E Major Pentatonic Scale — All 5 Box Positions on Guitar

E major pentatonic has five notes — E, F#, G#, B and C# — and a bright, open sound used across rock, country, pop and gospel. Its shapes sit one fret below F major pentatonic, and the open low and high E strings are both the root, so open-string licks come easily. It shares every note with C# minor pentatonic: treat E as home and it sounds major, treat C# as home and it sounds minor.

E Major Pentatonic on the Full Neck

Red dots are the root, E. Double-ringed dots are shared by two boxes — that is where you slide from one box into the next.

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E Major Pentatonic chart (PDF)

All 5 boxes on one page with note names, plus a 7-day practice plan. Print it and keep it by your guitar.

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The 5 E Major Pentatonic Box Positions

Each box holds all five notes in a four-to-five-fret span. New to the scale? Learn Box 1 first, then add the boxes on either side of it.

Box 1 — Frets 11–14

The root box. Sits around the 12th-fret double dot, so it is easy to find. E is at fret 12 on the high e string, fret 14 on the D string and fret 12 on the low E string.

Box 2 — Frets 1–5

The widest box — it spans five frets. E is at fret 5 on the B string and fret 2 on the D string.

Box 3 — Frets 4–7

E is at fret 5 on the B string and fret 7 on the A string.

Box 4 — Frets 6–9

E is at fret 9 on the G string and fret 7 on the A string.

Box 5 — Frets 9–12

Sits around the 12th-fret double dot, so it is easy to find. E is at fret 12 on the high e string, fret 9 on the G string and fret 12 on the low E string.

How to Learn E Major Pentatonic, Step by Step

1. Box 1 first (frets 11–14). Play it up and down with a metronome at 60–80 BPM until you can do it without looking. Start and end on E.
2. Add Box 2 (frets 13–17, or 1–5 an octave lower). It shares notes with Box 1 — use those shared notes to slide between the two.
3. Learn Boxes 3, 4 and 5 the same way, one at a time, always connecting each new box to one you already know.
4. Use it over music. Put on a backing track in E major and improvise with short phrases, ending them on E.

What Chords Does E Major Pentatonic Work Over?

It fits over E, Emaj7, E6 and Eadd9, and over the E–A–B progressions of country, Southern rock and blues. Because it is also C# minor pentatonic, the same shapes work over songs in C# minor.

Songs That Use E Major Pentatonic

Frequently Asked Questions

What fret does E major pentatonic start on?

Box 1 covers frets 11–14, with the root note E at fret 12 on the low E string (the open low E string is also E). Near the nut, Box 2 (frets 1–5) and the open strings give you the same notes in open position.

What notes are in E major pentatonic?

E, F#, G#, B, and C# — the intervals 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6.

Is E major pentatonic the same as C# minor pentatonic?

They share the same five notes and the same box shapes. Treat E as home and it sounds bright and major; treat C# as home and it sounds darker and minor.

What is the difference between E major pentatonic and the E major scale?

The E major scale has seven notes (E F# G# A B C# D#). The pentatonic drops A and D#, the two notes a half step from their neighbors, which is why it is hard to hit a wrong-sounding note with it.

Triads and Arpeggios in E Major

The E major triad (E · G♯ · B) sits inside every E major pentatonic box, so you can outline the chord without changing position. See its shapes in every inversion on the guitar triads page, and the major arpeggio across all six strings on the guitar arpeggios page. Full pages: E major triads, the Emaj7 arpeggio and the E7 arpeggio.

CAGED Shapes in E Major

Each E major pentatonic box holds one shape of the E major chord: Box 1 the E shape, Box 2 the D shape, Box 3 the C shape, Box 4 the A shape and Box 5 the G shape. See how the five shapes connect up the neck in the CAGED system guide.

Explore Other Keys

See also: Minor pentatonic scale · Major pentatonic scale · Blues scale

← Read the full guide: How to Use Pentatonic Boxes