how to read guitar tab

Guitar TAB, short for tablature, is a simple way to show you exactly where to place your fingers on the fretboard without needing to read standard music notation.

A guitar TAB has six horizontal lines representing the six strings of the guitar- the bottom line is the low E string, and the top line is the high E string.

Numbers on each line tell you which fret to play, making it easy to learn chords, riffs and solos.

Numbers can be stacked on top of each other to show a chord-

You’ll often see TAB written alongside traditional sheet music to show rhythm and timing, but you don’t need to read music to start using TAB. Whether you’re learning your first chords or exploring more advanced techniques, understanding guitar TAB will help you improve quickly and enjoy learning guitar.

If you’re a beginner looking for easy guitar lessons and step-by-step guidance, start with TAB- it’s the foundation for playing songs with confidence. If you would like to learn some simple melodies using guitar tab, check out my ebook The Happy Guitarist- A Beginners Guide To Guitar.