Free online tool
Capo Calculator and Capo Chart
Capo calculator: see which chords you hear with a capo on any fret, find the capo position for your key, and print a free capo chart.
1. Shapes + capo → sounding chords
2. I want to play in a key → which capo?
| Capo | Shape key | Chords to play | Easy? |
|---|
Easy shape keys are C, G, D, A, E, Am, Em and Dm. The first easy row is usually the lowest capo.
3. Printable capo chart
| Capo fret | C | A | G | E | D | Am | Em | Dm |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Db | Bb | Ab | F | Eb | Bbm | Fm | Ebm |
| 2 | D | B | A | F#/Gb | E | Bm | F#m | Em |
| 3 | Eb | C | Bb | G | F | Cm | Gm | Fm |
| 4 | E | Db | B | Ab | F#/Gb | C#m | G#m | F#m |
| 5 | F | D | C | A | G | Dm | Am | Gm |
| 6 | F#/Gb | Eb | Db | Bb | Ab | Ebm | Bbm | G#m |
| 7 | G | E | D | B | A | Em | Bm | Am |
| 8 | Ab | F | Eb | C | Bb | Fm | Cm | Bbm |
| 9 | A | F#/Gb | E | Db | B | F#m | C#m | Bm |
Read across: pick the open chord shape you play, go down to the capo fret, and the cell is the chord you hear. Sharp/flat names are the common key names; F#/Gb are the same pitch.
About the Capo Calculator
The Capo Calculator is a free chart tool that shows which chords you hear when a capo sits on any fret, and which capo position suits the key you want. Type the chord shapes you play, set the capo fret, and the sounding chords appear below. Choose a key to see which capo frets let you play easy open shapes, then print a capo chart for your music stand. It runs in your web browser with no sign-up, and nothing you enter is uploaded.
Use it when a song sits in a key that is hard to play in barre chords, or when a sheet says “capo” and you want to check what the chords sound like. Anyone searching for a guitar capo chart, a capo key chart or a capo chord chart can start here, because the same table covers each option.
How to use the Capo Calculator
- In box 1, type the chord shapes you play, separated by spaces, such as G C D Em. Set the Capo fret with − and +. The chords you actually hear appear below, with the key they sound in.
- Choose Major or Minor to match the key you are working in.
- In box 2, pick the Key you want to sound in. The table lists capo frets 0 to 7 with the Shape key and the Chords to play at each fret.
- Look for the highlighted rows, which use easy open shapes (the Easy? column marks them). If several rows are highlighted, start with the lowest capo fret, because it keeps the guitar’s tone fullest.
- Press Print this chart to get the Printable capo chart, which shows open shapes against capo frets 1 to 9.
The − and + buttons beside the capo fret move the capo one fret at a time (up to fret 12), so you can compare neighbouring positions without retyping anything. To change a whole chord sheet at once, use the chord transposer with the same number of semitones.
The most useful tips for the Capo Calculator are to choose the lowest highlighted capo fret and to check your tuning after clamping. Lower frets keep the guitar’s tone fullest, so start there when several rows are easy.
- Other players in the band hear the sounding key, not your shape key, so set the key to the one the singer needs.
How does a capo change the key?#
A capo raises every string, and so every chord shape, by its fret number counted in semitones. A G shape with the capo on fret 2 sounds as A, and an Em shape on fret 2 sounds as F♯m. The calculation works in both directions:
- sounding key = shape key + capo fret
- shape key = sounding key − capo fret
To count semitones up from C: C♯ is 1, D is 2, E♭ is 3, E is 4, F is 5, F♯ is 6, G is 7, A♭ is 8, A is 9, B♭ is 10 and B is 11. From any other note, count the same way around the twelve notes.
How do I find the capo position for a key?#
Subtract the capo fret from the key you want to sound in until you land on a key with easy open shapes. If a song is in G and you want it to sound in A, keep the G shapes and put the capo on fret 2. A song in B♭ is awkward in barre chords, but with the capo on fret 3 it is played with G, C, D and Em shapes.
Which keys count as easy open shapes?#
Open chords ring fuller than barre chords, and the open-string keys on guitar are C, G, D, A and E, plus Am, Em and Dm. Box 2 of the calculator marks every capo position whose shape key is one of these as Easy, so you can see at a glance which frets keep you on familiar shapes. When several rows are easy, the lowest capo fret usually keeps the fullest tone.
How do you read a capo chart?#
A capo chart shows which chord you hear when you play a simple shape with the capo on a given fret. Find the shape you finger, go to the capo fret, and read the chord where they meet. That chord is the one that sounds.
- Find the shape you play in the top row, such as G or Em.
- Move down that column to the row for your capo fret.
- Read the chord in that cell. This is the chord you hear.
For example, a G shape with the capo at fret 2 sounds as A. Your fingering stays the same. Only the pitch changes, because each fret raises everything by one semitone.