How to learn guitar with tabs

If you’re just starting your guitar journey, you might be wondering whether guitar tabs are a good way to learn. The short answer? Yes, tabs are an excellent starting point for beginners. They make it easy to start playing songs without having to read standard music notation. That being said, learning traditional notation later on will open up even more possibilities.

In this lesson, we’ll break down what guitar tabs are and how to read them, explore their pros and cons, and answer common questions beginners have about using them. Let’s get started.

What are guitar tabs?

Guitar tabs, short for tablature are a simplified form of musical notation designed for string instruments. In guitar tabs, each line represents one of the six strings on the instrument. The top line is your thinnest string (high E), and the bottom line is your thickest string (low E).

For example, instead of reading from the 5 staff lines which is standard notation, you would see the tabs notation lines below like this:

The numbers you see on each tab line tell you which fret to press on that specific string. For example, a “3” on the top line means you’d play the 3rd fret on the high E string.

Tabs can appear on their own or alongside standard notation. This often depends on the composer, the publisher, or the instrument the music is written for. Since tablature is designed for string instruments, you won’t see it used for things like piano or wind instruments.

How to read guitar tabs

Here is an example of guitar tabs below:

Guitar Fingering Symbols

These symbols are used for guitar music to indicate what fingers to use when playing notes. If you hold the guitar like most people who are righties, you use your left hand to press down notes, otherwise known as your fretting hand. Your right hand is your picking and strumming hand to play the strings.

Advantages of Using Tabs

• Easy to read: Tabs provide a clear, straightforward way to show where to place your fingers on the fretboard.
• Quick to learn: You can start playing songs right away without spending weeks learning standard music notation.
• Clear fingering guidance: Tabs help you find the most practical fingering for a passage, especially since the same notes can be played in multiple places on the guitar.
• Fast learning for complex songs: Well-written tabs can make even challenging pieces easier to pick up.
  

Disadvantages of Using Tabs

• Inaccurate sources: Many tabs online are uploaded by beginners and may contain errors.
• Lack of rhythm notation: Tabs often omit timing information, making it harder to know how the notes should be played without hearing the song.
• Over-reliance risk: Depending only on tabs can limit your growth, especially when tabs aren’t available for the music you want to learn.
• Limited detail: Tabs can’t always convey nuances like note duration, dynamics, or articulation as well as standard notation can.
  

How to best use tabs to learn guitar

One of the most effective ways to use tabs is alongside standard notation. The notation above the tab provides the rhythm and timing of the music, while the tab itself shows you exactly where to place your fingers. Without that rhythmic context, tabs can feel like just a list of notes with no clear flow.

Check out the examples below to see the difference.

Guitar tabs example 1

In this first example, you’ll notice that only the tab notation is shown. Without any rhythmic information, it’s hard to know how long to hold each note, making it a less reliable way to learn a song.

Now, here’s the same passage with standard notation added above the tabs. This gives you both the fret and string to play and the timing for each note, making it far easier to learn accurately.

Guitar tabs example 2

As you can see, adding standard notation makes the music far more accurate to learn. You can clearly see how long each note should be played, rather than guessing from the tabs alone.

Even if you don’t read the pitches from the staff, you can still follow the rhythms and over time, this will also help you become more familiar with standard notation.

Guitar String Symbols in Standard Notation

Some sheet music notates string symbols in standard notation string instead of using guitar tabs. See examples 1 and 2 to compare different ways of notating music.

Notation example 1

Here is an example of writing notes using tabs notation.

Notation example 2

Here are the same notes as example but written in standard notation including string symbols. The numbers inside the circles indicate what string to play the note on.

These string symbols are just another way to help to find your way around the fretboard if you don’t have tabs for the music you want to learn.

Check out this link to learn more guitar notation symbols.

At What Point Should You Stop Using Tabs to Learn Music?

If tabs are available from a reliable source, there’s no reason not to use them. They can be a valuable tool for learning music.

That said, as you advance and begin exploring more complex or lesser-known pieces, you may find that tabs for those songs simply don’t exist. When you reach that point, it’s a strong sign that it’s time to learn standard notation.

I remember being at that stage to improve my reading with books like Reading Studies for Guitar by William Leavitt. I’d dedicate specific practice time to reading notation, and over time, it became a natural part of my playing. You might go through a focused “season” of reading practice, then continue building your skills by working on pieces you genuinely want to learn or revisit.

Songs for Guitar with Tabs

Be sure to explore our Check out our sheet music resources here on the site, which include both standard notation and tabs for a variety of pieces.

Guitar Essentials is a step-by-step approach to learning to play the guitar. This ebook will guide you from the fundamental beginner skills to being able to play songs on your own.

Whether you have little to no experience playing guitar, this will help you take your skills to the next level!

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Wrapping Up

As we’ve covered in this lesson, tabs can be an excellent learning tool when used alongside standard notation. They’re a great way to start playing quickly, but don’t overlook the value of learning to read music or developing ear training in the future. Tabs won’t always be available, and having these additional skills will make you a more versatile musician.

Think of learning to read music as a long-term investment in your musical growth. It opens up far more opportunities than limiting yourself to material that includes tabs.

If you’d like to dive deeper, check out our guide on how to read guitar notation symbols.

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All the best,

JG Music Lessons

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