B Minor CAGED Chord Shapes: All 5 Positions on Guitar
B minor is B, D and F. The CAGED system gives five shapes for it up the neck: the A shape from the 2nd fret, the G shape from the 4th fret, the E shape from the 7th fret, the D shape from the 9th fret and the C shape from the 11th fret. None of them is an open chord, so each one is a barre or a partial shape.
Keys
CAGED Chords — Bm
Triads — Bm
Root position
First inversion
Second inversion
All inversions
The notes of Bm
Bm is a minor triad: root, minor third and fifth (1 ♭3 5), which is a minor third (three frets) with a major third (four frets) on top. Every shape below is those three notes, doubled in different octaves.
How the five shapes connect
From the bottom of the neck up, the shapes run A (2), G (4), E (7), D (9) and C (11). Each one starts where the last one's top notes are, so playing them in order moves one chord up the whole fretboard. After the C shape, the A shape comes round again twelve frets higher.
The A shape and G shape share 2 notes (F on the D string at fret 4 and B on the G string at fret 4), which is the hinge between them.
Where the root, B, sits in each shape: A shape: A and G; G shape: low E and G; E shape: low E, D and high e; D shape: D and B; C shape: A. Find that string first and the rest of the shape falls into place around it.
Where Bm appears
Bm belongs to 8 keys: vi in D major, iii in G major and ii in A major; v in E minor, iv in F minor and i in B minor; iv in F harmonic minor and i in B harmonic minor.
Of those, D major, G major, A major and E minor are keys guitarists play in constantly, because their open strings ring with the scale, so Bm turns up often in songs.
Open strings and capo options for Bm
Two open strings are part of Bm: the D string (the third) and the B string (root). Because the root is among them, you can let it drone under any of the shapes.
To get an open-sounding voicing, use a capo: the Am shape with the capo at fret 2 and the Em shape with the capo at fret 7.
Closely related chords
The closest chords to Bm share two of its three notes: its relative major and the chords a fourth and a fifth away, which are its neighbours in B minor.
Bm CAGED FAQs
What notes are in a Bm chord?
B, D and F♯: the root, minor third and fifth (1 ♭3 5).
What are the CAGED shapes for B minor?
the A shape from the 2nd fret, the G shape from the 4th fret, the E shape from the 7th fret, the D shape from the 9th fret and the C shape from the 11th fret. A shape is the lowest; the A shape repeats twelve frets higher.
Where is the easiest Bm chord on guitar?
The A shape from the 2nd fret is the lowest. Most players start with the E-shape or A-shape barre, then learn the others.
Related
Learn more
The CAGED system explained covers how the five shapes are built and linked, and minor CAGED shapes shows how each one changes for minor. The CAGED guitar lessons set out what to learn next, and the CAGED library has every major and minor chord.