Song chords
Hey There Delilah chords
Plain White T's
A fingerpicked song in D whose verse rocks between the tonic and the iii — an unusual pair, and most of why it does not sound like every other four-chord ballad. Two of its five shapes are barres, which is what puts it above beginner.
Before you start
The chords you need.
5 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 D, no capo: D and F#m alternate through the first half of every verse, then Bm–G–A closes it. The chorus drops the F#m and rocks the D against the Bm instead. Hit play on any section to hear it walk through at 104 bpm.
Verse
9 barsAlternating I and iii, then a four-chord close.
Chorus
7 barsThe F#m drops out and the vi takes its place.
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.
F#m is the hurdle and it lands in the second bar of the song. A three-string F#m at the second fret gets you playing today; the full barre can wait.
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 — Hey There Delilah was written and recorded by Plain White T's, 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 Hey There Delilah in?
Hey There Delilah is in D 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 Hey There Delilah?
No. Hey There Delilah is played open in D 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 Hey There Delilah?
D, F#m, Bm, G and A — 5 chords across 2 sections. Key of D, no capo: D and F#m alternate through the first half of every verse, then Bm–G–A closes it. The chorus drops the F#m and rocks the D against the Bm instead.
What is the easiest way to play Hey There Delilah?
Intermediate overall. F#m is the hurdle and it lands in the second bar of the song. A three-string F#m at the second fret gets you playing today; the full barre can wait.
How fast is Hey There Delilah?
About 104 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 Hey There Delilah 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.