Guitar Fretboard Notes

The chart is arranged by guitar string and fret. String 6 is the low E string and string 1 is the high E string. Fret 0 means an open string; fret 1 is the first metal-fret space after the nut. Moving one fret toward the guitar body raises the pitch by one semitone.

Every visible cell shows the note name at that string-and-fret position. When you choose a target note, matching positions are emphasized without hiding the other note names. That makes the page useful both for a quick lookup and for seeing how the selected note sits inside the surrounding fretboard.

The same note name can appear in several places. For example, a C on one string and a C on another string belong to the same pitch class even when their octaves differ. The chart includes octave-aware reference audio so you can hear that two locations with the same letter name may still sound at different heights.

When you compare two positions, keep the string direction fixed in your head: string 6 is the bass side and string 1 is the treble side. Many fretboard diagrams flip visual orientation, so the string numbers and open-string labels on this page are the reliable reference. Use them before assuming that the top or bottom row means a particular physical edge of the neck.

This page uses standard tuning: string 6 E2, string 5 A2, string 4 D3, string 3 G3, string 2 B3 and string 1 E4. The string numbers run from the thick low-E string to the thin high-E string. Keeping both the number and open-string name visible reduces confusion when you move between diagrams, TAB and a physical guitar.

Open strings are part of the fretboard, not a separate system. Fret 0 carries the open-string pitch, and fret 12 repeats the same letter name one octave higher. The pattern then continues again toward fret 24. This octave repetition is one reason the 12th fret is a useful landmark when learning note locations.

Standard tuning also explains why some cross-string shapes look familiar but do not repeat perfectly. Most adjacent strings are separated by a perfect fourth, while the G-to-B pair is separated by a major third. You do not need to memorize interval names to use this chart, but recognizing that one exception helps explain why note locations shift differently around strings 3 and 2.

The chromatic note cycle contains twelve pitch classes before the letter-and-accidental pattern repeats. On one string, moving twelve frets higher returns to the same note name one octave above. That means fret 12 mirrors the open string by name, and fret 24 mirrors it again another octave higher.

Across strings, repeated note names appear at different frets because the open strings begin on different pitches. Rather than memorizing six unrelated rows, use landmarks: the open strings, the 12th-fret octave, and a few target notes you can find quickly. Then fill the gaps by counting semitones or using nearby known notes.

Use the selected-note highlight to test repetition rather than scanning every label at once. Pick one note, follow its highlighted positions across the visible strings, and then widen the range. The chart keeps every other note visible so you can see relationships, but the highlight gives you one stable target. That is useful when a full 24-fret chart would otherwise feel visually dense.

A short 0–5 range is useful when you are starting near the nut because the cells stay large and the first common positions are easy to scan. A 0–12 range adds the octave landmark and shows one complete chromatic cycle on every string. A 0–24 range extends the same logic through a second octave.

The 24-fret view is a reference, not a requirement that every guitar has 24 accessible frets. Acoustic and electric instruments vary. Use the range that matches the part of the neck you need, and treat fret numbers beyond your instrument's physical neck as reference data rather than playable positions on that specific guitar.

A wider range is most useful when you already know what you are looking for. If your task is simply to find the first few C notes or learn the open-string area, stay with 0–5. Move to 0–12 when you want the octave pattern, and use 0–24 when comparing repeated locations across a larger neck. The range control changes the reference scope, not the tuning or note system.

Pick one natural note such as C. Find every highlighted C inside frets 0–5, then say the string and fret aloud. Repeat with a second note. The goal is not to race through all twelve note names in one session; it is to build several reliable landmarks that make later searches faster.

Next, choose a wider range and predict where the note should repeat at the 12th fret before checking the chart. If you know a C at one position, look for the same note name twelve frets higher on the same string. This connects octave structure with the physical neck.

You can also reverse the task: choose a string and fret before looking closely at its label, name the note, then check the cell. This page does not record a score or listen to your answer. It is a reference surface; use the blank printed chart to test recall without the on-screen note labels.

Another useful check is to switch between sharps and flats after locating an accidental pitch. C-sharp and D-flat refer to the same pitch class in this tool, so the highlighted physical positions stay equivalent even though the displayed spelling changes. This is a notation comparison, not a claim that every musical key should spell that pitch the same way. Context determines the preferred written name.