Chord · B Suspended 4th
Bsus4 Chord
Bsus4 is B, E and F# — tense, wants to resolve to the major.
Bsus4 on every instrument
The same 3 notes, 6 sets of hands. Open a diagram for alternate shapes, audio and the mistakes to avoid.
What Bsus4 is made of
Bsus4 (B suspended fourth) is built from the notes B, E, F#, with the interval pattern 1, 4, 5.
Stack 1, 4 and 5 on a root of B and you get B, E 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 Bsus4.
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 F♯ rather than its enharmonic equivalent.
Keys that contain Bsus4
All 3 notes sit inside the scale of 12 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 Bsus4
- What notes are in the Bsus4 chord?
- Bsus4 is made of B, E and F# — the 1, 4 and 5 degrees of a suspended fourth chord built on B.
- What keys use the Bsus4 chord?
- Every note of Bsus4 belongs to 12 keys: G Major (iii), D Major (vi), A Major (ii), E Major (V), B Major (I), Cb Major (I), E Minor (v), B Minor (i), F# Minor (iv), C# Minor (VII), G# Minor (III), Ab Minor (III). The roman numeral is the scale degree the chord is rooted on.
- How do you play Bsus4 on guitar and piano?
- This page shows Bsus4 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.
Learn the theory behind it
Why Bsus4 behaves the way it does — the guides that explain the chord instead of just spelling it.