Song chords
In Christ Alone chords
Keith Getty & Stuart Townend
A modern hymn in 3/4 written in F, with four verses that all sit on the same eight-bar progression — a short chart for a long song. Capo 3 with D shapes turns the F, Bb and Dm of the original into open chords.
Before you start
The chords you need.
5 shapes covers the whole song, fretted with the capo at fret 3. Tap any diagram’s play button to hear it, or open its page for every voicing on six instruments.
The chart
Section by section.
Capo 3 with D shapes: D sounds as F, G as Bb, Bm as Dm, A as C and Em7 as Gm7. It is in 3/4, so count three to the bar and change on the downbeat. Hit play on any section to hear it walk through at 68 bpm.
Verse
8 barsAll four verses use this eight-bar phrase without variation.
Shapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
Bridge
8 barsAdded on the later Passion arrangement — the Em7 is the one colour chord anywhere in the song.
Shapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
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.
Every verse is identical, so hand fatigue rather than difficulty is the enemy. Use the three-string Bm and keep the strumming on the top four strings until the last verse.
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 — In Christ Alone was written and recorded by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend, 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 In Christ Alone in?
In Christ Alone sounds in F Major. The common arrangement gets there with a capo at fret 3 and D Major shapes, which is why the chords written here are D Major chords rather than F Major ones.
Do I need a capo for In Christ Alone?
Yes for the standard arrangement: capo 3. Without it you would be playing F Major shapes, which needs barre chords. With the capo on, the shapes are D Major — much friendlier under the hand.
What chords are in In Christ Alone?
G, D, Bm, A and Em7 — 5 chords across 2 sections. Capo 3 with D shapes: D sounds as F, G as Bb, Bm as Dm, A as C and Em7 as Gm7. It is in 3/4, so count three to the bar and change on the downbeat.
What is the easiest way to play In Christ Alone?
Beginner overall. Every verse is identical, so hand fatigue rather than difficulty is the enemy. Use the three-string Bm and keep the strumming on the top four strings until the last verse.
How fast is In Christ Alone?
About 68 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 In Christ Alone 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.