Sus4 guitar chords
A sus4 chord replaces the third with the fourth. The fourth wants to fall back to the third, so sus4 chords are usually followed by the plain major chord on the same root.
How sus4 chords are built
The formula is 1–4–5: the root, the perfect fourth and the perfect fifth, counted from the root’s major scale. In Csus4 that gives C · F · G.
All 12 sus4 chords on guitar
Fingerings read from the low E string to the high E string. x = not played, 0 = open. 4 of the twelve main shapes are easy, 4 medium and 4 hard.
| Chord | Notes | Fingering | Position | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Csus4 | C F G | x33011 | open position | Medium |
| Dbsus4 | D♭ G♭ A♭ | x4412x | 1st fret | Medium |
| Dsus4 | D G A | xx0233 | open position | Easy |
| Ebsus4 | E♭ A♭ B♭ | xx1344 | 1st fret | Medium |
| Esus4 | E A B | 022200 | open position | Easy |
| Fsus4 | F B♭ C | 133311 | barre chord, 1st fret | Hard |
| F#sus4 | F♯ B C♯ | 244422 | barre chord, 2nd fret | Hard |
| Gsus4 | G C D | 330013 | open position | Easy |
| Absus4 | A♭ D♭ E♭ | xx1124 | 1st fret | Medium |
| Asus4 | A D E | x02230 | open position | Easy |
| Bbsus4 | B♭ E♭ F | x13341 | barre chord, 1st fret | Hard |
| Bsus4 | B E F♯ | 224452 | barre chord, 2nd fret | Hard |
Sus4 chord diagrams
- Csus4x330114 fingerings · medium
- Dsus4xx02334 fingerings · easy
- Esus40222004 fingerings · easy
- Fsus41333114 fingerings · hard
- Gsus43300134 fingerings · easy
- Asus4x022304 fingerings · easy
- Bsus42244524 fingerings · hard
Where sus4 chords appear in a key
In a major key, a suspended 4th chord fits on the I, VI, V, III and II degrees of the scale. For example, Csus4 is the I chord in C major, VI chord in Eb major, V chord in F major, III chord in Ab major and II chord in Bb major.