Cmaj7 Chord: Guitar, Piano and Notes

The Cmaj7 chord is a major seventh chord built on the root note C. Its notes are C, E, G and B.

Major seventh chords are lush, open and slightly jazzy. Stacking a major third on top of a major triad gives them a dreamy colour often heard in bossa nova, soul and modern R&B.

Guitar shapes Piano fingering

Root

Quality

Cmaj7 on piano

View:

Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.

To play Cmaj7 on piano, place your right-hand thumb on C, then index, middle and little finger on E, G and B. Press the keys together and listen for an even sound. Practice moving in and out of the chord slowly, then bring in a metronome.

Cmaj7 on guitar

View:

Switch to the interactive diagram to hear the chord, change voicing and swap finger numbers for note names.

On guitar, Cmaj7 is commonly played with the voicing shown above. Strum only the strings marked as active in the diagram.

Play the chord

Cmaj7

C · E · G · B

Cmaj7 chord notes

Formula: 1 · 3 · 5 · 7Notes: C · E · G · B

Degree	Interval	Semitones	Note
1	Root	0	C
3	Major third	4	E
5	Perfect fifth	7	G
7	Major seventh	11	B

How to use the Cmaj7 chord

The Cmaj7 chord is built from a root, a major third, a perfect fifth and a major seventh. Start at the root C and stack the intervals to get the whole chord: C, E, G and B. The same formula gives you the chord in any other key.

Major seventh chords colour jazz standards, bossa nova, soul and modern pop. They most often serve as Imaj7 or IVmaj7 in a major key to add warmth without changing the function.

Famous Songs in Cmaj7

These well-known tracks all feature the Cmaj7 chord - a great way to put it in musical context.

1
Misty
Erroll Garner
2
The Girl from Ipanema
Joao Gilberto
3
Fly Me to the Moon
Frank Sinatra
4
Moonlight in Vermont
Standard
5
My Funny Valentine
Richard Rodgers

Common progressions

The Cmaj7 chord works beautifully in these progressions. Click a chord name to jump to its page.

Pop progression

I → V → vi → IV

C G Am F

Classic I-IV-V

I → IV → V → I

C F G C

50s progression

I → vi → IV → V

C Am F G

Once Cmaj7 feels comfortable, the chords below open up new progressions. Each one shares notes, keys or a harmonic function with it, which is what makes it the natural place to go next.

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in the Cmaj7 chord?

The Cmaj7 chord contains C, E, G and B.

Is the Cmaj7 chord major or minor?

Cmaj7 is a major seventh chord. Major seventh chords are lush, open and slightly jazzy. Stacking a major third on top of a major triad gives them a dreamy colour often heard in bossa nova, soul and modern R&B.

How do you play Cmaj7 on piano?

Place your fingers on C, E, G and B and play them together. The root usually goes to the little finger of the left hand, the upper notes to the right.

How do you play Cmaj7 on guitar?

Cmaj7 is typically played with the fingering shown in the diagram above. If one of the chord tones lines up with an open string, an open position is worth trying too.

What chords work well with Cmaj7?

Cmaj7 pairs naturally with the chords in the related section: a perfect fifth up or down, the relative major or minor, and anything sharing two notes with it.

Keep exploring

Deepen your understanding of the Cmaj7 chord with our other music theory tools.

Browse all chords Explore scales Explore progressions Chord Transposer Chord Finder Chords in Key Try the Piano Open Circle of Fifths