C6 Ukulele Chord

C6 is the C sixth chord. It has four notes: C, E, G and A, and on a ukulele they are the four open strings. Strum with nothing fretted and you are already playing C6, which is why an unfretted ukulele sounds like music instead of a tuning check.

The four open strings: g, C, E and A with nothing fretted. The only chord on the site with no fingers in it.

How to play C6 on ukulele, step by step

Nothing to press: the four open strings already spell the chord.
Strum all four strings with nothing fretted.

This is the reason a ukulele sounds friendly out of the box: the tuning itself is a chord. Play plain C with one finger, then lift it and hear the sixth appear on the open A string.

More ways to play C6

There are 3 common C6 shapes: the standard one at the top of the page, plus these further up the neck. You only ever need one. Tap any card to hear it.

C6 ukulele chord diagram, frets 3 to 5, played 0453 — Frets 3 to 5

C6 ukulele chord diagram, frets 5 to 7, played 0057 — Frets 5 to 7

If the open strings sound wrong

One string sounds dull: Nothing is fretted, so a dull note means a fretting-hand finger is resting on a string without meaning to. Take the left hand off the neck completely and strum again.
It does not sound like a C chord: With nothing at the bottom to anchor it, the ear can hear these four notes as Am7 instead, and both hearings are correct. Play C with one finger, then lift it: heard next to plain C, the open strings sound like C6.
The strum is uneven: Four open strings hide nothing. Brush across all four at one speed, from the g string down, and let the wrist do the moving rather than the whole arm.

What makes it a C6

C · E · G · A 1 3 5 6

C6 is a C major triad (C, E, G) with a sixth added: the A, nine half steps above the root. Nothing is taken away, so the chord still sounds like C, only rounder and more old fashioned. On a ukulele the four notes happen to be the open g, C, E and A strings, so the instrument is tuned to this chord.

The same four notes read from A spell Am7, and on a ukulele that chord is also the open strings. There is no bass string here to settle the argument, so which chord you are playing depends on the music around it: after a G7 the open strings sound like C6, after a Dm they sound like Am7. Both pages describe the same strum.

C6 vs Cmaj7

Both chords add one note to plain C. C6 adds an A, Cmaj7 adds a B. The A sits a whole step below the root and sounds settled and vintage; the B sits a half step below and sounds soft and unfinished, which is why it feels dreamier.

On a ukulele the choice is one finger: the open strings are C6, and adding the 2nd fret of the A string turns the A into a B for Cmaj7. Songs in C often end on C6 because the sixth stops the ending sounding blunt.

C6 chord questions

Is C6 really just the open strings?

Yes. Standard ukulele tuning is g, C, E, A, and those four notes are C6: root, third, fifth and sixth. Strumming with nothing fretted plays the chord.

Is C6 the same as Am7?

They contain the same four notes, and on a ukulele both are the open strings. Which name applies depends on the chords around it: the ear hears C6 in a song in C and Am7 in a minor progression.

What is the difference between C6 and C7?

C6 adds an A to the C triad and rests; C7 adds a B flat and pushes toward F. One is an ending sound, the other a moving one.

When would I use C6?

As a softer C: at the end of a song in C, and all through Hawaiian and swing era playing, where a sixth chord is the normal way to play a major chord. It is the most ukulele sounding chord there is.

Why does my ukulele sound good unfretted?

Because the makers tuned it to a chord. Guitars are tuned to a stack that is not a chord; a ukulele is tuned to C6, so open strumming already works.