F eleventh (F11) chord on ukulele

Looking for the F11 chord on ukulele? It is an eleventh chord (a dominant ninth plus a perfect eleventh), made of six notes: F – A – C – E♭ – G – B♭.

Dots show:

Basic shapeeasy

Position 5easy

Position 3medium

Position 8medium

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What the F11 chord sounds like

An eleventh chord has six notes in theory. In practice the third is left out (it clashes with the eleventh), so it sounds like a 9sus4 – a modern, open dominant.

Notes of the F11 chord

Degree	Note	Interval from the root
1	F	root
3	A	major third (4 semitones) – often omitted on fretted instruments
5	C	perfect fifth (7 semitones) – often omitted on fretted instruments
7	E♭	minor seventh (10 semitones)
9	G	major second (2 semitones) – often omitted on fretted instruments
11	B♭	perfect fourth (5 semitones)

How to play it – with fingering

Basic shape, barre at fret 1

String 1 (A): fret 1, index finger (B♭4)
String 2 (E): fret 1, index finger (F4)
String 3 (C): fret 3, ring finger (E♭4)
String 4 (G): open (G4)

For the barre, lay your index finger flat across all the marked strings at fret 1; your other fingers press the higher frets.

Position 5, barre at fret 5

String 1 (A): fret 6, ring finger (E♭5)
String 2 (E): fret 6, middle finger (B♭4)
String 3 (C): fret 5, index finger (F4)
String 4 (G): fret 5, index finger (C5)

For the barre, lay your index finger flat across all the marked strings at fret 5; your other fingers press the higher frets.

Position 3

String 1 (A): fret 6, little finger (E♭5)
String 2 (E): fret 6, little finger (B♭4)
String 3 (C): fret 5, ring finger (F4)
String 4 (G): fret 3, index finger (B♭4)

Tuning: G C E A (the G string is higher than the C – standard re-entrant ukulele tuning). In the diagram, × means the string is not played, and a circle means an open string.

Which keys is it in?

The F11 chord is built from the notes of these keys (for minor keys, both the natural and the harmonic minor are considered):

B♭ major: V11 (dominant)
G minor: VII11

Similar chords and substitutes

If F11 is too hard, or you want a different colour in the same spot, these chords are worth a try.

Substitutes (by function)

B7 – tritone substitute: the same third and seventh, swapped – a jazz favourite
Adim7 – diminished seventh on the third: a common stand-in for the dominant
F7 – a simpler dominant
F7sus4 – suspended dominant, less tense
B♭ – where it resolves (V → I)

Simpler versions

F9 – all 5 of its notes are in this chord
F7 – all 4 of its notes are in this chord
F7sus4 – all 4 of its notes are in this chord
Fadd9 – all 4 of its notes are in this chord

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in the F11 chord?

F, A, C, E♭, G, B♭. The root is F; the intervals of the other notes from the root: major third, perfect fifth, minor seventh, major second, perfect fourth.

What is the easiest way to play F11 on ukulele?

The easiest shape above is “Basic shape”, rated easy. We show 4 shapes, from open and easy versions to movable barre shapes higher up the neck.

How do I read the chord diagram?

Strings run from the lowest (left) to the highest (right) – tick “Left-handed” to mirror it. Rows are frets; a number at the side shows the starting fret. Dots are fingers (1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 little), a long bar is a barre, × means don't play that string and ○ means play it open.

Why is a note missing from some F11 shapes?

On a fretted instrument you can't always play every note of a 6-note chord. In an eleventh chord the third (A) is normally left out because it clashes with the eleventh. The fifth (C) and ninth (G) may be dropped – the chord keeps its character without them.

How is the F11 chord written?

The chord symbol is F11, and its full name is F eleventh.