E7 Chord on Guitar

1,008 guitar chords with several shapes each, finger numbers, difficulty and real sound, in any tuning.

E7 is a dominant seventh chord made of 4 notes: E, G♯, B, D. It sounds restless; it wants to move on, usually to the chord a fifth below, and you hear it in blues, rock and roll, and the V chord that pulls a song back home. It is the V chord of A major and turns up in 2 other keys.

The library above opens on E7 with 14 shapes up and down the neck, starting with hand-checked ones. Tap a shape to hear it, or play it one string at a time.

Notes in E7

NoteDegreeInterval from ESemitones
E1root0
G♯3major third4
B5perfect fifth7
D♭7minor seventh10

Formula: 1 – 3 – 5 – ♭7. On guitar the 5th is often left out of the bigger shapes without changing the chord.

How to play E7

21
Open positionBeginner020100
2314
Open positionEasy022130
7fr134
A-shape barre at fret 7Mediumx79797
123
Open positionBeginner020404
213
Open positionBeginner02013x
213
Open positionBeginnerxx2130

Open position (root on the 6th string), step by step

  1. 1st finger (index): 3rd string, 1st fret (G♯, the major third).
  2. 2nd finger (middle): 5th string, 2nd fret (B, the fifth).
  3. Let the 6th string, 4th string, 2nd string, 1st string ring open (E, D, B, E).
  4. Strum from the 6th string across all six strings.

Tips

The open position shape is the one to learn first. Once it is easy, try the shape at the 7th fret (x79797): the same chord, higher and brighter, handy when the chords before and after it sit up the neck.

Keys and progressions with E7

E7 belongs to 3 keys: V in A major, VII in F♯ minor, V7 in A minor. In A major, try I–V–vi–IV: A – E7 – F♯m – D.

Common questions

What notes are in E7?

E, G♯, B, D: the root, major third, fifth, minor seventh.

What is the easiest way to play E7?

Open position: 020100 (low string first), rated Beginner.

What is the difference between E7 and Emaj7?

E7 has D where Emaj7 has D♯. E7 sounds restless; it wants to move on, usually to the chord a fifth below; Emaj7 sounds dreamy, warm and a little wistful.

Is E7 a hard chord?

No. The easiest shape is rated Beginner and needs 2 fingers.

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