Someone Like You by Adele

Overview

Key: A major · Meter: 4/4 · Tempo: about 132–135 BPM · Core harmony: I – iii/5 – vi – IV

The official sheet music, Hooktheory and ChordU all place "Someone Like You" in A major. The top-rated Ultimate Guitar chart uses a capo on fret 2 with G-shape chords. This page shows everything at concert pitch, so G → A, Bm/F♯ → C♯m/G♯, Em → F♯m and C → D.

How to read this page: chord symbols come from the sources listed under Sources & Accuracy. Where sources report different chords for the same spot, the visualizer shows every reported version so you can compare them by ear. Consecutive repeats of the same chord are shown once. The piano voicings are our arrangement of the reported chord symbols, not a note-for-note transcription.

Where the sources differ

Spot	Ultimate Guitar	Hooktheory	ChordU
Verse, 3rd chord	F♯m	F♯5 (vi with no 3rd)	F♯ (major)
Chorus, 4th chord	D	D5 (IV with no 3rd)	D

Why three answers for one chord? Hooktheory notes that the 3rd of the vi chord isn't played (the "no3"). Without that note (A), the chord is just F♯ and C♯, and auto-detection software like ChordU has to guess between F♯ major and F♯ minor. The song's harmony implies F♯m, which is what the guitar chart writes. Toggle between the versions in the visualizer to hear the difference.

Song form

The top-rated Ultimate Guitar chart lays out the song as Intro → Verse 1 → Pre-Chorus → Chorus → Verse 2 → Pre-Chorus → Chorus → Bridge → Chorus → Chorus → Outro. The intro uses the verse progression. Later choruses in that chart sometimes use E/G♯ in place of E, creating a stepwise bass line.

Harmonic notes

• Descending bass: A → C♯m/G♯ → F♯m → D steps the bass down A – G♯ – F♯. Hooktheory labels the second chord iii⁶₄ (C♯m in second inversion), which is the same thing as C♯m/G♯.
• Pre-chorus color: Eadd9 – F♯m7 – D (V(add9) – vi7 – IV) uses added tones to build tension before the chorus.
• Chorus: A – E – F♯m – D is the I – V – vi – IV axis progression, which is why the chorus feels so familiar and singable.
• Bridge: E – F♯m – D – Bm – A – D – E brings in Bm (ii), a chord the verse and chorus never use.

Practice tips

1. Play the verse with the left hand alone and listen to the A – G♯ – F♯ – D bass line.
2. Keep the right hand on a close A-major-area shape (around C♯4–E4) and let the bass do the moving.
3. Compare F♯m, F♯5 and F♯ at the third step of the verse to hear what the missing 3rd does.