Free Capo Calculator
Tell me what a chord shape sounds like with a capo, or find the right fret to play any song in a key you actually know. Guitar, ukulele, banjo — no signup, no download.
Fingering a G shape with a capo at fret 2 on the guitar produces the sound of A.
Want to play in A without a capo? Use G shapes capoed at fret 2 — that’s the easy way. Or play A chord shapes directly without a capo.
Easier shape for A at fret 2: F.
Paste a chord progression — we’ll move every chord by the same number of semitones.
How a capo really works
A capo is a clamp that sits across every string of a fretted instrument at a single fret. It does one thing: it shortens every string by the same amount, which raises every open string by the same number of semitones. The relative tuning between strings is unchanged, which is why your familiar chord shapes still work — they just sound higher.
That single fact is the whole calculator. Each fret raises pitch by exactly one semitone. A G chord shape with the capo at fret 1 sounds like Ab. At fret 2 it sounds like A. At fret 5 it sounds like C. The relationship is linear, predictable, and identical on guitar, ukulele, banjo, and any other fretted instrument with a flat fingerboard.
Players reach for a capo for two practical reasons. First, comfort: open chords like G, C, D, Em, and Am ring louder and fret more cleanly than barre chords. If a song is in Eb, barring every chord is exhausting — putting a capo at fret 3 and playing C-shape voicings sounds in Eb but is far easier to play. Second, vocal range: capoing up or down a few frets shifts the song to a key that suits a singer’s comfortable range without relearning the chord shapes. The one thing a capo cannot do is lower pitch — for that, you transpose the song down on the chart, retune the instrument, or pick a different starting key.
Frequently asked questions
- What does a capo actually do?
- A capo clamps every string at the same fret, raising the pitch of the open strings without changing the relative tuning. This lets you keep using familiar chord shapes while sounding in a different key.
- Why use a capo instead of just learning new chord shapes?
- Open chords (G, C, D, Em, Am) ring louder and are easier to fret cleanly than barre chords. Putting a capo at fret 1 and playing a G shape sounds like Ab — the same as a barre Ab chord, but far more comfortable for most beginners and great for fingerstyle.
- Can a capo lower the pitch of a song?
- No. A capo only raises pitch. If a song is in a key lower than what you can comfortably play, you have to transpose the song down on the chart, retune the instrument, or pick a different playable key.
- Does this calculator work for ukulele or banjo?
- Yes. The math is identical — pitch goes up by one semitone for each fret the capo moves up, regardless of the instrument's tuning. We expose guitar, ukulele, and banjo as the three most common capo instruments.