4 Tips That Make Barre Chords Easier To Play

Posted on by James

While there is no such thing as an easy barre chord, however I’d like to show you have to play barre chords easier. With the proper techniques in place (and a little attention to detail) you can quickly master these shapes and start learning easy guitar songs with barre chords. Here are some tips and tricks and… how to make barre chords easier!

Part 1 – Most Common Shapes + Building Initial Strength
Part 2 – Navigate The Fretboard + Learn To Play Barre Chords In Any Key
Part 3 – 4 Tips And Tricks That Make Barre Chords Much Easier To Play

How to play barre chords easier!

Finger Height

adjusting your index finger will make barre chords easier
If you have shorter fingers, lowering your index may help.
placing your index a bit higher makes barre chords easier for some people
People with longer fingers tend to benefit from placing their index a bit higher (but it all depends on the unique individual!)

This one is pretty simple. Just nudge your finger up and down until it feels comfortable. Pay attention to the creases in your fingers and remember that it’s okay if the tip of your finger overlaps the edge of the fretboard.

Arched Finger vs Flat Finger

a flat finger does not lend itself to an easy barre chord
Using a flat finger requires MASSIVE pressure to get all the strings down.
curling your index makes barre chords easier as it focuses the pressure on a couple spots
By arching our fingers, we can focus our energy in the places where it matters

If you press down on all the strings with a flat finger, you end up putting a lot of extra, unnecessary pressure down onto the fretboard – some of the strings are already being played by other fingers.

If we arch the barre finger, we can focus pressure where it is needed, which requires much, much less strength.

Neutral Wrist vs Bent Wrist

even simple barre chords can ruin your wrist if its bent like this
Please…. don’t do this… please!
straighten your wrist to make barre chords easier to play and avoid wrist injury!
A neutral wrist prevents pain and discomfort.

You must try your best to keep your wrist as neutral as possible. While it may be tempting to bend your guitar towards you to help you see the fretboard better this is awful for your wrist, especially when playing barre chords. Just looking at the picture of the bent wrist makes my tendons tingle!

Shoulder Support

even easy barre chords will give you trouble if you have bad posture
Slouching prevents us from getting the power to where it needs to be.
good posture is essential when it comes to the easiest way to learn barre chords
Proper posture creates a “support system” and makes for easy barre chords!

Rather than letting your hand do all the work, it’s a good idea to spread the tension equally across the entire arm and back, all the way to your core. It might take a while to get used to it, but this will make the biggest improvement in your barre chord technique.

  1. Sit up straight
  2. Activate your shoulder by pulling back slightly
  3. Let gravity carry your elbow downwards
  4. Grip the chord

This distributes the tension evenly along your entire arm and shoulder, saving your hand and wrist a lot of strain.

Remember not to overdo it and take your time with these things. Work on them, 1 at a time, and after a while your barre chords will sound clean and you’ll be able to play for extended periods of time.

There are many issues that prevent guitarists from learning this essenstial skill. To help, I’ve created a gradual path from the basic chords all the way to barre chords that will help ANYONE learn how to play them. With this step-by-step path, you will develop the strength and technique to finally conquer barre chords!

Click here

Here are some easy guitar songs with barre chords: