Chord Sheet Builder: Printable Chord Reference for Any Instrument

You're halfway through a song and forget the fingering for Bm7. Instead of reaching for your phone, the Chord Sheet Builder lets you create a printable chord reference with exactly the shapes you use — pick your instrument, choose from 130+ diagrams or draw your own, and download a clean PDF.

Why a One-Page Chord Reference?

Generic chord posters show hundreds of shapes you'll never need. A custom reference shows only the chords for your repertoire, your key, and your capo position. One page on your stand or in your binder is enough for most gigs and practice sessions — no scrolling, no ads, no distractions.

How the Chord Sheet Builder Works

The Chord Sheet Builder generates printable chord diagrams in three steps:

1. Pick your instrument — guitar, ukulele, piano, bass, mandolin, or banjo. Each instrument gets the right diagram type: fretboard grids for stringed instruments, keyboard layout for piano.
2. Choose your chords — browse the library of 130+ chord diagrams, search by name, or draw a custom fingering on the fretboard. Add open chords, barre shapes, 7ths, power chords — whatever you need.
3. Arrange and export — drag chords to reorder, group them into sections (e.g. “Open Chords” and “Barre Shapes”), pick a color theme, then download as PDF or add to a songbook.

You can choose A4 or Letter paper, portrait or landscape orientation, and adjust font sizes. The tool saves your work automatically so you can come back later.

Chords for Every Instrument

The Chord Sheet Builder isn't just for guitar. It generates diagrams for six instruments, each with the right visual format:

• Guitar — 6-string fretboard diagrams with dots, barres, finger numbers, and open/muted string markers.
• Ukulele — compact 4-string diagrams with standard GCEA tuning.
• Piano — keyboard diagrams showing which keys to press, with the root note highlighted.
• Bass — 4-string fretboard diagrams for root-5th patterns and power chord shapes.
• Mandolin — 4-course fretboard diagrams including open chords and chop chord voicings for bluegrass.
• Banjo — 5-string diagrams for open G tuning with standard chord shapes.

You can mix instruments on the same page — handy for teachers, or if you want guitar and ukulele chords side by side for a song.

Ready-Made Chord Templates

Don't want to build from scratch? The Chord Sheet Builder includes ready-made templates for each instrument — open chords, barre chords, 7th chords, power chords, and more. Preview them, download the PDF directly, or use one as a starting point and customize it.

GuitarUkulelePianoBassMandolinBanjo

Guitar: Open Chords

Essential open position chords: C, D, Dm, E, Em, G, A, Am and more · 14 chords

Browse all 14 ready-made templates →

Add It to Your Songbook

Chord references work best when they live with your other materials. If you already use a songbook for gigs or practice, add your chord reference as its own page or section. You get one printed book with songs, setlist order, and chord shapes — no separate handouts to lose.

Pair it with a scale reference sheet so your students have both chords and scales in one book. See how to make a setlist book and how to make a guitar tab book for full book workflows.

Tips for Teachers & Gigging

• Teachers: Create a different chord sheet per student or per key (e.g. “Key of G — open chords”) and print handouts or add them to custom student workbooks. Use a different color theme per level.
• Worship & bands: One reference in the band's key (with capo noted) keeps everyone consistent. Pair it with a setlist and songbook.
• Multi-instrument groups: Create a single page with the same chords shown on guitar, ukulele, and piano — so the whole group sees the same shapes.
• Print: Use the same paper and binding as your songbook so the chord sheet doesn't get lost. Our printing guide covers settings and double-sided alignment.

Frequently Asked Questions