Learn to Read Guitar Tabs from Expert Teachers

What Are Guitar Tabs?

Tablatures exist for practically every string instrument, with slightly different formatting between them. Tabs were specifically designed to be simple, straightforward, and easy for beginners to master, so you should have little trouble understanding the basics.

Essentially, tabs use a series of 6 horizontal lines to represent the 6 strings of a guitar. Rather than forcing you to learn about keys, note timing, and music theory, you can jump right in and mimic what you see written on the page.

You can find guitar tabs in a wide variety of different sources, including books, as an accompaniment to traditional sheet music, or more popularly, online. A quick Google search or a trusty tablature app can introduce you to a tab for almost any song you’ve ever heard.

How to Read Guitar Tabs: The Basics

So how are you supposed to read guitar tabs?

Let’s start with the basics. The 6 lines of a tablature represent the 6 strings of the guitar. The lowest horizontal line represents the low E string of the guitar – in other words, the string closest to your head when you’re holding it. The next string up is A, followed by D, followed by G, followed by B, followed by the high E string on the top horizontal line. You may see these letters marked on the tab; otherwise, it’s implied.

On each of these strings, you’ll see numbers written. These numbers represent the fret you’re supposed to press down before plucking a note on that string. So if you see the number 3 on the bottom string, that means you should press down on the 3rd fret of your instrument at the low E string and pluck it. If you see a 5 after it, you should then move your finger to the 5th fret, press down, and pluck the low E string.

Note that the number 0 in this context means you should pluck the string “open,” without any of the frets pressed down. Additionally, if any of the strings do not have numbers associated with them, they should not be plucked at all.

Timing is not inherently built into many tabs – at least not perfectly. The notes are written in the order they’re meant to be played. Tab writers often try to use physical spacing to replicate the timing between notes; in other words, two notes played in quick succession will be immediately next to each other, while two notes with a long rest between will be physically further apart. Some people even go further, using dashes in between notes as a system of timing to tell you exactly when to play each note. But it’s much more common to see tabs with minimal, if any, timing-related notation.

If you see multiple numbers “stacked” above each other in a single column, it means all those frets should be pressed simultaneously and all those strings should be plucked simultaneously. This is usually how chords are demonstrated.

For example, a column from bottom up that looks like: 3-2-0-0-0-3 is the open “G” chord.

How to Read Guitar Tabs: Advanced Notation

There are also some advanced forms of notation you should know about:

• Dead notes. Dead notes or “ghost notes” are produced by plucking a string that’s been muted by your fretting hand or your plucking hand (depending on the string). It’s a technique that can add texture to the music without producing a pitch. You’ll see dead notes represented by an “x” instead of a number.
• Hammer-ons. Hammer-ons instruct you to slam your finger onto the next fret in sequence, rather than plucking it to produce noise. You’ll see these represented by a curved line or an “h.”
• Pull-offs. Pull-offs are the opposite; they instruct you to pull off a finger while another fret is already pressed, resulting in the pitch changing as the string continues ringing out. These are also represented by a curved line or a “p.”
• Bends. In a bend, your fretting finger will raise or lower a string in order to gradually warp its pitch. These are a hallmark of electric guitar solos. Generally, these are represented by an upward curved arrow with a number next to it. A ½ means it’s a half bend, or that it should raise the pitch by a half step. A 1 means it’s a full bend, or that it should raise the pitch by a full step.
• Slides. In a slide, you’ll glide your finger from one fret to another on the fretboard, without plucking along the way. These are represented by a slanted line.
• Vibrato. To add vibrato to a note, you’ll vibrate your finger back and forth. This is shown with a wavy line next to the note to be modified.
• Neck tapping. Neck tapping is a technique wherein you forcefully tap a fret with your right hand to create an effect similar to hammering on and pulling off. It’s indicating with a “T” in most cases.
• Other techniques. There are a wide variety of other techniques you may see represented in guitar tabs. With online guitar lessons, you’ll gradually be introduced to all of them.

Other Important Items to Note

You might also see these items in the tabs you discover:

• Alternate tunings. Not all songs are played in standard tuning. If there’s an alternative tuning used, like an open tuning or the popular “dropped D,” you’ll see it noted at the beginning of the tab.
• Capo indication. You may also see an indication that a capo is meant to be used. A capo is a small device that presses down all the strings on a single fret, modifying the tuning of the instrument. This indication will tell you on which fret to place it.
• Chord boxes. Chord-driven songs often display each chord in a mini tab box, then display those chords by name (e.g., “Cm”) when they’re meant to be played in sequence.

How to Read Your First Guitar Tab

If you’re ready to learn your first song with a guitar tab, here’s what you should do:

• Find the tab with a reliable resource. First, look up a tab from a reliable source. Many online sources include user ratings and reviews so you know what you’re getting.
• Listen to the song. Before you even look at the tab, listen to the song and try to hear all the guitar parts.
• Play along at the beginning to see where the notes fit. Next, listen to the song and start playing along with the tab. Don’t worry if you fall behind or have to start over; this is part of the learning process. Try to replicate what you hear on the track, and if it sounds wrong, figure out why.
• Practice each section repeatedly. Focus on a few seconds at a time, then on one full section at a time. Keep repeating and practicing until you get it down.

Mastering Beginner Guitar Songs With Tabs

You’re not going to become a guitar master overnight, and you’re not going to be able to read tabs flawlessly your second or third time reading them. But even as a newcomer, you should be able to use tabs to master a wide range of beginner guitar songs and start your journey to becoming a legendary musician.

Ready to get started learning tabs and other guitar fundamentals? Sign up for our online guitar classes today! Learn guitar with any device, no matter where you are, as long as you have an internet connection. We have a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee on your first lesson, so you have nothing to lose!