E♭maj7 chord
E♭maj7 is E♭, G, B♭ and D: 1–3–5–7 built on E♭. Below: guitar, piano and ukulele, each playable.
On guitar
x-x-1-3-3-3 · movable · medium
- Notes
- E♭ · G · B♭ · D
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
- First shape
- x-x-1-3-3-3
E♭maj7 on guitar: every shape, finger by finger
On piano
root position · E♭–G–B♭–D · right hand 1-2-3-5
- Notes
- E♭ · G · B♭ · D
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
E♭maj7 on piano: fingering and inversions
On ukulele
3-3-3-5 · movable · medium
- Notes
- E♭ · G · B♭ · D
- Formula
- 1 · 3 · 5 · 7
- First shape
- 3-3-3-5
Changing out of E♭maj7
The moves below are the ones you'll meet most, shown for guitar and piano.
- E♭maj7 → A♭maj7 (IV in E♭ major)
Guitar: E♭maj7 (x-x-1-3-3-3) to A♭maj7 (4-6-5-5-4-4): the index finger lays across the low E to high E strings at the 4th fret, move the middle finger to the D string, 5th fret, your ring finger lands on the G string, 5th fret. Nothing carries over, so drill it slowly, lifting and landing all fingers at once. Shared notes: E♭ and G.
Piano: E♭maj7 to A♭maj7: play A♭maj7 in 2nd inversion (E♭–G–A♭–C) and E♭ and G stay under the same fingers, while B♭ moves down to A♭ and D down to C. A♭maj7 - E♭maj7 → B♭7 (V in E♭ major)
Guitar: E♭maj7 (x-x-1-3-3-3) to B♭7 (x-1-3-1-3-1): your ring finger stays put, the index finger lays across the A to high E strings at the 1st fret, the middle finger slides across to the D string at the same fret. Listen for B♭ and D, which stay put while the rest moves.
Piano: E♭maj7 to B♭7: play B♭7 in 2nd inversion (F–A♭–B♭–D) and B♭ and D stay under the same fingers, while E♭ moves up to F and G up to A♭. B♭7 - E♭maj7 → Cm7 (vi in E♭ major)
Guitar: E♭maj7 (x-x-1-3-3-3) to Cm7 (x-3-5-3-4-3): the index finger lays across the A to high E strings at the 3rd fret, the middle finger goes to the B string, 4th fret, your ring finger lands on the D string, 5th fret. Everything moves: lift the whole hand and place the new shape in one go. E♭, G and B♭ carry over from one chord to the other.
Piano: E♭maj7 to Cm7: play Cm7 in 1st inversion (E♭–G–B♭–C) and E♭, G and B♭ stay under the same fingers, while D moves down to C. Cm7
Guitar with a capo: capo 1, Dmaj7 shape; capo 3, Cmaj7 shape; capo 6, Amaj7 shape. Ukulele with a capo: capo 3, Cmaj7 shape; capo 6, Amaj7 shape.
How E♭maj7 is built
E♭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.
Start on E♭, count 4 half steps up to G, 3 half steps up to B♭ then 4 half steps up to D. You may also see it as D♯maj7: same keys, same frets.
| Note | Role | Half steps | Hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| E♭ | root | 0 | |
| G | major third | 4 | |
| B♭ | perfect fifth | 7 | |
| D | major seventh | 11 |
Keys and progressions with E♭maj7
In major keys, E♭maj7 is I7 in E♭ major and IV7 in B♭ major. In minor keys it is III7 in C minor and VI7 in G minor.
Play ii–V–I in E♭ major and you get Fm7 – B♭7 – E♭maj7. the jazz cadence
Chords close to E♭maj7
- E♭maj7 is E♭ plus D. E♭
- E♭maj7 and E♭7 differ by one note: D in E♭maj7, D♭ in E♭7. They share E♭, G and B♭. E♭7
Chords that share most of their notes with E♭maj7: E♭, Gm, Cm7, E♭7, E♭add9, E♭6.
Every E♭ chord
E♭maj7 chord: questions
What notes are in the E♭maj7 chord?
E♭, G, B♭ and D. E♭maj7 is built 1–3–5–7 from E♭: G is the major third, B♭ is the perfect fifth and D is the major seventh.
How do you play E♭maj7 on guitar?
The usual shape is x-x-1-3-3-3 (movable). All 3 guitar shapes.
How do you play E♭maj7 on piano?
Play E♭, G, B♭ and D with right-hand fingers 1-2-3-5. E♭ sits on the black key between D and E. Inversions and left hand.
How do you play E♭maj7 on ukulele?
3-3-3-5 in standard GCEA tuning. More ukulele shapes.
What key is E♭maj7 in?
In major keys, E♭maj7 is I7 in E♭ major and IV7 in B♭ major. In minor keys it is III7 in C minor and VI7 in G minor.
What's the difference between E♭maj7 and E♭?
E♭maj7 is E♭ plus D.
Diagrams and sound come from the same data, tested so they match. Updated September 2026.