CHORD LIBRARY

Play along Stand by Me, chord by chord.

Chords of: Stand by Me by: Ben E. King. (A, F#m, E, D) are the main chords of the song. The chords are displayed instantly in real-time with a YouTube player, four synced views, instrument diagrams, loop practice and a built-in vocal-remover mixer.

About the chords of “Stand by Me”

“Stand by Me” by Ben E. King is in D Major and runs at about 119 BPM, giving it an upbeat, driving pulse. Our analysis found 4 different chords across 43 chord changes; the ones that carry the song are A, F#m, E, D.

A is the chord you will hold longest — roughly 49% of the 2:51 the chords were tracked for. The song opens with A → F#m → D → E → A → F#m → D → E. Play the timeline above to hear each change land in real time.

Difficulty: beginner-friendly — only 4 chords, all of them common open shapes. Guitarists can play it as written — D Major sits in open-chord territory, no capo needed.

Chord frequency

ChordTime heldShare
A1:2449%
F#m0:4526%
E0:2112%
D0:2112%

Chord progression, in order

A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D – E – A – F#m – D