A♭ sus4 chord (A♭sus4)

A♭ sus4 is a 3-note sus4 chord: A♭ – D♭ – E♭. It sounds suspended, eager to return to the major chord. Here it is on guitar, piano and ukulele, with fingering and audio. Also called G♯ sus4 (G♯sus4).

NotesA♭ – D♭ – E♭
Formula1 – 4 – 5
SymbolA♭sus4 · A♭sus
EnharmonicG♯ sus4 (G♯sus4)

A♭ sus4 on guitar

Barre at fret 4 (E shape)
Barre at fret 11 (A shape)

How to place your fingers (barre at fret 4)

Barre fret 4 with your index finger, from the 6th to the 1st string.
Finger 2 (middle) on fret 6 of the 5th string (A).
Finger 3 (ring) on fret 6 of the 4th string (D).
Finger 4 (pinky) on fret 6 of the 3rd string (G).

The numbers inside the dots are the fingers of your left hand: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring and 4 pinky. The colored dots mark the root (A♭). The other positions let you change chords without jumping along the neck, or give you a higher-pitched sound.

A♭ sus4 on piano

In root position, play A♭ – D♭ – E♭ from bottom to top with fingers 1, 3 and 5 of your right hand (thumb, middle and pinky). With your left hand you usually play just the root (A♭) or the root and the fifth.

Inversions

First inversion: D♭ – E♭ – A♭
Second inversion: E♭ – A♭ – D♭

A♭ sus4 on ukulele

From fret 1
From fret 6

Standard tuning G – C – E – A (the G string is the high one). Is your ukulele in tune? Use the ukulele tuner.

Notes and intervals of A♭ sus4

A♭1 · root
D♭4 · perfect fourth
E♭5 · perfect fifth

It usually resolves to the major chord with the same root (Xsus4 → X): a classic embellishment in strumming and endings.

Progressions with A♭sus4

Suspend and resolve: Isus4 – I

A♭sus4 usually resolves to A♭: you change just one note and the chord “settles”.

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in the A♭ suspended 4 chord?

A♭ suspended 4 (A♭sus4) has 3 notes: A♭ (root), D♭ (perfect fourth), E♭ (perfect fifth).

How do you play A♭ suspended 4 on guitar?

The most common shape uses a barre at fret 4: 4 6 6 6 4 4 (from the 6th to the 1st string). Barre fret 4 with your index finger, from the 6th to the 1st string. Place finger 2 (middle) at fret 6 on the 5th string (A). Place finger 3 (ring) at fret 6 on the 4th string (D). Place finger 4 (pinky) at fret 6 on the 3rd string (G).

Is A♭sus4 the same as G♯sus4?

Yes: A♭ suspended 4 and G♯ suspended 4 sound the same and are played the same way (they are enharmonic). The spelling depends on the song's key; you will see both names in sheet music and songbooks.

What is the chord symbol for A-flat suspended 4?

It's written A♭sus4; you may also see A♭sus. Letter notation uses letters for note names: C, D, E, F, G, A and B correspond to Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La and Si.

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