Guitar & Bass Tablature Basics
Tab skips pitch names entirely and just tells you where to put your fingers. Click cells below to build your own riff, then hear it played back.
Six lines, one per string
Tablature ("tab") draws six horizontal lines — one per guitar string — with the top line as the highest string (high E) and the bottom line as the lowest (low E). A number on a line tells you which fret to press; 0 means play that string open.
Reading rhythm (or the lack of it)
Plain tab is great for fingerings but usually says nothing about rhythm — how long each note lasts. Many tabs borrow stems and beams from standard notation and place them above the tab lines when precise timing matters.
Common questions
How do you read guitar tablature?
Six lines represent six strings (top = high E, bottom = low E); a number on a line is the fret to press, 0 means open.
Does tab show rhythm?
Not usually on its own — some tabs add stems and beams from standard notation to show exact durations.
What does it mean when numbers are stacked vertically?
They're played at the same time, as a chord.
Is tab a full replacement for standard notation?
Not entirely — it's fast for fingerings but usually skips precise rhythm and dynamics.
See tab and notation together
Melody Monkey shows tab, notation, and a live fretboard side by side.
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