How to Read Guitar Tabs: A Complete Beginner's Guide

In this guide

1. The basics: six lines, six strings
2. Numbers mean frets
3. Single notes: melodies and riffs
4. Chords in tab
5. Common tab symbols
6. What tab doesn't tell you: rhythm
7. Other things you'll see in tabs
8. Practice exercises
9. Common mistakes when reading tab
10. How to learn a riff from tab, step by step
11. Where to find good tabs
12. Tab, chord sheets and chord charts: what's the difference?
13. Tabs vs. standard notation
14. Next steps
15. Frequently asked questions

If you have ever searched for how to play a song on guitar, you have probably seen something like a row of dashes and numbers stacked six lines high. That's guitar tab, short for tablature, and it's the most popular way guitarists share music.

The good news is that tab is much easier to read than standard sheet music. It doesn't ask you to know note names or music theory. It simply tells you which string to play and which fret to press. You can learn the basics in about ten minutes.

The basics: six lines, six strings

A tab has six horizontal lines. Each line is one string of the guitar.

e|-----------------|   ← thinnest string (high E)
B|-----------------|
G|-----------------|
D|-----------------|
A|-----------------|
E|-----------------|   ← thickest string (low E)

The bottom line is the thickest string (low E) and the top line is the thinnest string (high E). This trips up almost everyone at first, because it seems upside down compared with how the strings sit when you hold the guitar. The logic is the same as sheet music: higher-sounding notes go at the top.

Numbers mean frets

A number on a line tells you which fret to press on that string. A 0 means play the string open, without pressing anything.

e|-----------------|
B|-----------------|
G|-----------------|
D|-----------------|
A|-----3-----------|
E|-0---------------|

This tab says: first, play the low E string open. Then press the A string at the 3rd fret and play it.

You read tab from left to right, just like a sentence. Numbers further to the right come later.

Single notes: melodies and riffs

When numbers appear one after another, play them one at a time. Here's a simple warm-up exercise that climbs across the strings:

e|---------------------------------0-1-3-|
B|---------------------------0-1-3-------|
G|-----------------------0-2-------------|
D|-----------------0-2-3-----------------|
A|-----------0-2-3-----------------------|
E|-0-1-3---------------------------------|

Play each note in turn, low to high. These are the notes of the C major scale in open position, and it's a great first exercise for reading tab and coordinating both hands.

Which finger should you use? Tab doesn't say, but a good rule for the first few frets is "one finger per fret": index finger for the 1st fret, middle for the 2nd, ring for the 3rd and pinky for the 4th.

Chords in tab

When numbers are stacked vertically, play them together. That's a chord.

     G   C   D   Em
e|---3---0---2---0---|
B|---0---1---3---0---|
G|---0---0---2---0---|
D|---0---2---0---2---|
A|---2---3-------2---|
E|---3-----------0---|

Read each column from bottom to top: G is 3-2-0-0-0-3, which matches the G chord shape. Notice that D has nothing on the bottom two lines. A blank line in a chord means don't play that string.

Many tab sites show chords simply as chord names above the lyrics instead of tabbing them out. If you see a chord name you don't know, look it up in our chord library or the guitar chord chart.

Common tab symbols

Tab uses letters and symbols for techniques. You don't need to master these techniques yet, but knowing the symbols means no tab will confuse you.

Symbol	Name	What to do
h (e.g. 5h7)	Hammer-on	Pick the first note, then "hammer" a finger onto the second without picking again
p (e.g. 7p5)	Pull-off	Pick the first note, then pull that finger off to sound the lower note
/ (e.g. 5/7)	Slide up	Pick the first note and slide your finger up to the second
\ (e.g. 7\5)	Slide down	Pick the first note and slide down to the second
b (e.g. 7b9)	Bend	Push the string sideways until it sounds like the second fret number
r (e.g. 7b9r7)	Release	Let a bent string return to its original pitch
~	Vibrato	Wiggle the note slightly by moving the string back and forth
x	Muted note	Rest your fretting finger lightly on the string and pick a percussive "click"
PM	Palm mute	Rest your picking hand's edge on the strings near the bridge
( )	Ghost or tied note	Play softly, or let a note ring from before
<12>	Natural harmonic	Touch the string lightly above the fret wire without pressing, then pick

Want to go further with bends? Our guide on how to bend strings in tune covers the technique.

What tab doesn't tell you: rhythm

Here's the big limitation: most tabs you'll find online don't show rhythm. They tell you which notes to play but not how long each one lasts. Spacing sometimes hints at timing, but it isn't reliable.

The fix is simple: listen to the song. Play the recording, find the part in the tab, and copy the timing by ear. A few other tips:

• Look for bar lines (vertical lines through all six strings). Each section between them is usually one bar of four beats.
• Some tabs include rhythm notation above the tab lines. That's worth learning to read eventually.
• Tab apps and software often play the tab back to you at any speed, which helps a lot.

