What note does sus4 replace in F# major?

It removes A#, the third, and replaces it with B, a perfect fourth above the root, creating a taut sound that wants to resolve back to the major third.

How is F#sus4 typically played in a strum pattern?

As a quick hammer-on into F# major rather than a chord held on its own — lift the barring finger off the E and A strings and the chord resolves instantly to the plain major triad.

Is F#sus4 harder to finger than F#sus2?

It's a bit more compact — a two-string barre plus two single-fret notes within a three-fret span — where sus2 spreads a bit further up the neck, so many players find sus4 the easier of the two.

Why does sus4 feel like it needs to resolve while sus2 doesn't?

The fourth sits a half step above the major third it displaced, creating audible tension that the ear expects to settle, while the second sits further away and reads as more neutral and open rather than unresolved.

← Ukulele Chords

F#sus4 Chord on Ukulele

F#sus4 = F# – B – C# (Root, Perfect 4th, Perfect 5th)

F#sus4 replaces the third with B, a perfect fourth above the root, giving the chord a taut, expectant quality that almost always wants to resolve. The shape frets the G string at the fourth, the C string at the first, and barres the E and A strings together at the second, putting three fingers to work across a compact span rather than the wider reach some of F#'s other extended chords require.

Sus4 chords are the strumming ukulele's favorite ornament: the classic move of hammering a sus4 into its plain major chord — F#sus4 resolving into F# major by releasing a single finger — is a staple rhythmic embellishment across folk, pop, and campfire-style ukulele playing, adding a small rhythmic and harmonic lift right before a chord lands. Used this way, F#sus4 rarely functions as a destination chord in its own right; it's almost always a brief detour that resolves within the same beat or two. That resolving tension gives it a very different role from sus2's more static ambiguity — sus4 actively wants to move, where sus2 is content to hang.

Fingerings

Open Position

How to Practice It

The two-string barre at the second fret (E and A strings) needs to lift cleanly the instant the chord resolves to F# major, so practice the hammer-on-and-release motion as a single gesture: fret F#sus4, then lift just the barring finger while the C string's index finger stays put, landing on plain F# major without re-fretting anything else. Getting that release timed to the beat is the real skill here, more than the initial fretting. Once the sus4-to-major move is smooth, try it as a strumming pattern ornament — sus4 on the upbeat, resolving to the major chord right on the downbeat — which is how the shape is used in practice far more often than as a held, standalone chord.

Common Progressions

F#sus4 resolving to F# major as a hammer-on rhythmic ornament
I(sus4) – I – IV – V, using F#sus4 to decorate the tonic in F# major
V(sus4) – V – I, decorating the dominant before a cadence in B major
F#sus4 – F# – Bm as a folk-style strum pattern in B major

FAQ

What note does sus4 replace in F# major?: It removes A#, the third, and replaces it with B, a perfect fourth above the root, creating a taut sound that wants to resolve back to the major third.
How is F#sus4 typically played in a strum pattern?: As a quick hammer-on into F# major rather than a chord held on its own — lift the barring finger off the E and A strings and the chord resolves instantly to the plain major triad.
Is F#sus4 harder to finger than F#sus2?: It's a bit more compact — a two-string barre plus two single-fret notes within a three-fret span — where sus2 spreads a bit further up the neck, so many players find sus4 the easier of the two.
Why does sus4 feel like it needs to resolve while sus2 doesn't?: The fourth sits a half step above the major third it displaced, creating audible tension that the ear expects to settle, while the second sits further away and reads as more neutral and open rather than unresolved.

F#sus4 on other instruments: F#sus4 on Guitar, F#sus4 on Piano. Related: how chords are built, chord finder.