Tune up, find the shape, keep picking.
Free interactive tools for five-string banjo players, from your first chord to your next roll. Works on your phone, no sign-up.
- Open the tuner
Tune your banjo
Tap a string to hear its reference note in Open G, Double C, Sawmill or Open D. Chords
19 chord types in all 12 keys, each with its shapes up the neck.Scales
19 scales in all 12 keys, with every note marked on the fretboard.Rolls
Eight picking rolls to play along with, at three speeds.Builder
Tap notes on the neck and get the chord’s name.
Made for the five-string
Every fretboard shows the short fifth string where it really is and follows the tuning you pick. The rolls follow bluegrass three-finger picking, and Double C and Sawmill are there for old-time and clawhammer players.
Four tunings
Strings are listed from the short fifth string to the first.
- Open G G D G B D
- The standard bluegrass tuning, and where most players start. Strum the open strings and you hear a G chord.
- Double C G C G C D
- An old-time and clawhammer favourite for tunes in C, and for tunes in D with a capo at the second fret.
- Sawmill G D G C D
- Also called G modal or mountain minor: the open strings sound neither major nor minor, which suits old modal fiddle tunes.
- Open D F♯ D F♯ A D
- Strum the open strings for a D chord, for songs in D without a capo.
New to the banjo?
- Tune up. Tune to Open G: G D G B D, from the short fifth string to the first. Check it every time you pick up the banjo, as strings drift.
- Learn three chords. Start with G, C and D7, the chords behind hundreds of songs. In Open G the open strings already make a G chord, so the first one is free.
- Change chords slowly. Switch between G, C and D7 until each change is clean, before worrying about speed.
- Choose a picking style. Bluegrass players pick up with the thumb, index and middle fingers, usually wearing picks. Clawhammer players strike down with the back of a fingernail and catch the fifth string with the thumb.
- Learn a roll. Play the forward roll at the slowest speed while holding a G chord, then over C and D7. Speed up only when every note is even.
- Put it together. Keep a roll going while you change from G to C to D7 and back. That is the core of playing along with a song.