Left handed guitar · free chart
Left handed guitar chords, drawn the way you see them.
Almost every chord chart is drawn for right handed players. I play guitar left handed, so these are drawn our way round: thick string on the right.
- Free to print and share
- Eight first chords
- US$9 the full pack
Try them
Strum each chord, left handed
Choose a chord, see where your fingers go, and strum it. The box is drawn left handed: you are looking at the neck standing up, with the thickest string on the right.
E minor
Middle finger on string 5, 2nd fret. Ring finger on string 4, 2nd fret. Strum all six strings.
Tap a string to pick it, or drag across all six to strum. Each dot is the colour of the note it plays.
Play right handed? Untick Left handed view and the box flips.
Print it
The free chart
One page with the first eight chords I teach: E minor, E, A minor, A, D, D minor, G and C. They are in the order I teach them, because most of them share something with the chord before.
Under each box is the note every string sounds, so you can check a chord one string at a time.
How to read a left handed chord box
- The thick line at the top is the nut.
- The thickest string is on the right, the thinnest on the left.
- A dot is a finger, and the number in it says which one.
- O means play that string open. X means leave it out.
Every other chord chart
Reading right handed chord boxes
Books, websites and apps nearly always draw chord boxes right handed, with the thickest string on the left. A left hander reads the same box as a mirror image.
- Find the thickest string first. In a printed box it is the left edge. On your guitar, standing up and facing you, it is the right edge.
- Count strings, not sides. String 5 is the second string in from the thick edge, whichever way the box is drawn.
- Tab needs no flipping. It shows string numbers and fret numbers, and those are the same on every guitar.
The full pack
The Left Handed Guitar Starter Pack
The free chart is one page of a longer pack I have put together for left handed beginners. Every chord box, neck map and scale in it is drawn left handed.
It is a download: 29 pages in A4 and US Letter, with a wall poster. It costs US$9 through Gumroad, and the files are yours straight away.
- 51 chord shapes, from the first eight to barre chords, each one checked note by note
- How to read chord boxes and tab, and how to read right handed boxes
- Strumming patterns, chord changes and four progressions
- A four week practice plan and a practice log
- A wall poster of the first sixteen chords
Questions
Questions about left handed guitar chords
Are left handed guitar chords different from right handed chords?
The chords are the same, and so are the fingers you use. Only the picture changes. A left handed chord box is the mirror image of a right handed one, with the thickest string on the right.
How do I read a right handed chord chart if I play left handed?
Read it as a mirror image. In a printed box the thickest string is on the left. On a left handed guitar it is on the right, so each dot swaps sides. String numbers and fret numbers stay the same.
Is guitar tab different for left handed players?
No. Tab shows string numbers and fret numbers, and those are the same on every guitar.
Which chords should a left handed beginner learn first?
The same eight every beginner starts with: E minor, E, A minor, A, D, D minor, G and C. They are on the free chart on this page, in the order I teach them.
What is in the Left Handed Guitar Starter Pack?
It is a 29 page download for left handed beginners: 51 chord shapes, tab, strumming, barre chords, a first scale and a four week practice plan, with a wall poster. It costs US$9 and is sold through Gumroad.
Do you teach left handed guitar lessons?
Yes, in Long Bay, Auckland. I play guitar left handed, and so does every guitar in my studio. The detail is on the left handed guitar lessons page.
In person
Left handed guitar lessons in Auckland
I teach guitar one to one in Long Bay, on Auckland's North Shore. I play left handed, and so does every guitar in my studio.
Left handed lessons or text 021 162 3447