Chord · Bb Suspended 4th
B♭sus4 Chord
B♭sus4 is Bb, Eb and F — tense, wants to resolve to the major.
B♭sus4 on every instrument
The same 3 notes, 6 sets of hands. Open a diagram for alternate shapes, audio and the mistakes to avoid.
What B♭sus4 is made of
Bb Suspended 4th (Bb suspended 4th) is built from the notes Bb, Eb, F, with the interval pattern 1, 4, 5. A common suspended 4th chord across many styles.
Stack 1, 4 and 5 on a root of B♭ and you get Bb, Eb and F. That interval recipe is what makes the chord a suspended fourth chord — move the same shape to another root and the character travels with it, which is why Csus4 sounds like a transposed B♭sus4.
Suspended 4th: Tense, wants to resolve to the major.
Spelling: the notes above are written the way a score would write them, not simplified to the nearest piano key. That is why this chord is spelled with B♭ rather than its enharmonic equivalent.
Keys that contain B♭sus4
All 3 notes sit inside the scale of 14 keys. The roman numeral marks the degree the chord is rooted on.
Major keys
Other chords on B♭
Same root, different colour.
The same suspended fourth shape, moved
The identical interval recipe, built on other roots.
Questions people ask about Bbsus4
- What notes are in the Bbsus4 chord?
- Bbsus4 is made of Bb, Eb and F — the 1, 4 and 5 degrees of a suspended fourth chord built on Bb.
- What keys use the Bbsus4 chord?
- Every note of Bbsus4 belongs to 14 keys: Bb Major (I), Eb Major (V), Ab Major (ii), Db Major (vi), F# Major (iii), Gb Major (iii), C# Major (vi), G Minor (III), C Minor (VII), F Minor (iv), Bb Minor (i), D# Minor (v), Eb Minor (v), A# Minor (i). The roman numeral is the scale degree the chord is rooted on.
- How do you play Bbsus4 on guitar and piano?
- This page shows Bbsus4 on guitar, piano, ukulele, bass, mandolin and banjo — 10 voicings in total. Each diagram links to the full instrument page with alternate shapes, audio and common mistakes.
- Is Bbsus4 the same as A#sus4?
- Yes. Bbsus4 and A#sus4 are enharmonic — identical pitches written two different ways. Which spelling you use depends on the key you are in; Bbsus4 is the spelling this site treats as canonical.
Learn the theory behind it
Why B♭sus4 behaves the way it does — the guides that explain the chord instead of just spelling it.