The open chord
Frets, low E to high E: 0 2 2 1 0 0 — notes E B E G# B E. The root is the open low E string.
| String | Fret | Note | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (high E) | 0 | E | root (octave) |
| 2 (B) | 0 | B | 5th |
| 3 (G) | 1 | G# | 3rd |
| 4 (D) | 2 | E | root |
| 5 (A) | 2 | B | 5th |
| 6 (low E) | 0 | E | root |
As a movable (barre) shape
Barre all six strings at fret N with your index finger. Your other fingers take the E-shape two frets above the barre on strings 5, 4, and 3. The root is on the low E string at fret N — the note you want the chord to be named after.
Example — F major as an E-shape at the 1st fret:
| String | Fret | Note | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (high E) | 1 (barre) | F | root (octave) |
| 2 (B) | 1 (barre) | C | 5th |
| 3 (G) | 2 | A | 3rd |
| 4 (D) | 3 | F | root |
| 5 (A) | 3 | C | 5th |
| 6 (low E) | 1 (barre) | F | root |
Shortcut: place the barre at the fret whose low-E-string note matches your target root, then add the E-major "triangle" on the A, D, and G strings.
Where it sits on the neck
The E-shape sits between the G-shape (below) and the D-shape (above) for a given chord. For C major, the E-shape is barred at the 8th fret and the D-shape appears two frets higher, around the 10th fret.
Common variants
Em-shape (minor)
Open Em is 0 2 2 0 0 0 — lift the G# on the G string back to G (the natural 3rd). As a movable barre this becomes the standard 6th-string-root minor shape.
E7-shape (dominant 7th)
Open E7 is 0 2 0 1 0 0 — the D string drops from fret 2 to open, sounding D (the b7 of E). As a movable barre, this is the familiar "E-form 7" barre chord.
Emaj7-shape
Open Emaj7 is 0 2 1 1 0 0 — the D string drops one fret to sound D# (the major 7th). Moved up it becomes a common jazz/pop maj7 voicing.