Chord chart

Cmaj7 Chord on Guitar: 3 Easy Ways to Play C Major Seventh (Charts)

Cmaj7 chord charts with finger numbers, an easier version, the notes and intervals, and the keys and progressions that use it. Also searched as cmaj7 chord, cmaj7 guitar chord and how to play Cmaj7.

By David Sandy, guitar player and founder of Sandy Music Lab. Every chord shape on this page is checked note by note against the chord's formula.

Cmaj7 chord diagram, Open positionCmaj7 Open position: low E muted, A fret 3, D fret 2, G open, B open, high e open.×21x 3 2 0 0 0
Open position
x 3 2 0 0 0
Cmaj7 chord diagram, Barre (3rd fret, A-string root)Cmaj7 Barre (3rd fret, A-string root): low E muted, A fret 3, D fret 5, G fret 4, B fret 5, high e fret 3.×1324x 3 5 4 5 3
Barre (3rd fret, A-string root)
x 3 5 4 5 3
Cmaj7 chord diagram, Easy 3-string versionCmaj7 Easy 3-string version: low E muted, A muted, D muted, G fret 5, B fret 5, high e fret 7.5fr×××123x x x 5 5 7
Easy 3-string version
x x x 5 5 7

Numbers are fingers (1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 pinky, T thumb). × = don't play that string, ○ = play it open. A long bar is a barre: one finger flat across those strings. Strings run low E (left) to high e (right).

Chord chart by Sandy Music Lab

Quick answer: To play Cmaj7 (C major seventh) on guitar, play x 3 2 0 0 0 from the low E string to the high e string (the open position shape). The chord contains C, E, G, B. If that is hard, use the easier shape x x x 5 5 7, which needs 3 fretted notes.

Cmaj7 chord facts

Chord Cmaj7 (C major seventh)
Other names CM7, CΔ7
Notes C, E, G, B
Intervals C (root), E (major 3rd), G (perfect 5th), B (major 7th)
Formula 1-3-5-7
Difficulty Beginner
Shapes on this page 3

How do you play Cmaj7 on guitar?

The main shape is x 3 2 0 0 0 (Open position). Finger by finger:

  1. Put your index finger (1) on the D string at fret 2 (E, the major 3rd).
  2. Put your middle finger (2) on the A string at fret 3 (C, the root).
  4. Let the G (G) and B (B) and high e (E) strings ring open.
  5. Don't play the low E string: start your strum on the A string, or touch it lightly to mute.