Chord identifier
Tap notes on the keyboard to build a chord. The name, inversion and slash symbol update as you go.
C
C major · Root position
Notes: C4 · E4 · G4
Chord types this tool recognises
| Chord | Symbol on C | Semitones above root |
|---|---|---|
| Major | C | 0 – 4 – 7 |
| Minor | Cm | 0 – 3 – 7 |
| Diminished | Cdim | 0 – 3 – 6 |
| Augmented | Caug | 0 – 4 – 8 |
| Suspended 2nd | Csus2 | 0 – 2 – 7 |
| Suspended 4th | Csus4 | 0 – 5 – 7 |
| Dominant 7th | C7 | 0 – 4 – 7 – 10 |
| Major 7th | Cmaj7 | 0 – 4 – 7 – 11 |
| Minor 7th | Cm7 | 0 – 3 – 7 – 10 |
| Half-diminished 7th | Cm7♭5 | 0 – 3 – 6 – 10 |
| Diminished 7th | Cdim7 | 0 – 3 – 6 – 9 |
| Minor-major 7th | Cm(maj7) | 0 – 3 – 7 – 11 |
| Major 6th | C6 | 0 – 4 – 7 – 9 |
| Minor 6th | Cm6 | 0 – 3 – 7 – 9 |
Tip for reading chords on the staff: if the notes stack neatly on consecutive lines (or consecutive spaces), the bottom note is the root. If not, rearrange them until they do; the note at the bottom of that stack is the root, and whatever was originally lowest tells you the inversion.
Then learn to hear these qualities without the keyboard in chord ear training.
Questions
How does the chord identifier work?
Tap the notes on the keyboard. The tool tries every note as a possible root and compares the pattern of semitones against 14 chord types, from triads to sevenths and sixths. If the lowest note is not the root, it tells you the inversion and writes a slash chord.
Why can one set of notes have two names?
Some chords are the same notes spelled from different roots. C6 (C–E–G–A) contains exactly the notes of Am7 (A–C–E–G). Which name is right depends on the bass note and the musical context. Diminished 7th and augmented chords are symmetrical, so any of their notes can be the root.
What is a chord inversion?
An inversion puts a note other than the root in the bass. For a C major triad: root position has C at the bottom, first inversion has E, and second inversion has G. Guitarists and pop charts write these as slash chords: C/E, C/G.
Does octave or order matter?
Only the lowest note matters, because it decides the inversion. Otherwise any voicing, spread across the keyboard, gives the same chord name.