Power chords: every shape, a fret chart and riffs to play

Will Schmid and Greg Koch’s Hal Leonard Guitar Method supplied the riffs, shapes and recordings for this guide, and the Complete Edition gathers its three books in one. It teaches power chords in steps, from the open E5, A5 and D5 to movable shapes, palm muting and riffs in several styles.

Power chords are the two-note shapes behind much of rock, punk and metal guitar. They take one or two fingers and keep the same shape on every fret, so they are often the first chords that let a new guitarist play a riff they already know.

This guide explains what a power chord is and shows the three open power chords, the movable shapes on the sixth, fifth and fourth strings, and a chart of every root on both low strings. Then it covers muting, palm muting, slides and drop D, with riffs from the Hal Leonard Guitar Method to play along with, a list of songs and a free printable chart.

A power chord is a two-note guitar chord made of a root and the note a perfect fifth above it, often with the root doubled an octave higher. It is written with a 5 (E5, A5, C5) and has no third, so it is neither major nor minor, and one shape moves up and down the neck to play any root.

What a power chord is

Most chords have three notes or more. A major chord stacks a root, a third and a fifth; a minor chord does the same with a lower third. The third is the note that makes a chord sound bright or dark, and a power chord leaves it out. What remains is the root and the fifth, seven half steps apart, which on the guitar is seven frets.

Without a third, a power chord fits a song in a major key and a song in a minor key equally well. That is why chord charts can write A5 where the song’s harmony is A major or A minor: the bass and the vocal supply the missing note. The chord symbol is the root letter plus 5, so C5 is C and G. The beginner’s guide to guitar chords shows how the power chord sits beside the other chord types.

The three open power chords: E5, A5 and D5

The easiest power chords use an open string as the root and one finger for the fifth. Each one lives on a pair of neighboring strings, and you strum only those two:

• E5: the open low E string (string 6) and the A string (string 5) at fret 2. Notes E and B.
• A5: the open A string and the D string (string 4) at fret 2. Notes A and E.
• D5: the open D string and the G string (string 3) at fret 2. Notes D and A.

The Hal Leonard Guitar Method introduces power chords with these three. Each chord gets a diagram, the two notes on the staff and a photo of the first finger in place.

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Pick only the two strings of each chord at first, slowly, and listen for both notes. Then strum the pair with a short downstroke. The book’s first two exercises change between the three chords in time: four strums a bar in exercise 38, and a rhythm with eighth notes and rests in exercise 40.

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Once the changes are smooth, add the shuffle. Keep the first finger on fret 2 and reach two frets higher with the third finger, so the fifth alternates with the sixth above the root. That rocking two-note pattern on A5, E5 and D5 is the “Power Chord Shuffle”, and the book’s recording plays it slowly first, then at full speed.

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Listen for the uneven, long-short eighth notes of the shuffle feel before you play along.

Played through a 12-bar form in A, the same shuffle becomes a complete blues rhythm part. The 12-bar blues guide gives the chord chart to play it over.

Movable power chords

An open power chord needs an open string, so it only works for E, A and D. A movable power chord frets both notes, which means the same shape plays any root. The first finger holds the root and the third finger holds the fifth, one string higher and two frets up. The chord takes the name of the note under your first finger.

Sixth-string root

Put the first finger on the low E string and the third finger on the A string, two frets higher. With the first finger at fret 3 the root is G, so the shape is G5. Slide the whole hand up two frets, to fret 5, and the same shape becomes A5.

Fifth-string root

Move the same shape over one string: first finger on the A string, third finger on the D string two frets higher. At fret 3 the root is C, so the shape is C5; at fret 5 it is D5. Having both string sets means most changes need only a short move. G5 on the sixth string and C5 on the fifth sit at the same fret, so the hand only steps across one string.

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The three-note shape with the octave

Many players add a third note: the root again, an octave higher. For a sixth-string root it sits on the D string at the same fret as the fifth, so G5 becomes frets 3, 5 and 5 on the bottom three strings. Fret it with the fourth finger, or flatten the third finger across both strings. The octave repeats the root, so the chord sounds fuller and its name stays the same. The two-note shape is easier to start with and quicker to move, and the three-note shape helps with muting, because the extra finger rests on more strings.

Fourth-string root

With the root on the D string, the fifth is still on the next string, the G string, two frets up. The octave moves one fret further, to three frets above the root, because the B string is tuned a major third above the G string instead of a fourth. F5 with its root on the D string is frets 3, 5 and 6 on the D, G and B strings. Shapes on these strings sound higher and lighter than the two low string sets.

Inverted power chords

Flip the two notes and the fifth sits in the bass, a fourth below the root. On neighboring low strings that is one finger across two strings at the same fret, because those strings are tuned a fourth apart. With the first finger across the low E and A strings at fret 5, you play A and D, a D5 with A underneath. It sounds darker and grittier, and the intro of Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water” uses that sound.

The figure puts the three-note shapes and the inverted shape side by side, so you can compare them with the two-finger shapes above.

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Power chord chart: every root on strings 6 and 5

To play any power chord, find its root on the low E or the A string and put the shape there. The table gives the fret for every root on both strings, so each chord has two places to play it. The two black-key spellings name the same notes (C♯5 and D♭5, for example). Each chord name opens its diagrams in the guitar chord finder.

Two landmarks make the chart easy to remember. On the low E string, A is at fret 5 and C at fret 8. On the A string, D is at fret 5 and C at fret 3. Everything else is a fret or two away, and at fret 12 both strings start again from their open note.

