How to Read Guitar Tabs for Complete Beginners

A lot of beginners see guitar tabs for the first time and immediately think:

“This looks confusing.”

But the good news?

Tabs are actually one of the easiest ways to start playing real songs quickly, even if you don’t know music theory or how to read sheet music.

That’s exactly why most beginner guitar players use them.

So… What Are Guitar Tabs?

Guitar tabs are a simple way of showing:

which string to play
which fret to press

Instead of using complicated music notation, tabs use numbers.

That’s it.

How Guitar Tabs Work

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

Here’s a visual example of how a guitar tab will look on the site.

The 6 lines represent your guitar strings.

The top line is the thinnest string.

The bottom line is the thickest string.

What The Numbers Mean

E|--0--3--5--

This means:

Play the open string (0), which means you play the string without pressing any finger on the guitar neck.
press the 3rd fret
then press the 5th fret

You simply play the notes from left to right on the E string, which is the thickest string at the top of the guitar.

Quick Beginner Tips

Start slowly
Focus on clean notes
Only practice small sections at first
Don’t worry about speed immediately
Tune your guitar first

And most importantly:

Don’t overthink tabs too much in the beginning.

Most beginners understand the basics surprisingly fast once they actually start trying simple riffs.

Why Tabs Are Great for Beginners

Tabs help beginners:

learn songs faster
recognize riffs quickly
stay motivated
practice real music early

And actually, that feeling of playing something recognizable is what keeps a lot of people excited to continue learning guitar.

I personally think it’s much better to start with tabs instead of spending a huge amount of time learning how to read full music notation right away, unless you specifically need to for school, work, or professional music training.

Otherwise, start simple, have fun, and focus on actually enjoying the guitar first.