Practice the C 13 chord: Master its Dominant Harmony

The C13 chord, or C dominant thirteenth, is spelled C, E, G, Bb, D, F and A. Those seven notes are the whole C Mixolydian scale stacked in thirds, so every degree of the scale is present.

Seven notes cannot fit on six strings, so every shape leaves something out. Eight voicings are listed here, seven of them barres, the lowest at the 2nd fret. Since the chord holds each degree, the C Mixolydian scale is the obvious pairing.

Press play at the top to hear C13 strummed and then as an arpeggio.

C dominant 13th guitar chord is also written as C13, Cdom13 or C7(13).

Notes of the C 13 chord:

C E G Bb D F A

Chord formula for the Dominant Thirteen chord:

Formula: 1 3 5 b7 9 11 13

C 13 Chord Interactive Fretboard

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Go to the full guitar chords tutorial.

C 13 Guitar Chord Diagrams

Position 1 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the low E string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 2 of the D string
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 3 of the A string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 3 of the G and B strings at the same time
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 5 of the high E string

Position 2 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the A string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 5 of the B and high E strings at the same time
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 7 of the G string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 8 of the low E string
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 8 of the D string

Position 3 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the A string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the low E and D strings at the same time
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 9 of the G string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the B string
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the high E string

Position 4 Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the A string
Mute the high E string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the low E string
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 8 of the D string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 9 of the G string
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the B string

Position 5 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the low E, D and high E strings at the same time
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 9 of the G string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the A string
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 10 of the B string

Position 6 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the low E string
Mute the A string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 2 of the D string
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 3 of the G and B strings at the same time
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 5 of the high E string

Position 7 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the low E string
Mute the D string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 3 of the A, G and B strings at the same time
Place your pinky finger (4) on the fret 5 of the high E string

Position 8 Barre Movable

Finger Positions

Mute the A string
Place your index finger (1) on the fret 8 of the low E, D and high E strings at the same time
Place your middle finger (2) on the fret 9 of the G string
Place your ring finger (3) on the fret 10 of the B string

Find more shapes in our all guitar chords online library. If you prefer a printable pdf, download the Free Guitar Chords Chart Pdf

Play This Chord With Other Roots

C 13 | D 13 | E 13 | F 13 | G 13 | A 13 | B 13 | C#13 | D#13 | F#13 | G#13 | A#13 | Ab13 | Bb13 | Db13 | Eb13 | Gb13

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Created by

Giancarlo Facoetti

Giancarlo is a musician (teaching guitar since 2000), software engineer, AI consultant and published researcher

FAQ

What notes are in C13?

C13 is C, E, G, Bb, D, F and A. The A is the thirteenth, a major sixth over the root.

How many ways are there to play C dominant thirteenth?

There are 8 voicings, from fret 2 to fret 10. Seven of them are barre voicings and none uses an open string.

Which scale covers C13?

C Mixolydian is C, D, E, F, G, A and Bb. It has exactly the same seven notes as the chord.

What is the difference between C11 and C13?

C11 is C, E, G, Bb, D and F. C13 adds A, the thirteenth, which completes all seven notes of the Mixolydian scale.

Which notes of C13 form the tritone?

E and Bb, the major third and the minor seventh, are six semitones apart. That tritone is the same one found in the plain dominant seventh chord.