Song chords
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) chords
Green Day
A punk band's acoustic ballad built on three chords and one arpeggio pattern, in G with no capo. The verse holds the G for two bars before anything moves, and that hesitation is the hook.
Before you start
The chords you need.
4 shapes covers the whole song. Tap any diagram’s play button to hear it, or open its page for every voicing on six instruments.
The chart
Section by section.
Key of G, no capo: two bars of G, then Cadd9 and D. The Cadd9 rather than a plain C is the point — your third and fourth fingers never leave the B and high E strings across all three shapes. Hit play on any section to hear it walk through at 95 bpm.
Verse
4 barsTwo bars of G before anything moves.
Chorus
7 barsOpens on the vi — the only minor chord in the song.
Need it in a different key, or without the capo? Run it through the transposer — move every chord by the same interval and the song is unchanged.
Playing it
What actually trips people up.
Anchor the ring and little fingers on the third fret of the B and high E through G, Cadd9 and D. Once they stay put, each change costs one finger.
The chart above is the commonly played arrangement — the version a competent player would hand you, not a bar-for-bar transcription of a specific master. Section labels are there to orient you; live and studio versions repeat, extend and drop sections freely, and none of that changes which chords you need.
About this page
Chord names and song structure are facts; for lyrics and official notation, support the artist. This page carries no lyrics on purpose — Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) was written and recorded by Green Day, and the words belong to them. What you get here is the harmony: the key, the capo, the tempo, and which chord goes where.
Next
Songs that sit near this one.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
What key is Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) in?
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) is in G Major, and it is played in that key with no capo — the chords you read here are the chords you hear.
Do I need a capo for Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)?
No. Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) is played open in G Major. A capo will only move it out of the recorded key, which matters if you are playing along with the record.
What chords are in Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)?
G, Cadd9, D and Em — 4 chords across 2 sections. Key of G, no capo: two bars of G, then Cadd9 and D. The Cadd9 rather than a plain C is the point — your third and fourth fingers never leave the B and high E strings across all three shapes.
What is the easiest way to play Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)?
Beginner overall. Anchor the ring and little fingers on the third fret of the B and high E through G, Cadd9 and D. Once they stay put, each change costs one finger.
How fast is Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)?
About 95 bpm. Every section on this page plays back at that tempo, so you can hear how long each chord is meant to be held before you try it yourself.
Can I play Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) in a different key?
Yes — the progression is the song, not the letters. Move every chord by the same number of semitones and it still works. The transposer will do the arithmetic, or you can move the capo and keep these shapes.