Gm7♭5 chord on guitar

Gm7♭5 is G, B♭, D♭ and F. The usual shape is 3-4-3-3-6-6. Press Play to hear it, then try it at half speed.

3-4-3-3-6-6 · partial barre · medium

Notes: G · B♭ · D♭ · F
Formula: 1 · ♭3 · ♭5 · ♭7
First shape: 3-4-3-3-6-6

How to play Gm7♭5 on guitar

Shape 1, 3-4-3-3-6-6, reading from the low E string on the left, starts at the 3rd fret:

Index finger lies flat over the 4 strings from the low E string to the G string, just behind the 3rd fret wire.
D♭: middle finger, 4th fret of the A string.
F: ring finger, 6th fret of the B string.
B♭: pinky finger, 6th fret of the high E string.

Press the small barre with the pad of the finger, not the whole finger; the other strings stay free.
The pinky takes a note here. Keep it curved and close to the fretboard between chords so it has less distance to travel.
The shape stretches across four frets. Bring your thumb lower behind the neck to open the hand up.

Other ways to play Gm7♭5

3-x-3-3-2-x: movable shape at the 2nd fret, medium. Built on the Em7♭5 open shape with the barre as a movable nut; the root is on the 6th string.
x-10-11-10-11-x: movable shape at the 10th fret, medium. The root is on the A string; it's the Am7♭5 shape moved up the neck.
15-x-15-15-14-x: movable shape at the 14th fret, medium. Root on the 6th string: move it up or down and it names a different half-diminished chord.

Moving between Gm7♭5 and its neighbours

The chords Gm7♭5 usually goes to, and what changes under your fingers.

C7 (the iiø7 of a minor key heads to V7): Gm7♭5 (3-4-3-3-6-6) to C7 (x-3-2-3-1-0): the index finger goes to the B string, 1st fret, the middle finger goes to the D string, 2nd fret, move the ring finger to the A string, 3rd fret. Everything moves: lift the whole hand and place the new shape in one go. The two chords share G and B♭, which is why the change sounds smooth. C7 on guitar
A♭maj7 (I in A♭ major): Gm7♭5 (3-4-3-3-6-6) 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, the middle finger goes to the D string, 5th fret, move the ring finger to the G string, 5th fret. No finger can stay, so practice lifting all of them together and landing the new shape as a unit. The two chords share G, which is why the change sounds smooth. A♭maj7 on guitar
Cm7 (iii in A♭ major): Gm7♭5 (3-4-3-3-6-6) 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. Listen for G and B♭, which stay put while the rest moves. Cm7 on guitar

Gm7♭5 is a half-diminished chord (minor seventh flat five). Gm7♭5 is the ii chord of a minor key, the first step of a minor ii–V–i. Play it once strummed and once picked to hear the difference.

Practice Gm7♭5 in two minutes

Before strumming, play 3-4-3-3-6-6 note by note: G then D♭ then F then B♭ then F then B♭. A dead note tells you exactly which finger to fix. Next, alternate 3-4-3-3-6-6 and 3-x-3-3-2-x, slowly, until the change takes less than a beat.

Where Gm7♭5 shows up

Gm7♭5 on piano and ukulele

Switching instruments? Try Gm7♭5 on ukulele or Gm7♭5 on piano, or compare them on the Gm7♭5 chord page.

Close to Gm7♭5

Other half-diminished chords

Gm7♭5 on guitar: questions

What notes are in Gm7♭5 on guitar?

G, B♭, D♭ and F. In the 3-4-3-3-6-6 shape the strings play G (low E string), D♭ (A string), F (D string), B♭ (G string), F (B string) and B♭ (high E string), so F and B♭ are doubled.

What's the easiest way to play Gm7♭5 on guitar?

Gm7♭5 has no open-string shape in standard tuning, so every version needs a barre or a stretch. Start with 3-x-3-3-2-x. It uses 4 fingers and no barre, and in many songs a capo can take over part of the work.

Is Gm7♭5 a barre chord on guitar?

Not the usual shape: 3-4-3-3-6-6 needs no barre.

Which string does Gm7♭5 start on?

In the 3-4-3-3-6-6 shape the lowest string you play is the low E string at the 3rd fret, which is G, the root.

Checked automatically: no shape here plays a note outside Gm7♭5. Updated September 2026.