E13 Chord on Guitar
E13 = E – G# – B – D – F# – C# (Root, Major 3rd, Perfect 5th, Minor 7th, Major 9th, Major 13th)
E13 takes the same open-position dominant shape as E9 and moves its top color note down one string, from the high e to the B string, swapping the ninth for the thirteenth. The physical change is small; the harmonic effect is a noticeably richer, jazzier dominant chord.
E, G#, B, D, and C# make up the chord — root, third, fifth, flat seventh, thirteenth. As V13 of A major it's the most harmonically dense of the E-rooted dominant family covered here, the kind of voicing a jazz or blues player reaches for at a cadence when a plain E7 or even E9 would feel too plain against the surrounding chord's sophistication.
Fingerings
Open Position
How to Practice It
The fingering sits entirely in open position, with three extra fingers across the A, G, and B strings — practice moving directly between E9 and E13 to feel how shifting a single finger down one string changes the chord's whole color while its function (resolving to A) stays exactly the same. Because the B-string note replaces what would otherwise be an open string in E7, make sure that finger is pressing firmly enough not to buzz against the adjacent open strings.
Common Progressions
- A – D – E13 – A (I – IV – V13 – I, a jazz-blues cadence)
- E13 – A (V13 – I)
- F#m – E13 – A (vi – V13 – I)
- D7 – E13 – A (a chain of dominant colors resolving to I)
FAQ
- How does E13 differ from E9 in the fingering?
- Both share the same barre-area notes, but E9 puts its extra color tone on the high e string while E13 moves that note to the B string instead, a one-string shift that changes the chord's upper color from a ninth to a thirteenth.
- Where does E13 resolve?
- To A major, the same destination as E7 and E9, since all three are dominant-family chords sharing the identical underlying resolving function.
- Why is E13 considered jazzier than E9?
- The thirteenth adds a richer, more harmonically dense color that's associated with jazz and blues turnarounds specifically, where cadential dominant chords are often dressed up with extra upper-structure color right before resolving.
- Is E13 harder to play than E9?
- About the same difficulty — both need three extra fingers in open position, just with the topmost one landing on a different string.
- Does a full E13 chord include every note from root to thirteenth?
- No six-string guitar voicing does — this practical shape keeps the root, third, seventh, and thirteenth, leaving out the ninth and eleventh as the least essential notes to the chord's core dominant color.
- Is E13 common outside jazz contexts?
- It shows up in blues turnarounds and soul rhythm playing too, anywhere a dominant chord resolving to A major benefits from a richer color than the plainer E7 or E9 versions provide.
- How does E13's fingering compare to D#13 at the eleventh fret?
- Identical shape, completely different physical demand — E13 sits in open position with generous string spacing, while D#13 crams the same pattern into the cramped, high eleventh-fret position.
Related: how chords are built, chord finder.