Power chords are a simple but powerful guitar technique that is used in a wide range of musical genres, from rock to pop. With this easy-to-follow guide, you’ll learn how to play power chords in minutes, even if you’re a complete beginner.

To get started, here are two things to know:

• Power chords use simple shapes that can be moved around the fretboard.
• Once one movable shape sounds clean, you can slide it to another starting fret to create a different power chord.

What is a power chord?

A power chord is a simple chord built from two main notes: the root and the fifth.

The root is the note that names the chord. For example, C is the root of a C5 power chord.

The fifth is the other note in the basic shape. In C5, the fifth is G. So the two main notes are C and G.

You can also repeat the root higher up for a fuller sound, giving you C – G – C.

Power chords are written with a 5 after the chord name, such as C5, D5, G5, or F5.

Want to know why it’s called a “5”? The second note is called a fifth because it is five note names away when counting from the root. For example: C, D, E, F, G. That makes G the fifth of C. You’ll explore intervals more deeply later in the Roadmap.

How to read the chord charts

For the charts below:

• The top horizontal line of the chord chart represents the high E string and the bottom horizontal line represents the low E string.
• The vertical lines separate each fret. 
• The numbers in the blue dots tell you which fingers to use on the fretting hand. 
• The letters on the right of the charts tell you what notes you are playing on each string.
• Circles on the left represent open strings.
• Red X means to avoid that string.

You can check this link for more on how to read guitar notation symbols.

Open power chord shapes on guitar

The open power chord shape starting on the 5th string is an A power chord, written as A5. The open power chord shape starting on the 6th string is an E power chord, written as E5.

Once you learn the power chord shape on the guitar, we’ll look at how to shift the same shape to other chords by finding the root note (the defining note of a chord or scale). 

A power chord or A5 – open 5th string shape

E power chord or E5 – open 6th string shape

The third note repeats the root an octave higher. It’s optional, but it gives the chord a fuller sound.

Movable power chord shapes

Based on the open chord shapes, here are the movable power chord shapes starting on the 5th and 6th string:

You can leave out the pinky note and play just the two-note shape. Add it when you want a fuller sound.

Power chord chart examples

In the following chord examples, you’ll see examples of the same chord starting on both the 5th and 6th string.

C5 – C power chord

D5 – D power chord

F5 – F power chord

G5 – G power chord

Get the chart here!

Easily look up guitar chords with the Essential Guitar Chords Chart!

This chart covers how to play:

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• Minor chords
• Major 7 chords
• Minor 7 chords
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• Half diminished chords
• Diminished chords
• Chords starting on all (12) root notes
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Using power chords in a chord progression

Try playing the following chord progression using power chords below. You can play any rhythm you like or try one of these easy guitar strumming patterns.

As you become more comfortable changing between chords, you can also try the progression with different time signatures.

Go deeper

The next sections are optional extensions. Return later to explore moving power chords into new keys, using them in a 12-bar rock blues, and substituting them for barre chords.

Using power chords to shift key signatures

We can also play the previous progression in different key signatures by shifting the chords. For example, we can shift keys a half step up by moving each chord one fret to the right.

Once you get these power chord shapes down, it becomes really simple to shift the shapes to different starting points, allowing you to use them in any area of the guitar.

Learning the notes on the fretboard will eventually help you find root notes more quickly, but you do not need to know every fretboard note yet. For now, use the diagrams and learn only the root notes needed for the shapes you are practicing.

12 bar rock blues progression using power chords

Now, let’s put those new power chords in a commonly played progression also referred to as a 12 bar blues. We are keeping things pretty simple for now by using any easy strumming pattern.  This will help you to practice transitioning between chords in time without stopping your strumming.

You can use this simple strumming pattern for the progression below. 

12 bar rock blues chord progression

Here below is the chord progression you can try with the power chords we’ve covered so far.

Remember that you can play this 12 bar blues on different starting points as long you move every chord the same distance either up or down from the original chords. 

Using power chords as chord substitutes

This section is a preview of barre chords, which come later in the roadmap. The examples show where a barre chord may appear in a progression and how you can substitute a power chord for now.

You do not need to learn the full barre-chord shapes yet. Compare each original example with its power-chord variation and notice how the simpler movable shape keeps the progression playable.

Chord progression – 1a

Substituting barre chords – 1b

Using the previous chord progression, this example substitutes the barre chord in measure 2 with a power chord.

Progression 2a

Here is another chord progression example including a barre chord in measure 2. Example 2b will show you how to substitute this barre chord with a power chord.

Substituting a barre chord – 2b

If you don’t already know some of these chords, I suggest going over this other lesson to master the basic chords on guitar.

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Wrapping up

Let’s recap some key points about power chords:

• A power chord uses a root and fifth. The root names the chord, and the optional third note repeats the root higher.
• The same movable shape can start from different root notes. First, focus on making one shape sound clean.
• Changing keys, playing 12-bar blues, and substituting for barre chords are useful applications to explore after the basic shape feels comfortable.

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