F#7 Guitar Chord

F#7 is the F sharp dominant seventh chord, also written Gb7. It has four notes: F♯, A♯, C♯ and E. The standard shape is a six string barre at the 2nd fret, a noticeably friendlier place to barre than the 1st, and there is a no barre shape at the 4th fret.

A six string barre at fret 2 in the E7 grip, with middle and ring fingers stacked above it. Movable: this is the master shape for low string roots.

How to play F#7, step by step

Index finger: press flat across the low E to high E strings at fret 2
Middle finger: 3rd fret, G string
Ring finger: 4th fret, A string
Strum all six strings.

This grip is the same as F7 moved up one fret, so anything you practice here carries straight over. Learn it once and every dominant seventh with a root on the low E string is yours.

More ways to play F#7

There are 3 common F#7 shapes in total: the standard one at the top of the page, plus these, easiest first. You only ever need one. Tap any card to hear it.

F#7 guitar chord diagram, easier, no barre, played xx4656 — Easier, no barre

F#7 guitar chord diagram, barre at fret 9, played x 9 11 9 11 9 — Barre at fret 9

Songs that use the F#7 chord

If it rattles or goes quiet

B and high E strings buzz: The barre is pressing with the soft pad of the finger. Rotate the index slightly toward its edge and snug it up against the 2nd fret wire.
D string disappears: Only the barre frets the D string in this shape. If the middle finger on the G string droops, its underside lands on the D. Keep the middle finger on its tip.
Only the low strings sound: The barre pressure is uneven, strong near the thumb and weak at the far end. Shift the index down so its full length covers the strings, and check each string one by one.

What makes it an F#7

F♯ · A♯ · C♯ · E 1 3 5 ♭7

F#7 is an F sharp major triad (F♯, A♯, C♯) plus a minor seventh (E). The E and A♯ push against each other and resolve into a B chord, so F#7 is the V7 of both B major and B minor. In B minor that pull is the sound of the key itself: it is the move you hear in Hotel California each time F#7 hands the progression back to Bm, and the turnaround B.B. King rides in The Thrill Is Gone.

F# vs F#7

Both chords live in the same barre at fret 2. F sharp major keeps a pinky on the 4th fret of the D string; F#7 lifts it, letting the barre sound an E there instead. So the seventh chord is the less demanding grip. Play F# when the chord should stand still, and F#7 when the song is about to fall onto B or Bm.

F#7 chord questions

Is Gb7 the same chord as F#7?

Yes. Same four notes, same shapes, two spellings. Which name you see depends on the key of the song: sharp keys write F#7, flat keys write Gb7.

Can I play F#7 without a barre?

Yes. The compact shape at frets 4 to 6 puts one finger on each of the middle four strings and skips the barre entirely.

What does F#7 resolve to?

B. F#7 is the dominant (V) chord of B major and B minor, which is why it appears in so many songs built around Bm.

Is F#7 easier than F7?

A little. It is the identical grip one fret higher, and string tension drops as you move away from the nut, so the barre needs less force.

What songs use F#7?

Hotel California uses F#7 to pull back to B minor, and The Thrill Is Gone lands on it at the end of every twelve bars.