Other things you'll see in tabs

• Tuning: usually listed at the top, such as "Standard tuning (E A D G B E)" or "Drop D." Always check before you start. Our guide on how to tune a guitar explains the common tunings.
• Capo: "Capo 2" means place a capo on the 2nd fret. The numbers in the tab are then counted from the capo, so 0 means the capo fret.
• Repeat signs: "x4" at the end of a line means play that section four times.
• Section labels: Intro, Verse, Chorus, Bridge and Solo help you find your place.

Practice exercises

Try these original exercises to build your tab-reading speed. Play them slowly with a metronome at around 60 beats per minute, one note per beat.

Exercise 1: The spider (finger independence)

e|---------------------------1-2-3-4-|
B|---------------------1-2-3-4-------|
G|---------------1-2-3-4-------------|
D|---------1-2-3-4-------------------|
A|---1-2-3-4-------------------------|
E|-1-2-3-4---------------------------|

One finger per fret, index to pinky. A classic warm-up that trains all four fingers.

Exercise 2: A simple bass-and-strum pattern

     G                   C
e|-------3-------3-|-------0-------0-|
B|-------0-------0-|-------1-------1-|
G|-------0-------0-|-------0-------0-|
D|-----------------|-----------------|
A|-----------------|---3-------3-----|
E|---3-------3-----|-----------------|

Pick the bass note, then strum the top three strings. This "boom-chick" pattern is the basis of a lot of country and folk accompaniment.

Exercise 3: A hammer-on and pull-off workout

e|-----------------|-----------------|
B|-----------------|-----------------|
G|-0h2-0h2-0h2-0h2-|-2p0-2p0-2p0-2p0-|
D|-----------------|-----------------|
A|-----------------|-----------------|
E|-----------------|-----------------|

Pick only the first note of each pair. The second sound comes from the hammer-on or pull-off alone.

Common mistakes when reading tab

• Reading the strings upside down. The bottom line is the thickest string. If a riff sounds strangely high or low, check that you haven't flipped the lines.
• Thinking numbers are fingers. Numbers in tab are frets, not fingers. A "3" means the 3rd fret, which you might play with any finger.
• Playing stacked numbers one at a time. Numbers lined up vertically are played together as a chord.
• Ignoring the tuning line. If a tab is written for Drop D or a half step down and you play it in standard tuning, it will sound wrong even if every fret is right.
• Racing through it. Learn a riff slowly, a few notes at a time, then join the pieces. Speed comes from accuracy, not the other way round.
• Never listening. Tab is a map, not the music. Always check what you play against the recording.

How to learn a riff from tab, step by step

1. Listen to the section two or three times and hum or tap along.
2. Find the first four to six notes in the tab and play them slowly until they're clean.
3. Add the next small chunk and join it to the first.
4. Check the rhythm against the recording, slowed down if your player allows it.
5. Loop the whole riff with a metronome, starting slow and raising the tempo by small steps.

Where to find good tabs

Large tab websites have user-submitted tabs for almost every song. Quality varies, so:

• Choose tabs with high ratings and lots of reviews.
• Prefer "official" or verified versions where available.
• Always check the tab against the recording. If it sounds wrong, it probably is.
• Remember that most songs are protected by copyright, so use licensed sites rather than copying tabs around.

Tab, chord sheets and chord charts: what's the difference?

When you search for a song, you'll find a few different formats, and it helps to know which is which.

Tabs show individual notes on the six lines, as covered in this guide. They're best for riffs, melodies, solos and fingerpicking parts, where the exact notes matter.

Chord sheets (often labeled "chords" rather than "tab") show the lyrics with chord names written above the words. You play the named chord when you reach that word and strum in whatever rhythm fits the song. They're the quickest way to learn songs you want to strum and sing along to.

Chord charts or diagrams show the shape of a single chord on a picture of the fretboard. You use them to look up chords you see on a chord sheet. Our guitar chord chart has the 34 most useful ones.

Most guitarists use all three. A typical song might use a chord sheet for the verses, a tab for the intro riff, and a chord chart to look up the one unusual chord in the bridge. Once you can read tab, you have the full toolkit.

Tabs vs. standard notation

Standard notation (traditional sheet music) shows pitch and rhythm precisely, and it's used for classical guitar and many other instruments. Tab shows fingering, which is what most guitarists care about day to day. For rock, pop, folk, country and blues, tab is the standard. Many players learn tab first and pick up rhythm reading later.

Next steps

Reading tab opens up thousands of songs and riffs. Start with easy material: single-note riffs on one or two strings and songs that use open chords. Our list of easy guitar songs for beginners is sorted by difficulty.

Fretwork's lessons use tab alongside chord diagrams and a play-along player, so you hear the rhythm while you read. Every lesson ends with a quick check, so you know you've got it before moving on. The first two stages are free with no card needed.

Frequently asked questions