How To Use a Guitar Capo Chart (Chord + Key Guide)

The small, but mighty capo is a useful tool to have in your gig bag. It opens up your fretboard, makes transposing songs effortless, and lets you play in different keys without learning complicated chord shapes. Capos are great for making guitar playing simple. But, figuring out which fret to place your capo on can sometimes be confusing. 

That’s where guitar capo charts come in! 

At Thalia, we’ve created two easy-to-use resources:

• Capo Chord Chart – A concise, beginner-friendly guide for quickly transposing chord shapes

• Capo Key Chart – A more in-depth reference for players who want to go deeper

Both charts work the same way and are available as downloadable PDFs for quick reference or printing.

The Two Main Uses of a Guitar Capo Chart

A capo chart serves two main functions, both of which will help you get the most out of your capo in your guitar playing.

1. Play Songs in the Original Key Using Simpler Chords 

If you’ve ever wanted to learn a song, but have been thwarted by the array of complex chord shapes you’re presented with, this is the function you need.

Here's How:

• Find the root of the chords you’re trying to play in the capo chart’s far left column.
• Use the right hand column to find a fret number that allows you to play all the chords in the original key using open chords. (The type of chord doesn’t matter. If you’re playing A minor for example, you just need to find A).
• Place your capo at that fret and play the chords in the column underneath (with the capo in place, they’ll sound like the corresponding chords in the left-hand column)

With your capo in place, it’s easy to play classic songs in the original recording key. You won’t be referencing a chord dictionary to learn obscure, one-time-use chord shapes. In short, you can get to the most fun part of guitar playing; the playing itself.

2. Figure Out Which Chords You’re Playing When Using your Capo

Your guitar capo is an amazing creative tool allowing you to unlocking new sounds. But, if you’re jamming with other musicians who aren’t using a capo, things can get confusing fast.

Fortunately, the capo chart makes communicating easy: 

• Locate the fret your capo is placed at using the top row of the chart
• Follow the column downward until you find the chord shape that you’re playing. (As with function one, the type of chord doesn’t matter. For D minor, just find D, etc.).
• Use the left hand column to find which chord you’re actually playing.

Now that you’ve worked out what you’re actually playing, you can communicate confidently with other musicians, making jam sessions much more fun!