C minor chord on guitar (Cm)

Cm is C, E♭ and G. The usual shape is x-3-1-0-1-3. Play it once at full speed, then at a quarter to hear every note.

How to play Cm on guitar

Shape 1, x-3-1-0-1-3, reading from the low E string on the left:

1. Put your index finger on the D string at the 1st fret, which is E♭.
2. Put your middle finger on the B string at the 1st fret, which is C.
3. Put your ring finger on the A string at the 3rd fret, which is C.
4. Put your pinky finger on the high E string at the 3rd fret, which is G.
5. The open G string adds G; don't touch it.
6. Skip the low E string and begin the strum from the A string.

• If an open string sounds dead, a fingertip is leaning on it. Come down more on the tips, with your knuckles bent.
• The pinky takes a note here. Keep it curved and close to the fretboard between chords so it has less distance to travel.

Other ways to play Cm

• 8-10-10-8-8-8: barre shape at the 8th fret, medium. Built on the Em open shape with the barre as a movable nut; the root is on the 6th string.
• x-3-5-5-4-3: barre shape at the 3rd fret, medium. Root on the 5th string, so it pairs well with the 6th-string shape a few frets away.
• x-15-13-12-13-x: movable shape at the 12th fret, medium. Only the thinner strings sound, which cuts through a band without getting muddy.

Playing Cm with a capo

With a capo you can skip the harder shapes: capo on the 3rd fret and play the open Am shape (x-0-2-2-1-0). Everything above the capo is fingered exactly like the open chord.

Changing from Cm to the chords around it

These are the changes you'll meet most often with Cm, using the first shape of each chord.

• F (V in B♭ major): Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3) to F (1-3-3-2-1-1): your ring finger stays put, the index finger lays across the low E to high E strings at the 1st fret, your middle finger lands on the G string, 2nd fret, your pinky finger lands on the D string, 3rd fret. Listen for C, which stays put while the rest moves. F on guitar
• E♭ (IV in B♭ major): Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3) to E♭ (x-x-1-3-4-3): your index finger stays put, move the middle finger to the G string, 3rd fret, your ring finger lands on the high E string, 3rd fret, the pinky finger goes to the B string, 4th fret. Shared notes: E♭ and G. E♭ on guitar
• B♭ (I in B♭ major): Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3) to B♭ (x-1-3-3-3-1): the index finger lays across the A to high E strings at the 1st fret, your middle finger lands on the D string, 3rd fret, move the ring finger to the G string, 3rd fret. No finger can stay, so practice lifting all of them together and landing the new shape as a unit. B♭ on guitar

Cm has the gentle, slightly melancholy sound of a minor chord. A minor chord softens a progression. Try Cm right after C major to hear how much one note changes. On guitar you hear it best picked slowly, string by string.

A short Cm drill

Before strumming, play x-3-1-0-1-3 note by note: C then E♭ then G then C then G. A dead note tells you exactly which finger to fix. Then switch to 8-10-10-8-8-8 and back four times without looking at your hand.

Where Cm shows up

• ii in B♭ major
• iii in A♭ major
• vi in E♭ major
• i in C minor
• iv in G minor
• v in F minor

In C minor, i–VI–III–VII on guitar is Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3), A♭ (4-6-6-5-4-4), E♭ (x-x-1-3-4-3) and B♭ (x-1-3-3-3-1). About the minor anthem.

In C minor, i–iv–V on guitar is Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3), Fm (1-3-3-1-1-1) and G (3-2-0-0-0-3). About the minor cadence.

In C minor, i–VII–VI–V on guitar is Cm (x-3-1-0-1-3), B♭ (x-1-3-3-3-1), A♭ (4-6-6-5-4-4) and G (3-2-0-0-0-3). About the Andalusian cadence.

Cm on piano and ukulele

Cm on piano and ukulele uses the same 3 notes in a different layout. See all three together.

Related C chords on guitar

• C
• Cm7
• Cm6
• Csus2
• Csus4
• Cdim

Other minor chords

• C♯m
• Dm
• E♭m
• Em
• Fm
• F♯m
• Gm
• G♯m
• Am
• B♭m
• Bm

Shapes and sound are generated from the notes C, E♭ and G and tested automatically. Updated September 2026. Print this chord