Exponentially fitted versions of the extended one‐step methods for first‐order ODEs are constructed following the six‐step flow chart introduced by Ixaru and Vanden Berghe in Exponential fitting, (Mathematics and Its Application 568, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2004) and their properties are examined. It is shown how formulae for optimal frequencies can be constructed. Some numerical experiments illustrate the use of the developed algorithms. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)