C — Major triad
The bright, stable triad — a major 3rd and a perfect 5th.
Chord tones
C
1
Root
E
3
Major 3rd
G
5
Perfect 5th
The 3rd defines the quality
The major 3rd — E in C — is what makes this triad sound major. It’s ringed in magenta on the neck. The 5th sets diminished and augmented apart.
Mood
Happy, resolved and stable — the default "major chord" sound.
e.g. C, G, D — the backbone of most pop, folk and rock.
Shapes & inversions
These same three notes — C · E · G — repeat all over the neck. Pick a 3-string set above to see the compact triad shapes guitarists use for comping; the lowest tone in a shape (root, 3rd, or 5th) tells you the inversion.
About the Guitar Triads Visualizer
Guitar Tool Hub's free guitar triads visualizer maps the four triad types — major, minor, diminished, and augmented — across the full fretboard in any key, with tap-to-play audio on every note. A triad is the three-note core of a chord: the root, the third, and the fifth. Show all three tones across the whole neck, or filter to a single 3-string set to see the compact, movable triad shapes guitarists use for comping and chord melody. The third is highlighted on the neck because it's the note that decides whether a triad sounds major or minor, while the fifth separates diminished from augmented. Ideal for learning triad inversions, building chord vocabulary up the neck, and understanding how chords are constructed.
- 01All 4 triad types: major, minor, diminished, augmented
- 02Root, 3rd, and 5th labelled with the major-scale formula (1 3 5, 1 ♭3 5, etc.)
- 03The 3rd highlighted on the fretboard — the note that defines major vs minor
- 04Whole-neck view or a single 3-string set for compact triad shapes
- 05All 12 keys and 27 tunings
- 06Tap any note to hear it played — printable and downloadable