Open E tuning turns all six open strings into an E major chord: strum them all together, without fretting a single note, and you get a full, ringing E major. It's one of the go-to tunings for blues slide, sharing the same shapes as Open D but pitched a whole step higher — brighter, but with more tension on the neck.
In short: you bring the strings to E B E G# B E, so the open strings ring out an E major chord. Three strings go up, so watch out for the extra tension on more delicate guitars.
How to Get Open E from Standard Tuning
Start from standard EADGBE tuning and raise three strings, leaving the other three untouched:
- 5th string: goes from A up to B (a whole step up)
- 4th string: goes from D up to E (a whole step up)
- 3rd string: goes from G up to G# (a half step up)
- 6th (E), 2nd (B), and 1st (E): stay the same
The result is the E B E G# B E tuning. The notes that make up the chord are E, G#, and B — exactly the notes of an E major chord. With a chromatic tuner like EasyGuitarTuner, which runs right in your browser, you play each string and bring it to the target note shown, with nothing to install.
Open E Frequencies
| String | Note | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| 6th | E2 | 82.4 Hz |
| 5th | B2 | 123.5 Hz |
| 4th | E3 | 164.8 Hz |
| 3rd | G#3 | 207.7 Hz |
| 2nd | B3 | 246.9 Hz |
| 1st | E4 | 329.6 Hz |
Notice that the 6th, 2nd, and 1st strings have the same frequencies as standard tuning — they're the strings you leave alone. The other three need to be raised up to the values in the table.
Watch Out for Extra Tension on the Neck
Here's the most important warning. To reach Open E, three strings go up — two by a whole step (the 5th and 4th) and one by a half step (the 3rd) — which increases the overall tension on the neck and the guitar's top.
On a modern instrument in good health this usually isn't a problem, but on fragile, budget, or vintage guitars the extra tension can stress the neck and, in the worst cases, the bridge or the top. If you're unsure how solid your instrument is, consider the safer alternative described below.
When to Use Open E
Open E is one of the classic blues slide tunings: with the open strings already sounding an E major chord, you slide a bottleneck along the fretboard and every position gives you a full major chord. It's closely associated with electric and acoustic slide blues, where you want an open, resonant sound.
Compared to Open D it sounds a whole step higher, so it's brighter and sharper; compared to Open G the starting chord changes (E instead of G), along with the string layout. For the repertoire and dedicated techniques, see the guide to blues and slide tunings.
The Alternative: Open D Plus a Capo
If you want the sound and fingerings of Open E without loading up the neck, there's a widely used trick: tune the guitar to Open D (which means lowering the strings, so less tension) and put a capo on the 2nd fret.
Open D with a capo on the second fret sounds exactly like Open E, because two half steps above D is E. You get the same shapes and the same slide feel, but with much gentler overall tension on the instrument.
How to Get Back to Standard Tuning
To get back to EADGBE, lower the three strings you raised: the 5th goes back from B to A, the 4th from E to D, and the 3rd from G# to G. The other three are already in place. Take it slowly and double-check with a tuner, since bringing down strings that were under extra tension is exactly when it's easy to end up a hair flat.