Data taken during joint observations of the European incoherent scatter (EISCAT) radar and the Karmaselga auroral coherent radar (46.5 MHz) are combined to investigate the dependence of the coherent echo power upon the maximum electron density in the E region. For electron densities in the range (1--3)¿1011 m-3, an increase in the echo power with the electron density was found. A few coherent echoes were observed for electron densities larger than 3¿1011 m-3, but when such echoes occurred, their power was small even though the ionospheric electric field was strong, more than 30 mV/m. These measurements agree reasonably well with the model of Uspensky and Williams <1988> which takes into account ionospheric refraction and assumes that auroral coherent echo is a superposition of scattering from a thick layer of electrojet irregularities. Results of the comparison indicate that electron density at altitudes around 110 km can be roughly estimated solely from coherent radar data. ¿ 1999 American Geophysical Union