Skip to song content
Chordier homepage
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?The 100 most repeated chord transitions extracted from thousands of songs. Even the first 10 will transform your guitar practice routine.

Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsD, G, A, Em, A7, Bm
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.

  • Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
  • Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
  • Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram
  • Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
  • Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram
  • Guitar Bm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-4-4-3-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar Bm chord diagram

[Opening]
[D]When your legs don’t work like they [G]used to be[A]fore
[D]And I can’t sweep you off of your [G]feet [A]
[D]Will your mouth still remember the [G]taste of my love [A]
[D]Will your eyes still smile [G]from your cheeks [A]

[verse 2]
And darling [D]I will be loving [G]you [A]’til we’re seven[D]ty [G] [A]
And baby my [D]heart could still fall [G]as [A]hard at twenty[D]three
[G]And I’m thinking ‘[A]bout how

[verse 3]
[Em]People fall in love in mys[A7]terious [D]ways
[Em]Maybe just the touch of a [A7]hand
Well [Em]me I fall in love with you [A7]every single [Bm]day
[Em]And I just wanna [G]tell you I [A7]am

[verse 4]
So honey [D]now [Bm] [G]
Take me [A]into your loving [D]arms [Bm] [G]
Kiss me [A]under the light of a [D]thousand [Bm]stars [G]
Place your [A]head on my beating [D]heart [Bm]
I’m thinking [G]out [A]loud
And maybe [Bm]we [A]found [G]love [D]right [Em]where [A]we [D]are

[verse 5]
[D]And when my [D]head’s over gone and my [G]memory fades [A]
[D]And the [D]crowds don’t remember my [G]name [A]
[D]When my [D]hands don’t [G]play the strings the [A]same way,
I know [D]you will still love me the[G]same [A]

[verse 6]
Cause honey [D]your soul could never [G]grow [A]old it’s ever[D]green [Bm] [G] [A]
And baby [D]your smile’s forever [G]in my [A]mind and mem[D]ory [Bm] [G]
And I’m thinking [A]’bout how

[verse 7]
[Em]People fall in love in mys[A7]terious [D]ways
And [Em]maybe it’s all part of a [A7]plan
Well [Em]I’ll just keep on making the [A7]same mis[Bm]stakes
[Em]Hoping that you’ll under[A7]stand

[verse 8]
That baby [D]now, [Bm]ooo[G]ooh
Take me [A]into your loving [D]arms [Bm] [G]
Kiss me [A]under the light of a [D]thousand [Bm]stars [G]
Place your [A]head on my beating [D]heart [Bm]
I’m thinking [G]out [A]loud
And maybe [Bm]we [A]found [G]love [D]right [Em]where [A]we [D]are

[verse 9]
[D] [Bm] [G] [A]
So baby [D]now [Bm] [G]
Take me [A]into your loving [D]arms [Bm] [G]
Kiss me [A]under the light of a [D]thousand [Bm]stars, oh [G]darlin’
Place your [A]head on my beating [D]heart [Bm]
I’m thinking [G]out [A]loud

[Closing]
And maybe [Bm]we [A]found [G]love [D]right [Em]where [A]we [D]are

Report Error
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookDiscover the most-used three-chord combinations in songs and build real command on guitar.
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?Master guitar today with the most repeated high-impact chord transitions.
ArtistEd Sheeran
Album×
GenresPop
Year2014
KeyD

How to play Thinking Out Loud on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud on guitar requires 6 chords and 14 core chord transitions. You can find the full step-by-step guide below. Before you start, tune your instrument. The song uses the ↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑ pattern; practice it muted first, or simplify to downstrokes while you learn the changes.

Thinking Out Loud uses these transitions most often: G → A (29), A → D (27), and Bm → G (15). These transitions may feel a little challenging at first, but with steady practice you can play this song quickly.When you are ready, begin with D - G chord transition.

1. D → G chord transition

Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

To move from D to G;

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.
D to G

2. G → A chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram

To move from G to A;

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to G string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on B string fret 2.
G to A

3. A → D chord transition

Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram
Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram

To move from A to D;

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to E string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger on B string from fret 2 to fret 3.
A to D

4. A → Em chord transition

Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

To move from A to Em;

  1. While playing A, lift your index finger from D string fret 2.
  2. Lift your middle finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from B string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
A to Em

5. Em → A7 chord transition

To move from Em to A7;

  1. While playing Em, lift your ring finger from D string fret 2.
  2. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 2.
  3. Place index finger on D string fret 2.

6. A7 → D chord transition

To move from A7 to D;

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from B string fret 2 to E string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on B string fret 3.

7. D → Em chord transition

To move from D to Em;

  1. While playing D, lift your index finger from G string fret 2.
  2. Lift your middle finger from E string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from B string fret 3 to D string fret 2.

8. A7 → Bm chord transition

To move from A7 to Bm;

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger on B string from fret 2 to fret 3.
  3. Place ring finger on D string fret 4.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 4.

9. Bm → Em chord transition

To move from Bm to Em;

  1. While playing Bm, first lift your index finger and pinky.
  2. Lift your middle finger from B string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger on D string from fret 4 to fret 2.

10. Em → G chord transition

To move from Em to G;

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 3.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on A string fret 2.

11. G → A7 chord transition

To move from G to A7;

  1. While playing G, lift your ring finger from E string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.
  3. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to B string fret 2.

12. D → Bm chord transition

To move from D to Bm;

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 2 to B string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 4.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 4.

13. Bm → G chord transition

To move from Bm to G;

  1. While playing Bm, lift your pinky from G string fret 4.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your middle finger from B string fret 3 to E string fret 3.
  4. Lift your ring finger from D string fret 4 and place it on E string fret 3.

14. A → Bm chord transition

To move from A to Bm;

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to B string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 4.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 4.

Thinking Out Loud chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Thinking Out Loud.

  • Thinking Out Loud includes 141 chord transitions, 14 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.04% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Thinking Out Loud contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Thinking Out Loud connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After D, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (29%), A (17%), and Em (17%).
    • D → G: 29%
    • D → Em: 17%
    After A, the most likely next chords across Chordier are D (29%), G (13%), and E (12%).
    • A → D: 29%
    • A → G: 13%
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookThe 200 most popular three-chord chains from real songs. See which songs use each chain and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.