How to play the E Major chord on guitar
E major is the most resonant open chord on the guitar — four of six strings ring open and the lowest string is the root. That is why so much rock sits in E, and why this shape is the template every E-shape barre chord is built from.
E Major is a major triad — root, major third and fifth: E, G#, B. The major third is what makes it sound bright rather than sad.
Finger it one string at a time
- low E string: play it open.
- A string: fret 2 with your middle finger.
- D string: fret 2 with your ring finger.
- G string: fret 1 with your index finger.
- B string: play it open.
- high E string: play it open.
All 6 strings ring out. A great first chord to learn!
What makes this shape awkward
- 3 strings ring open, which is what gives this shape its sustain — but it also means any finger leaning against a neighbouring string will deaden it. Arch your knuckles.
Other voicings
E Major can also be played with a different note in the bass. Each voicing keeps the same notes and changes which one you hear lowest.
- Root Position — E in the bass.
- 1st Inversion — G# in the bass.
- 2nd Inversion — B in the bass.
Where you'll use it
E appears in 1 of the play-along progression in RiffRoute. These are the actual sequences it sits in:
- Island Bounce (Reggae, 75 BPM) —
Bm → F#m → Bm → F#m → E
Keys it belongs to
E is diatonic to these keys, which is why it turns up in songs written in them — the bracket is the degree it plays there:
Chords it's usually played with
In the progressions that use E, these turn up alongside it most often — learning them together is more useful than learning E alone.
Hear it and check yourself
Reading a diagram only gets you so far — the part that decides whether E sounds right is whether every string rings cleanly. RiffRoute plays the chord back, listens while you strum it, and tells you which string is buzzing.