Minor Pentatonic scale · 5 notes
F minor pentatonic scale on guitar
The F minor pentatonic scale has 5 notes: F, A♭, B♭, C and E♭. Five notes, no wrong ones: the most-played lead guitar scale in rock and blues.
Notes
- F
- A♭
- B♭
- C
- E♭
Formula
1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7
Steps
W+H – W – W – W+H – W
Sound
Bluesy, gritty and open
F minor pentatonic on the whole fretboard
Every F minor pentatonic note from the open strings to the 15th fret in standard tuning (E A D G B E). The root, F, is shown in red so you can always find home.
A shape to learn first
You don’t need the whole neck at once. This hand position is anchored on a root note on the 6th (low E) string, which is how most guitarists find a scale in any key.
Root on the 6th (low E) string
F at fret 1. 1st position: frets 1–4.
In the Guitar Scale Finder app you also get the chords of F minor pentatonic as chord diagrams, and can search all 1,860 scales for the notes you play.
Intervals and formula
Measured from F, the F minor pentatonic scale is built from these intervals. It contains 3 flats (A♭, B♭ and E♭).
| Degree | Note | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F | root | 0 |
| ♭3 | A♭ | minor 3rd | 3 |
| 4 | B♭ | perfect 4th | 5 |
| 5 | C | perfect 5th | 7 |
| ♭7 | E♭ | minor 7th | 10 |
Chords that go with F minor pentatonic
A 5-note scale doesn’t make a full set of triads, so guitarists use the chords of its parent scale, F minor. Every note of F minor pentatonic is in these chords’ key.
- iFmF · A♭ · C
- ii°G°G · B♭ · D♭
- ♭IIIA♭A♭ · C · E♭
- ivB♭mB♭ · D♭ · F
- vCmC · E♭ · G
- ♭VID♭D♭ · F · A♭
- ♭VIIE♭E♭ · G · B♭
Progressions to try
- Fm – B♭m – Cm i–iv–v · minor blues, from the parent minor key
- Fm – D♭ – E♭ i–♭VI–♭VII · rock
- Fm – E♭ – D♭ – E♭ i–♭VII–♭VI–♭VII
How to use F minor pentatonic
Reach for it over rock and blues solos, minor-key songs, and over dominant 7th chords in a blues. Its sound is bluesy, gritty and open.
Tip: Start with the “box 1” shape with the root on the 6th string. Bend the 4th degree up a whole step to the 5th: it is the most-used move in rock guitar.
- F minor pentatonic uses the same five notes as A♭ major pentatonic, so the shapes are identical. See A♭ major pentatonic.
Where to find F on every string
Knowing where the root sits lets you start this scale anywhere. Here is every F between the open string and the 12th fret.
| String | Frets with F |
|---|---|
| High E (1st) | 1 |
| B (2nd) | 6 |
| G (3rd) | 10 |
| D (4th) | 3 |
| A (5th) | 8 |
| Low E (6th) | 1 |
Same notes, different name
These scales from the Scale Finder library contain exactly the same notes as F minor pentatonic. They sound different because a different note is treated as home.
F minor pentatonic scale FAQ
What notes are in the F minor pentatonic scale?
The F minor pentatonic scale has 5 notes: F, A♭, B♭, C and E♭. Its formula is 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7. It contains 3 flats (A♭, B♭ and E♭).
What chords go with the F minor pentatonic scale?
The F minor pentatonic scale is drawn from F minor, whose chords are Fm, G°, A♭, B♭m, Cm, D♭ and E♭. It also works over a F blues built on dominant 7th chords.
Where do you play the F minor pentatonic scale on guitar?
The root, F, is at fret 1 on the low E string and fret 8 on the A string. A good first shape covers frets 1–4, starting from the root on the 6th string.
Which scales share the same notes as F minor pentatonic?
F minor pentatonic uses the same five notes as A♭ major pentatonic, so the shapes are identical.