Suspended Chords (sus2 and sus4)

A suspended chord replaces the 3rd with a 2nd (sus2) or a 4th (sus4). With no 3rd, it is neither major nor minor. "Sus" on its own means sus4: Csus4 is C – F – G and Csus2 is C – D – G. Below: the formulas, how to make any sus chord, and diagrams on every root.

How they are built

ChordSymbolFormulaExampleWhere it appears
Suspended 4th sus4, sus 1 – 4 – 5 Csus4: C – F – G replaces the 3rd with the 4th
Suspended 2nd sus2 1 – 2 – 5 Csus2: C – D – G replaces the 3rd with the 2nd
Dominant 7th sus4 7sus4 1 – 4 – 5 – ♭7 C7sus4: C – F – G – B♭ a dominant 7th with the 4th instead of the 3rd

How to make any sus chord

  1. Start with the major or minor chord: D = D – F♯ – A, Dm = D – F – A.
  2. Take out the 3rd (F♯ or F).
  3. Put in the 4th (G) for Dsus4 = D – G – A, or the 2nd (E) for Dsus2 = D – E – A.

Because the 3rd is gone, D and Dm have the same sus chords.

Two names, same notes

A sus2 chord has the same notes as the sus4 chord on its 5th: Csus2 (C – D – G) and Gsus4 (G – C – D) share C, D and G: two ways of naming the same three notes.

On every root: names and notes

sus4sus2
Csus4 C F G Csus2 C D G
C♯sus4 C♯ F♯ G♯ C♯sus2 C♯ D♯ G♯
Dsus4 D G A Dsus2 D E A
E♭sus4 E♭ A♭ B♭ E♭sus2 E♭ F B♭
Esus4 E A B Esus2 E F♯ B
Fsus4 F B♭ C Fsus2 F G C
F♯sus4 F♯ B C♯ F♯sus2 F♯ G♯ C♯
Gsus4 G C D Gsus2 G A D
A♭sus4 A♭ D♭ E♭ A♭sus2 A♭ B♭ E♭
Asus4 A D E Asus2 A B E
B♭sus4 B♭ E♭ F B♭sus2 B♭ C F
Bsus4 B E F♯ Bsus2 B C♯ F♯

