Guitar Capo Guide

What a capo does

A guitar capo clamps across the neck at one fret and works as a movable nut. The strings can only vibrate between the capo and the bridge, so each open string now sounds as high as that fret would normally make it. Each fret is one semitone, so a capo on fret 2 raises every string by two semitones (a whole step), and a capo on fret 5 raises them by five.

The shapes you finger do not change. An open G shape with a capo on fret 2 sounds as an A chord. The chord names you hear are different from the shapes you play, which is the whole point: you keep the easy open shapes, such as the cowboy chords, and move the key.

How to put a capo on

1. Place it just behind the fret you want, on the side toward the tuners, not on top of the fret wire. Close to the fret wire gives the cleanest note and needs the least pressure.
2. Keep it straight, parallel to the fret, so every string is pressed evenly.
3. Clamp with just enough pressure that all six strings ring clearly. Squeezing harder than needed pulls notes sharp.
4. Strum the open strings and retune with the capo on. Check every string, not only one.

Move the capo by loosening it fully, not by sliding it along the strings, which can wear the strings and the fretboard finish.

Capo chart: which chord sounds

Find the open chord shape you are playing in the first column, then read across to the capo fret. The result is the chord you hear. The table covers the five open major shapes of the CAGED set and the three common open minor shapes, Am, Em and Dm, at frets 1 to 7. Sharps and flats are the same pitch, so C# and Db are the same chord.

Every row follows the same rule: count up one semitone per fret from the chord name of the shape. Em with a capo on fret 2 sounds as F#m, and Am with a capo on fret 3 sounds as Cm.

A few shapes to start with:

How to work out the capo fret for a song

Every song you play with a capo needs two keys: the key the song is in, and the key you want to play it in.

1. Find the key you hear: the key the original recording or your singer uses.
2. Pick an easy key to play in, such as G, C, D, A or E, whose open chords you know.
3. Count the semitones from the easy key up to the sounding key. That is the capo fret.

For example, a song in A with your shapes in G needs capo 2, because A is two semitones above G. A song in B with G shapes needs capo 4. The capo calculator does the counting and also shows the chord shapes for each capo fret. The key of G major is a common home key for capo playing, because the G, C, D and Em shapes are all open.

Playing in a singer’s range

A capo cannot lower the key. If the song is too high, play it in a lower key with different shapes, or tune down. If it is too low, move the capo one fret at a time until the top and bottom of the melody are comfortable, then write down the fret and the shapes.

Capo with open chords

Open chords ring more strings than barre shapes, and a capo keeps that open sound at higher keys. That is why many arrangements use capo plus open shapes, a trick popular with beginner songs such as those in easy Taylor Swift songs to play on guitar. It also lets you play the same song in several keys without learning new fingering. If you want to confirm a shape, the chord finder shows it.

Types of capos

Capos differ in how they clamp and in what neck they suit. This is a description of the designs, not a ranking.

• Spring or trigger capo. A spring-loaded clamp that you squeeze to open and release to close. It can be moved quickly with one hand and is common for fast changes between songs.
• Screw or adjustable capo. A bar with a screw or knob to set the pressure. It takes longer to move, but the clamping force is adjustable.
• Lever-style capo (Shubb-style). A bar with a lever and an over-center mechanism, set with a small adjuster. Pressure is set once and then repeated each time.
• Partial capos. These cover only some of the strings, leaving others open, which produces open tunings and drone-like voicings without retuning the guitar.
• 12-string capos. Built for the wider neck and the doubled strings of a 12-string guitar.
• Curved and flat capos. Steel-string acoustic fretboards are usually slightly curved across the width, so a capo with a curved pad fits well. Classical fretboards are flatter and wider, so a flat-bar capo made for them is the usual choice.

Check the neck width and the radius that the capo is made for before buying one, since a poor fit is the main cause of problems.

Common capo problems

Strings buzz or sound muted

The capo is probably too far from the fret wire, crooked or not clamping hard enough. Move it right behind the fret and straighten it. If one string still buzzes, check that your fretting finger is not touching it.

The guitar goes out of tune after clamping

Clamping can pull strings sharp, and a capo that sits crooked pulls some strings more than others. Place it straight, clamp lightly and retune with the capo on, using the guitar tuner. If the strings only ring clean under heavy pressure, the capo may not fit the neck.

Capo vs barre chords

A barre chord uses your index finger across all the strings as a moving nut, so it does what a capo does, but with a finger that has to keep working. The difference is that a capo frees all four fingers to play the shape, so you can use open shapes in any key.

The two are not rivals. Barre chords let you change keys within a song without stopping, and a capo is simpler for playing a whole song in one key with easy shapes. Many guitarists use both: barres to move around the neck, a capo to move the key.