Guitar · thirteenth
B13 Chord on Guitar
B Dominant 13th is B, D#, F#, A, C#, G# — the 1-3-5-b7-9-13 pattern of a thirteenth chord. Here is the shape, the audio, and what usually goes wrong.
There is no open B13 on guitar. The one shape below sits up the neck and is rated advanced.
Start here — Movable Root-5 Shape (1st fret)
Fingered low on the neck with no barre — a useful middle step between the open shape and the movable ones.
What beginners get wrong
Moving in and out of it
The shape above: Movable Root-5 Shape (1st fret).
Listening: each shape above has its own play button, and each one plays the notes that shape actually produces — not a generic triad.
B13 on other instruments
Same notes, different hands. Every link below is a real page with diagrams and audio.
Chords next door
Same root, different colour — and all of them playable on guitar.
B13 on Guitar — questions people ask
What is the easiest way to play B13 on guitar?
“Movable Root-5 Shape (1st fret)” — which we rate advanced — is the easiest B13 shape on guitar. Fingered low on the neck with no barre — a useful middle step between the open shape and the movable ones. There is no open B13 on guitar, so a barre is unavoidable; this is the least demanding one.
What notes are in the B Dominant 13th chord?
B Dominant 13th is B, D#, F#, A, C#, G# — the 1-3-5-b7-9-13 interval pattern of a thirteenth chord. Every voicing on this page uses those notes and nothing else; they just appear in a different order and octave.
What can I play instead of B13?
The nearest stand-ins on guitar that keep the same root are Bsus4, Bsus2, B. They keep the root and the fifth and only change what sits in the middle, so most songs still work — but check the swap against the melody, because the note you removed may be the one the tune is singing.
Can I play B13 on other instruments?
Yes. B13 is the same set of notes everywhere; only the fingering changes. This site has diagrams and audio for it on piano.
Learn the theory behind B13
The shape gets your fingers there. These explain why it sounds the way it does.