V)
Em (vi)
F#dim (vii°)

We picked a pretty simple progression for this exercise. It's easy to play but really shows off how interesting 7th chords can make a major chord sound. Try playing I - I7 - IV - IV7 progression, or G - G7 - C - C7, with a slow, bluesy kind of shuffle.

This is how you play that progression:

A Couple More G7 Chord Variations

Here are a few more variations further down the neck, just for good measure

This version uses a D chord shape with the root G played on the D string

index finger (1) fretting the G note on the G string at the 5th fret
middle finger (2) fretting the F note on the B string at the 6th fret
ring finger (3) fretting the D note on the G string at the 7th fret
pinky finger (4) fretting the B note on the high e string at the 7th fret

index finger (1) fretting the G note on the B string at the 8th fret
middle finger (2) fretting the B note on the D string at the 9th fret
ring finger (3) fretting the G note on the A string at the 10th fret
pinky finger (4) fretting the F note on the G string at the 10th fret

index finger (1) barred across the bottom 5 strings on the 10th fret
middle finger (2) on the D note of the D string on the 12th fret
ring finger (3) on the B note of the B string on the 12th fret
mute the top string

This final version is the same as the one above with a high F note added in.

index finger (1) barred across the bottom 5 strings on the 10th fret
middle finger (2) on the D note of the D string on the 12th fret
ring finger (3) on the B note of the B string on the 12th fret
pinky finger (4) on the F note of the high e string on the 13th fret
mute the top string

Songs That Have The G7 Chord

The G7 chord can be used in a wide variety of different songs and genres. You can see from the list below we cover rock, pop, country, traditional, gospel, Hawaiian, and more

Fun Fun Fun by The Beach Boys
Surfin’ USA by Beach Boys
Paperback Writer by The Beatles
Don't Fear the Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult
I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown
E Huli Makou by David Chung
The Scientist by Coldplay
Down On The Corner by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Island Style by John Cruz
Shine On by John Cruz
Baby Love by Diana Ross and The Supremes
Shining Star by Earth, Wind & Fire
Lucille by B.B. King
Ku'u Home O Kahalu'u by Olomana
Mustang Sally by Wilson Picket
Hound Dog by Elvis Presley
What I Got by Sublime
Amazing Grace by Traditional
Down In The Valley by Traditional
Happy Birthday by Traditional
He's Got the Whole World in His Hands by Traditional
You Are My Sunshine by Traditional
La Bamba by Ritchie Valens
Hey Good Lookin' by Hank Williams
Jambalaya by Hank Williams

Final Word

After this lesson you, know doubt, love the G7 chord as much as I do. It's a versatile chord and is pretty easy to play up and down the neck. Try making up your own song using this chord and see what you come up with.

Happy practicing!

The G7 Chord For Guitar