Tab is how the whole internet learned guitar. It skips the sheet-music homework and just whispers to your fingers where to land. Gloriously, beautifully lazy, and I mean that as the highest compliment.
Tab has six horizontal lines, one per string. The BOTTOM line is your thickest string (low E); the TOP line is your thinnest (high E). A number on a line tells you which fret to press on that string.
◆ KEY IDEA
Numbers are frets, not fingers
Reading it:
- 1Read left to right, like words. That's the timing order.
- 2Numbers stacked vertically = play those notes together (a chord).
- 3Numbers spread out one after another = single notes (a riff or melody).
- 4Letters add techniques: h = hammer-on, p = pull-off, b = bend, / or \ = slide, ~ = vibrato.
▲ WATCH OUT
Tab won't give you the rhythm
That's the trick. Find a tab for a riff you love, slow it way down, and let your fingers chase the numbers like a little constellation. You'll be playing something real inside an hour. Feel it first, name it later.
Your turn ⭐
Tab reading
Question 1 of 3
Which line is the low-E (thickest) string in tab?
The cheat sheet
- Tab = six lines, one per string; the bottom line is the thickest (low E).
- Numbers are frets to press; 0 means open.
- Read left to right for timing; stacked numbers = a chord.
- Letters mean techniques (h, p, b, /, ~); tab rarely shows rhythm.
Common questions
Which line is the low-E string in tab?
The bottom line. Tab is written 'upside down' relative to how you look down at the guitar: bottom line = thickest/low E, top line = thinnest/high E.
Do the numbers mean fingers or frets?
Frets. A number tells you which fret to press on that string; 0 means play it open. The finger you use is your choice.
Why doesn't my tab sound right even with the correct notes?
Tab usually doesn't show rhythm — how long each note lasts. Play along with a recording of the song to lock in the timing.