How to Play An F Chord on the Ukulele

Any beginner looking at the huge variety of chords you can play on the ukulele is likely to get intimidated by all the learning they will have to do.

Which chords is a beginner most likely to need? Which are easiest to learn? Which will you find most often in songs? Which chords sound good when played together?

In this series of articles I’ll be answering all these questions. In this part of the series I’ll be looking at how to play the F chord on the ukulele.

The F chord, unlike the C chord in the last part, uses two fingers. This makes it slightly more difficult to play for a beginner.

Firstly you should put your index finger (or pointer finger if you prefer) on the first fret of the E string (one up from the bottom). Then you should put your middle finger on the second fret of the G string. Again, make sure that both these notes are ringing clear and true by playing them individually.

Now pluck the C and A strings. Do they sound bright and clear? If not, it is likely that the string is being muted by the bottom of one of your fingers.

Are you fingers accidentally dampening one of the other strings? Look at how you are fretting to see if this is creating a problem for you.

Ideally, your fingers should be lifting up from the fretboard to create an arc above the neck of the ukulele. The top part of your finger should be coming down at almost a right angle to the fretboard. Fretting in this way will allow the strings to ring out clearly.

If you want to create a great sound on the ukulele, paying close attention to this aspect of playing is absolutely essential. You’ll encounter this again and again when you start to learn more chords and it’s important to get into the correct way of playing as soon as possible.

When you have got this technique down, it will provide a firm basis for all the chords you will learn in future.

In rock music, C to F is one of the most common chord changes there is. You’ll hear it over and over in all sorts of genres from country to blues to pop to metal.

And the third chord that will complete this natural progression is the G7 chord. This chord adds the final bit of tension to the progression. And that is the chord that we will be learning in the next article in this series.