D Minor Chord on Guitar (Dm): Three-Finger Open Chord

D minor is, in the words of Spinal Tap, the saddest of all keys. It's also one of the easiest chords to play on guitar. No barre. Three fingers. Four strings. The whole chord fits inside the first three frets. If you've been struggling with F or B-flat, Dm is the soft landing.

Dm is built from D, F, and A. The first fret of the high E string gives you F, the open D string gives you D, and the open A string gives you A. The chord almost plays itself.

The Standard Dm Fingering

• 1st string (high E): 1st fret, index finger
• 2nd string (B): 3rd fret, ring finger
• 3rd string (G): 2nd fret, middle finger
• 4th string (D): open
• Strings 5 and 6: do not play

Strum strings 1 through 4. The notes from low to high are D, A, D, F. Three different pitches, all in Dm.

Don't strum the open A string (5th string). It's an A, which is in the chord, but the A is also the 5th of the chord and putting it in the bass throws off the chord's voicing in a way most listeners hear as muddy. Some songs use Dm with the A in the bass intentionally; for general use, skip it.

And definitely don't strum the open low E. It's a non-chord tone in Dm and it'll make the chord sound wrong.

Songs That Use Dm

• "House of the Rising Sun" opens on Am but visits Dm in every cycle.
• "Stairway to Heaven" uses Dm in the chorus.
• "Mad World" by Tears for Fears (and the Gary Jules cover) is built on Em-G-D-A but uses Dm-related shapes via capo.
• Most songs in F major or D minor. Dm is the relative minor of F, so anything in F leans on Dm.
• Latin and flamenco music. The phrygian dominant scale lives next door to Dm and lots of Spanish guitar uses Dm as home.

Common Dm Mistakes

• Hitting the low E or A. Both add notes outside the chord. Train your strum to start on the D string. Mute the 5th and 6th strings with the side of your thumb if needed.
• Index finger lying flat. The index on the 1st fret of the high E should be on the very tip. If it lays flat, it'll mute the 2nd string (B) and you'll lose the F note.
• Ring finger landing too far back. The ring on the 3rd fret of the B string needs to sit just behind the metal fret, not in the middle of the fret.

Dm Variations

• Dm7. Lift the index finger off the 1st string. The high E rings open. This adds the 7th (C) to the chord and gives it a softer, more open sound. Used constantly in jazz, soul, and Steely Dan.
• Dsus2. From Dm, lift the middle finger off the 3rd string and let it ring open. This turns Dm into a Dsus2, which is brighter and less sad. Useful as a passing chord.
• Dm/F. Same Dm shape but the bass note is F. Used in classical fingerstyle and folk for descending bass lines.

The fretboard explorer shows every Dm position on the neck, including the 5th-fret A-shape barre and the 10th-fret E-shape barre, which both sound noticeably different from the open Dm.

Dm and Am: The Two Easy Minor Chords

Dm and Am are the two minor chords most beginners learn first because they're both open chords with no barre. They're also closely related: Am contains A, C, E and Dm contains D, F, A. The note A appears in both, and the chords sound natural together.

The Am to Dm change is one of the most common transitions in music. Drill it. Set a chord progression loop to play Am-Dm-Am-Dm at 60 BPM and play along until your hand makes the change without thinking.

FAQ: D Minor Chord Questions

Why is Dm called "the saddest of all keys"?

The Spinal Tap line is a joke, but it lands because minor keys generally evoke sadness or melancholy in Western music, and D minor sits in a register that resonates particularly well on most acoustic guitars. The 4th-string open D gives the chord a deep, mournful quality that other minor keys don't have on guitar.

What's the difference between Dm and D major?

One note. D major is D, F sharp, A. Dm is D, F natural, A. The third (the F) is a half step lower in the minor version, which is what makes the chord sound minor. Lift your middle finger from the 2nd fret of the 3rd string to the 2nd fret of the 1st string area to convert one into the other... actually you can't do it with one finger move, but the difference is just that one note.

Can I play Dm with the open low E and A?

You can, but it'll sound muddy. The open low E isn't in the Dm chord and conflicts with the harmony. The open A is in the chord but in the bass it changes the chord's voicing to a Dm/A inversion. Skip both and strum from the D string down.

Is Dm the same as F major?

No, but they're close cousins. Dm is the relative minor of F major. They share two of three notes (D and F appear in F major; A and F appear in both). Songs in F major often visit Dm and vice versa.

How do I switch from Dm to G?

Lift everything off the fretboard, then place the new G shape. The Dm-G change uses zero shared fingers, which means it's a full reset of your fretting hand. Practice it slowly until your fingers find the G shape without your eyes following along.