An Easy Fingerpicking Pattern for Beginners

If you're new to fingerpicking, it can feel like your fingers have minds of their own. The fix is to learn one solid pattern that works over lots of chords before you try anything fancy.

This is a pattern you'll hear in plenty of acoustic songs, and it's great to have ready when you're jamming with friends. It uses only three fingers and four strings. Steve Stine breaks it down slowly in the video below; the steps and tab are written out underneath.

Video: New to Fingerpicking - Try this Pattern, Steve Stine. Watch on YouTube

Set up your picking hand

For a C chord, you'll use the middle four strings and ignore the 6th and 1st strings for now.

• Outside strings: the 5th string (thumb) and the 2nd string (middle finger).
• Inside strings: the 4th string (thumb) and the 3rd string (index finger).

Keep your thumb a little forward, almost like a thumbs-up, so it doesn't collide with your fingers. Let your middle finger sit slightly back where it's comfortable. Spend a minute plucking each pair until you know which finger goes with which string without looking.

The pattern, step by step

1. Outside, together: pluck the 5th and 2nd strings at the same time with your thumb and middle finger.
2. Inside, one by one: thumb on the 4th string, then index on the 3rd.
3. Outside, one by one: thumb on the 5th string, then middle finger on the 2nd.
4. Inside, one by one: thumb on the 4th string, then index on the 3rd.

Rhythmically, the first pinch is a quarter note and everything after it is eighth notes. Count it "1, 2 and, 3 and, 4 and".

Start by lightly resting your fretting hand on the strings to mute them, so you only hear the clicks. That lets you focus on your picking hand. When it feels automatic, add the chord.

The pattern over a C chord

    1  2  &  3  &  4  &
e|-------------------------|
B|--1-----------1----------|
G|--------0-----------0----|
D|-----2-----------2-------|
A|--3--------3-------------|
E|-------------------------|
  (1st note: A and B strings together)

Play it slowly and evenly. Once it's steady, speed it up a little at a time. At a faster tempo it starts to sound like the rolling picking in a lot of folk and classic rock songs.

Use it on other chords

The great thing about this pattern is that it works on any group of four strings. Just move your thumb to the chord's root.

• A minor: same strings as C (5, 4, 3, 2).
• D: shift everything one string higher. Outside pair is the 4th and 1st strings, inside pair is the 3rd and 2nd.
• G: thumb on the 6th string for the outside note, skip the 5th, and use the 4th, 3rd and 2nd strings.

Try making up little progressions with these chords and keep the pattern going. You'll be surprised how full it sounds.

Turning it into a song

In the video, Steve uses the intro to "Dust in the Wind" by Kansas as the example. That intro is mostly this pattern over C and A minor, with the melody coming from lifting and adding fretting fingers on the beat-one pinch. Watch that part of the video to see the chord movements up close.

The song is a bonus. The main goal is to get the pattern under your fingers so you can use it in your own songs and jams.

Ready for more? Acoustic Picking Styles covers fingerpicking, alternating bass, flatpicking and more, and this acoustic guitar lesson is another good next step.

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