How to mute the strings you don’t play

A power chord sounds clean only when the other four strings stay silent. Power chords are often strummed hard, and a stray open string is a common reason a riff sounds messy. The fretting hand does most of the work:

• Let the underside of the first finger lie lightly across the higher strings, touching them without pressing them down.
• For a fifth-string root, let the tip of the first finger lean against the low E string so it cannot ring.
• Relax the fingers you are not using onto the strings as well. Pressure is only needed on the root and the fifth.

To test it, hold a shape and strum all six strings. Only the notes of the chord should sound; the rest should give a dull click. When that works, you can strum hard without aiming for exactly two strings, which is how power chords are played in most songs. Lifting the pressure while keeping the fingers on the strings also stops a chord short, the chop you hear between chords in many riffs.

Palm muting

Palm muting is the chugging sound of rock and metal rhythm guitar. The side of the picking hand rests on the strings right where they leave the bridge and damps them while you pick, so each chord comes out short and percussive. In notation and tab it is marked P.M. between the staff and the tab, with a dashed line for how long it lasts.

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Where the hand sits changes the sound. Right at the bridge, the chord keeps its pitch and gets a tight, muffled attack. Move the hand toward the neck and the strings deaden until you hear more thud than note. Start at the bridge with light pressure and use downstrokes. The book’s “Muted Groove” palm-mutes eighth notes on A5 and opens up on the other chords, so you can hear the contrast inside one riff.

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On the recording, listen for how short the muted A5 chords are next to the ringing D5 and C5.

Power chord riffs to practice

The two riffs below, from the Hal Leonard Guitar Method, put the movable shapes to work. “Pop Riff” moves between both string sets: A5 with its root on the sixth string at fret 5, then D5 and E5 on the fifth string at frets 5 and 7. Between those chords the hand moves only a fret or two. “Early Rock Riff” stays on the sixth string and slides between F5 at fret 1 and G5 at fret 3.

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Play each riff along with its recording. Start with the metronome at 80 BPM if the changes feel rushed, and move up once every chord lands on time.

The Hal Leonard Guitar Method teaches power chords in steps. It starts with the open E5, A5 and D5 and the shuffle, then moves on to the movable shapes, palm muting and a set of riffs in different styles. Slides and drop D come later in the book. Every exercise is in notation and tab, with a recording to play along with.

Slides between power chords

Because the shape never changes, you can slide it. Pick the chord, keep the pressure on and move the hand along the neck to the next fret without picking again. In “Power Chord Slides” the hand slides from C♯5 up to D5, one fret, and from D5 up to E5, two frets, on the fifth string.

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On the recording, the slid chords arrive with no new pick attack, which is what makes them sound smooth.

Why power chords sound good with distortion

Distortion adds new frequencies to whatever you play: sums and differences of the notes going in. The frequencies of a root and a fifth sit in a simple 3:2 ratio. The new frequencies then line up with the notes already there, so the chord stays clear and can even add a bass note below the root. A full major or minor chord has more notes and more complex ratios, and under heavy distortion they blur into mud. Rock players use power chords for that reason, and they work on a clean electric or an acoustic guitar too, where they sound plainer.

In the clip, listen for the open E major chord turning muddy under distortion while E5 stays clear.

Power chords in drop D tuning

Drop D tuning lowers the low E string a whole step to D. The bottom strings then read D, A, D, which is a root, a fifth and an octave, so one finger across them at the same fret plays a power chord. Open, it is D5; at fret 2 it is E5; at fret 5 it is G5. Heavy rock and grunge riffs use this one-finger shape to move fast between chords. The guide to drop D tuning shows how to retune and get back to standard.

Songs built on power chords

Power chords go back to the early 1950s: the critic Robert Palmer credited Willie Johnson and Pat Hare, two guitarists on Sun Records recordings, as the first to play them. Link Wray’s instrumental “Rumble” made the sound famous in 1958. In 1964 The Kinks built “You Really Got Me” on fast power-chord changes, and hard rock, punk, metal and grunge took the shape from there. Each title opens guitar sheet music on musescore.com.

When a song needs the guitar to sound clearly major or minor, play a barre chord instead. The guide to barre chords adds the third back into the same movable idea, with the same root on the sixth or fifth string.

Download the power chord chart

The free printable chart puts the shapes and every root on one page, so you can keep it on the music stand while you learn a song.

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Frequently asked questions

Is there a minor power chord?

No. A power chord has no third, and the third is what makes a chord major or minor. When a chart asks for Am, you can often play A5 in its place and let the bass or the melody carry the minor sound. If the song needs the minor color from the guitar, play the full A minor chord.

Should I play power chords with two fingers or three?

Start with two, the first finger on the root and the third finger on the fifth, because the shape is quicker to move. Add the octave with the fourth finger, or by flattening the third finger, once the changes are smooth. Both are correct, and many players switch between them.

Are power chords real chords?

Strictly, a chord has three or more different notes, and a two-note shape is an interval, sometimes called a dyad. Guitarists and chord charts call it a power chord, write it with a 5, and use it in the place of a chord.

Can you play power chords on an acoustic guitar?

Yes. The shapes and the fret chart are the same on an acoustic guitar. They sound thinner and plainer without distortion, so on acoustic they suit driving rhythm parts more than big sustained chords.

Are power chords easier than barre chords?

Yes, for most beginners. A power chord uses one to three fingers on two or three strings, while a full barre chord holds all six strings with the first finger. Power chords use the same root positions on the sixth and fifth strings, so they are a good step toward barre chords.

Play your first power chord riff

Pick E5, A5 and D5 on their two strings, then strum them with four downstrokes a bar until the changes come easily. Move to the sixth-string shape at fret 3 for G5 and slide it to fret 5 for A5. Then play “Pop Riff” along with the recording, muting every string you do not need.

When “Pop Riff” is under your fingers, the Hal Leonard Guitar Method – Complete Edition has more riffs in more styles, each with its band track.