Tools / Chords / E♭ 9th

E♭ 9th chord on guitar (E♭9)

Also written E♭9 or E♭

E♭ 9th is built from E♭, G, B♭, D♭ and F. This advanced barre shape at the 10th fret needs a solid index barre and a muted high e string.

10th fret11-10-11-10-11-×

Positions on the neck1 of 5

How it’s built

E♭1Root

G3Major 3rd

B♭5Perfect 5th

D♭♭7Minor 7th

F99th

Formula 1, 3, 5, ♭7, 9

Positions on the neck1 of 5

Inversions

The same three notes, with a different one in the bass.

Root positionE♭–G–B♭–D♭–FE♭9Bass E♭

First inversionG–B♭–D♭–F–E♭E♭9/GBass G

Second inversionB♭–D♭–F–E♭–GE♭9/B♭Bass B♭

Third inversionD♭–F–E♭–G–B♭E♭9/D♭Bass D♭

Fourth inversionF–E♭–G–B♭–D♭E♭9/FBass F

Why it sounds like that

E♭ 9th stacks an E♭ major triad (1, 3, 5) with a minor seventh and a major ninth: 1, 3, 5, ♭7, 9. The ♭7 D♭ and 9 F create a dominant sound. Compare it with E♭ 7th, which omits the ninth.

What goes wrong with E♭ 9th?

Letting the index barre sag so the G string buzzes at fret 10.
Allowing the high e string to ring open, adding an E that is not in the chord.
Placing the ring finger on the G string instead of the D string, losing the fifth.

When to use it

E♭ 9th acts as the dominant in A♭ major, used in progressions like A♭–D♭–E♭–A♭ (I–IV–V–I). It suits blues, rock and jazz-funk. Compare it with E♭ major to hear how the seventh and ninth add tension.

Changing to and from E♭ 9th

Move to C♯ 9th by sliding the shape down two frets to the 8th fret.
Move to E 9th by sliding the shape up one fret to the 11th fret.

Which voicing to use

The 10th fret and 11th fret voicings both have E♭ in the bass, but the 11th fret version adds the ninth on top. The E♭9/G inversion places the third in the bass for smoother voice-leading.

How do you play an E♭ 9th chord on guitar?

10th fret

Barre● On the diagram

E♭ 9th is played at the 10th fret as 11 10 11 10 11 ×: barre your index finger across fret 10, middle finger on the low E string at fret 11, ring finger on the D string at fret 11 and pinky finger on the B string at fret 11. The high e string stays muted.

Tip — The index barre must fret the A string and the G string cleanly while the pinky reaches fret 11 on the B string.

String-by-string breakdown

String	Fret	Finger	Note
6 (E)	11	2	E♭ (1)
5 (A)	10	1 (barre)	G (3)
4 (D)	11	3	D♭ (♭7)
3 (G)	10	1 (barre)	F (9)
2 (B)	11	4	B♭ (5)
1 (e)	muted	—	—

11th fret

Barre

E♭ 9th is played at the 11th fret as 11 13 11 12 11 13: barre your index finger across fret 11, ring finger on the A string at fret 13, middle finger on the G string at fret 12 and pinky finger on the high e string at fret 13.

String-by-string breakdown

String	Fret	Finger	Note
6 (E)	11	1 (barre)	E♭ (1)
5 (A)	13	3	B♭ (5)
4 (D)	11	1 (barre)	D♭ (♭7)
3 (G)	12	2	G (3)
2 (B)	11	1 (barre)	B♭ (5)
1 (e)	13	4	F (9)

E♭9/G inversion · fret 1

Barre

E♭ 9th is played at the 1st fret as 3 1 1 3 2 1: barre your index finger across fret 1, ring finger on the low E string at fret 3, pinky finger on the G string at fret 3 and middle finger on the B string at fret 2.

String-by-string breakdown

String	Fret	Finger	Note
6 (E)	3	3	G (3)
5 (A)	1	1 (barre)	B♭ (5)
4 (D)	1	1 (barre)	E♭ (1)
3 (G)	3	4	B♭ (5)
2 (B)	2	2	D♭ (♭7)
1 (e)	1	1 (barre)	F (9)

E♭9/G inversion · fret 3

Barre

E♭ 9th is played at the 3rd fret as 3 4 3 3 4 3: barre your index finger across fret 3, ring finger on the A string at fret 4 and pinky finger on the B string at fret 4.

String-by-string breakdown

String	Fret	Finger	Note
6 (E)	3	1 (barre)	G (3)
5 (A)	4	3	D♭ (♭7)
4 (D)	3	1 (barre)	F (9)
3 (G)	3	1 (barre)	B♭ (5)
2 (B)	4	4	E♭ (1)
1 (e)	3	1 (barre)	G (3)

E♭9/G inversion · fret 10

Barre

E♭ 9th is played at the 10th fret as × 10 11 10 11 11: barre your index finger across fret 10, middle finger on the D string at fret 11, ring finger on the B string at fret 11 and pinky finger on the high e string at fret 11. The low E string stays muted.

String-by-string breakdown

String	Fret	Finger	Note
6 (E)	muted	—	—
5 (A)	10	1 (barre)	G (3)
4 (D)	11	2	D♭ (♭7)
3 (G)	10	1 (barre)	F (9)
2 (B)	11	3	B♭ (5)
1 (e)	11	4	E♭ (1)

Common questions

How is E♭ 9th written?

E♭ 9th is written as E♭9 or Eb9. The symbol E♭9 always means a dominant ninth chord with a minor seventh and a major ninth. It is also spelled D♯ in enharmonic notation for the same sounding root.

What is the difference between E♭ 9th and E♭ add 9?

E♭ 9th includes the minor seventh D♭, while E♭ add 9 is an E♭ major triad with the ninth F added and no seventh. The add 9 sounds more open and less tense.

Why does the E♭9/G inversion have a different bass note?

The E♭9/G inversion places the third, G, in the bass instead of the root E♭. This creates a smoother stepwise bass line when moving between chords in A♭ major.

String

Fret

Finger

Note

6 (E)

E♭ (1)

5 (A)

1 (barre)

G (3)

4 (D)

D♭ (♭7)

3 (G)

1 (barre)

F (9)

2 (B)

B♭ (5)

1 (e)

muted

—

String

Fret

Finger

Note

6 (E)

1 (barre)

E♭ (1)

5 (A)

B♭ (5)

4 (D)

1 (barre)

D♭ (♭7)

3 (G)

G (3)

2 (B)

1 (barre)

B♭ (5)

1 (e)

F (9)

String

Fret

Finger

Note

6 (E)

G (3)

5 (A)

1 (barre)

B♭ (5)

4 (D)

1 (barre)

E♭ (1)

3 (G)

B♭ (5)

2 (B)

D♭ (♭7)

1 (e)

1 (barre)

F (9)

String

Fret

Finger

Note

6 (E)

1 (barre)

G (3)

5 (A)

D♭ (♭7)

4 (D)

1 (barre)

F (9)

3 (G)

1 (barre)

B♭ (5)

2 (B)

E♭ (1)

1 (e)

1 (barre)

G (3)

String

Fret

Finger

Note

6 (E)

muted

—

5 (A)

1 (barre)

G (3)

4 (D)

D♭ (♭7)

3 (G)

1 (barre)

F (9)

2 (B)

B♭ (5)

1 (e)

E♭ (1)