Free Beginner Ukulele Chord Chart Printable

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Grab a free printable ukulele chord chart in this post!

Do you have a musician, or wanna be musician in your house?  We are big into music here and my kids really love playing instruments, especially the ukulele. Today I want to give you a free printable ukulele chord chart and also some info about playing the ukulele.  The ukulele is a great beginner musical instrument.

Learning to read music is like learning a whole new language.  However, chord charts are quite a bit easier to read and follow for beginners. You don’t need to know the key signature or rhythm. It is quite a bit simpler!  This type of notation is called tablature or TABs.

So, if you are overwhelmed with the idea of learning to read music, try ukulele or guitar chords first. It’s a great starting point for new musicians. It’s also a lot of fun for seasoned musicians to pick up quite easily! 

Reading Ukulele Chords 

A ukulele has four strings. When you play individual strings on their own they make an individual note. However when you press down uncertain parts of the string you can create chords. Chords are a group of notes played together that make a nice sounding harmony.  To read ukulele chords you need to understand a few basics about the instrument and how the basic chords are written out. 

Ukulele chords are written in a chart format that visually represent the four strings (as vertical lines) and the frets ( as horizontal lines) on the uke. Frets are the metal dividers that stick out and run vertically along the neck of the ukulele. This part of the instrument is called the ukulele fretboard. 

The notes each ukulele string player on its own are G-C-E-A. The string at the top of the instrument is the G string and the A is at the bottom. However they are counted from the bottom up, so the A is the first string and the G is the fourth string.  When tuning your. ukulele, you will need to tune them to these notes before playing it. When you play each note individually, the C string will have the lowest tone and the A will have the highest tone. 

Ukulele Fingering​

When playing a chord on the ukulele, each finger is assigned a number. 

1 = the index finger is the first finger

2 = the middle finger is the second finger

3= the ring finger is the third finger

4= the pinky finger is the fourth finger

The thumb is not used to play notes, it just wraps around to hold on to the instrument. 

When reading ukulele chord diagrams, if you see a small circle above the string, it means that you will not press down on it. These are open strings. It means that string will be played in an open position with no finger pressing on it.

Playing a Ukulele Chord

To play the chord, press down the string between the two frets on the position marked on the chord charts. Occasionally you will see chords that are barred together. Barre chords are done by pressing down all of the marked strings with the same finger.

They can be tricky at first, but you’ll get the hang of them! I personally have found the ukulele to have very easy chords to play!  It has just four strings and they are close together making it much easier to  play than the guitar for me. 

Basic Ukulele Chord Chart Printable

This ukulele chord chart that I created has 25 of the most common ukulele chords. It is great for beginners learning to play! It shows how to play the major chords, minor chords and 7th chords. Each one has the chord name and the finger positions marked. 

With these 25 chords you will be able to play most of the popular songs out there! Beginning ukulele players will easily be able to start playing their first chords and play some simple songs on the first day! 

Download the Free Ukulele Chord Charts Now!

This is a printable PDF download. Click the button below to access the download. 

Click Here to Download

What Type of Ukulele Should You Get?

You can get fairly inexpensive ukuleles, and some of much higher quality.  The beginner ones are great for young kids to start on. If they get more advanced, they will likely want one of a higher quality.  Most people start on a soprano ukulele.  This one is the smallest and creates the brightest sound that most people are used to hearing.  

As you are looking for an instrument, you will also see concert ukulele, tenor ukulele, and baritone ukulele options. Each one is slightly larger than the previous one. With increasing size they also produce more sound and resonance. When you purchase a ukulele, you will want to be sure to get a ukulele case to protect it and a good tuner, too!

See also my post on Guitar Chords for Kids!