Sus4 chords on guitar

  • Csus4 guitar chord: x33011341

    Csus4

    x33011

  • C♯sus4 guitar chord: x4412x3412

    C♯sus4 D♭sus4

    x4412x

  • Dsus4 guitar chord: xx0233123

    Dsus4

    xx0233

  • E♭sus4 guitar chord: xx13441234

    E♭sus4 D♯sus4

    xx1344

  • Esus4 guitar chord: 022200234

    Esus4

    022200

  • Fsus4 guitar chord: 1333111234

    Fsus4

    133311

  • F♯sus4 guitar chord: 2444221234

    F♯sus4 G♭sus4

    244422

  • Gsus4 guitar chord: 3300132314

    Gsus4

    330013

  • A♭sus4 guitar chord: xxx124124

    A♭sus4 G♯sus4

    xxx124

  • Asus4 guitar chord: x02230123

    Asus4

    x02230

  • B♭sus4 guitar chord: x133411234

    B♭sus4 A♯sus4

    x13341

  • Bsus4 guitar chord: x244522fr1234

    Bsus4

    x24452

Sus2 chords on guitar

  • Csus2 guitar chord: x30013314

    Csus2

    x30013

  • C♯sus2 guitar chord: x466444fr134

    C♯sus2 D♭sus2

    x46644

  • Dsus2 guitar chord: xx023023

    Dsus2

    xx0230

  • E♭sus2 guitar chord: xx1341134

    E♭sus2 D♯sus2

    xx1341

  • Esus2 guitar chord: xx24522fr134

    Esus2

    xx2452

  • Fsus2 guitar chord: 133x131234

    Fsus2

    133x13

  • F♯sus2 guitar chord: 2xx1222134

    F♯sus2 G♭sus2

    2xx122

  • Gsus2 guitar chord: 300033123

    Gsus2

    300033

  • A♭sus2 guitar chord: 4xx3442134

    A♭sus2 G♯sus2

    4xx344

  • Asus2 guitar chord: x0220023

    Asus2

    x02200

  • B♭sus2 guitar chord: x13311134

    B♭sus2 A♯sus2

    x13311

  • Bsus2 guitar chord: x24422134

    Bsus2

    x24422

Sus4 chords on piano

  • Csus4 piano chord: C F GCFG

    Csus4

    C F G

  • C♯sus4 piano chord: C♯ F♯ G♯C♯F♯G♯

    C♯sus4 D♭sus4

    C♯ F♯ G♯

  • Dsus4 piano chord: D G ADGA

    Dsus4

    D G A

  • E♭sus4 piano chord: E♭ A♭ B♭E♭A♭B♭

    E♭sus4 D♯sus4

    E♭ A♭ B♭

  • Esus4 piano chord: E A BEAB

    Esus4

    E A B

  • Fsus4 piano chord: F B♭ CFCB♭

    Fsus4

    F B♭ C

  • F♯sus4 piano chord: F♯ B C♯BF♯C♯

    F♯sus4 G♭sus4

    F♯ B C♯

  • Gsus4 piano chord: G C DGCD

    Gsus4

    G C D

  • A♭sus4 piano chord: A♭ D♭ E♭A♭D♭E♭

    A♭sus4 G♯sus4

    A♭ D♭ E♭

  • Asus4 piano chord: A D EADE

    Asus4

    A D E

  • B♭sus4 piano chord: B♭ E♭ FFB♭E♭

    B♭sus4 A♯sus4

    B♭ E♭ F

  • Bsus4 piano chord: B E F♯BEF♯

    Bsus4

    B E F♯

Sus4 chords on ukulele

  • Csus4 ukulele chord: 001313

    Csus4

    0013

  • C♯sus4 ukulele chord: 1124124

    C♯sus4 D♭sus4

    1124

  • Dsus4 ukulele chord: 023023

    Dsus4

    0230

  • E♭sus4 ukulele chord: 1341123

    E♭sus4 D♯sus4

    1341

  • Esus4 ukulele chord: 24522fr123

    Esus4

    2452

  • Fsus4 ukulele chord: 301131

    Fsus4

    3011

  • F♯sus4 ukulele chord: 41243124

    F♯sus4 G♭sus4

    4124

  • Gsus4 ukulele chord: 0233123

    Gsus4

    0233

  • A♭sus4 ukulele chord: 13441234

    A♭sus4 G♯sus4

    1344

  • Asus4 ukulele chord: 220023

    Asus4

    2200

  • B♭sus4 ukulele chord: 3311341

    B♭sus4 A♯sus4

    3311

  • Bsus4 ukulele chord: 4422341

    Bsus4

    4422

See also: the guitar chord chart, the piano chord chart, the ukulele chord chart, the chord builder and the chord identifier.

Frequently asked questions

Are sus chords major or minor?

Neither. Major and minor chords differ only in their 3rd, and a suspended chord has no 3rd: it uses a 2nd or a 4th instead.

What does sus mean in a chord?

Sus is short for suspended: the 3rd of the chord is replaced by the 4th (sus4) or the 2nd (sus2). "Sus" written alone means sus4.

How do you make a suspended chord?

Take a major or minor chord, remove the 3rd, and add the 4th (sus4) or the 2nd (sus2). Dsus4 = D–G–A, Dsus2 = D–E–A.

What is the difference between sus2 and sus4?

Sus2 uses the note a whole step above the root (2 semitones) instead of the 3rd; sus4 uses the note a perfect 4th above (5 semitones). Csus2 is C–D–G, Csus4 is C–F–G.

How many sus chords are there?

12 sus2 and 12 sus4 chords, one on each root. Each sus2 chord has the same notes as a sus4 chord on another root (Csus2 = Gsus4), so there are 12 different note sets with 24 names.

Last updated: