B♭maj7 chord
B♭maj7 is B♭, D, F and A: 1–3–5–7 built on B♭. See and hear it on all three instruments below.
On guitar
x-1-3-2-3-1 · barre · hard
- Notes
- B♭ · D · F · A
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
- First shape
- x-1-3-2-3-1
B♭maj7 on guitar: every shape, finger by finger
On piano
root position · B♭–D–F–A · right hand 1-2-3-5
- Notes
- B♭ · D · F · A
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
B♭maj7 on piano: fingering and inversions
On ukulele
3-2-1-0 · open · easy
- Notes
- B♭ · D · F · A
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
- First shape
- 3-2-1-0
B♭maj7 and the chords around it
The moves below are the ones you'll meet most, shown for guitar and piano.
- B♭maj7 → E♭maj7 (IV in B♭ major)
Guitar: B♭maj7 (x-1-3-2-3-1) to E♭maj7 (x-x-1-3-3-3): your index finger lands on the D string, 1st fret, move the middle finger to the G string, 3rd fret, the ring finger goes to the B string, 3rd fret. Nothing carries over, so drill it slowly, lifting and landing all fingers at once. Listen for B♭ and D, which stay put while the rest moves.
Piano: B♭maj7 to E♭maj7: play E♭maj7 in 2nd inversion (B♭–D–E♭–G) and B♭ and D stay under the same fingers, while F moves down to E♭ and A down to G. E♭maj7 - B♭maj7 → F7 (V in B♭ major)
Guitar: B♭maj7 (x-1-3-2-3-1) to F7 (1-3-1-2-1-1): your middle finger stays put, the index finger lays across the low E to high E strings at the 1st fret, the ring finger slides across to the A string at the same fret. Shared notes: F and A.
Piano: B♭maj7 to F7: play F7 in 2nd inversion (C–E♭–F–A) and F and A stay under the same fingers, while B♭ moves up to C and D up to E♭. F7 - B♭maj7 → Gm7 (vi in B♭ major)
Guitar: B♭maj7 (x-1-3-2-3-1) to Gm7 (3-5-3-3-3-3): the index finger lays across the low E to high E strings at the 3rd fret, your middle finger lands on the A string, 5th fret. Shared notes: B♭, D and F.
Piano: B♭maj7 to Gm7: play Gm7 in 1st inversion (B♭–D–F–G) and B♭, D and F stay under the same fingers, while A moves down to G. Gm7
Guitar with a capo: capo 1, Amaj7 shape; capo 3, Gmaj7 shape; capo 5, Fmaj7 shape; capo 6, Emaj7 shape. Ukulele with a capo: capo 1, Amaj7 shape; capo 3, Gmaj7 shape; capo 5, Fmaj7 shape.
How B♭maj7 is built
B♭maj7 is a major seventh chord: a major triad with the note a half step below the octave added. The result is soft and a little dreamy, the sound of bossa nova, soul ballads and a lot of indie guitar.
Count keys (black and white) from B♭: 4 half steps up to D, 3 half steps up to F then 4 half steps up to A. A♯maj7 is the other spelling of the same chord.
| Note | Role | Half steps | Hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| B♭ | root | 0 | |
| D | major third | 4 | |
| F | perfect fifth | 7 | |
| A | major seventh | 11 |
Keys and progressions with B♭maj7
You'll find B♭maj7 as I7 in B♭ major and IV7 in F major. On the minor side it's III7 in G minor and VI7 in D minor.
Cm7 – F7 – B♭maj7: that's ii–V–I in the key of B♭ major. the jazz cadence
Chords close to B♭maj7
- B♭maj7 is B♭ plus A. B♭
- B♭maj7 and B♭7 differ by one note: A in B♭maj7, A♭ in B♭7. They share B♭, D and F. B♭7
Chords that share most of their notes with B♭maj7: Dm, B♭, Dm7, Dm6, F6, Gm7.
Every B♭ chord
B♭maj7 chord: questions
What notes are in the B♭maj7 chord?
B♭, D, F and A. B♭maj7 is built 1–3–5–7 from B♭: D is the major third, F is the perfect fifth and A is the major seventh.
How do you play B♭maj7 on guitar?
The usual shape is x-1-3-2-3-1 (barre). All 4 guitar shapes.
How do you play B♭maj7 on piano?
Play B♭, D, F and A with right-hand fingers 1-2-3-5. B♭ sits on the last black key of the group of three. Inversions and left hand.
How do you play B♭maj7 on ukulele?
3-2-1-0 in standard GCEA tuning. More ukulele shapes.
What key is B♭maj7 in?
You'll find B♭maj7 as I7 in B♭ major and IV7 in F major. On the minor side it's III7 in G minor and VI7 in D minor.
What's the difference between B♭maj7 and B♭?
B♭maj7 is B♭ plus A.
Diagrams and sound come from the same data, tested so they match. Updated September 2026.