Guitar Scales
See any scale mapped across the guitar fretboard. Pick a root and a scale, choose your tuning, and toggle between note names, scale degrees and intervals. Click a note to hear it, or play the whole scale.
How to use guitar scales
A scale shape on the fretboard shows every place a scale's notes fall across the six strings. Because the guitar is tuned in fourths (with one third between the G and B strings), the same shape repeats up the neck, which is why guitarists learn scales as movable patterns rather than fixed notes.
Start with the root notes (highlighted), then fill in the rest of the pattern. The pentatonic scales are the most common starting point for solos, while the modes recolor the major scale for different moods. Switch the label mode to scale degrees to see how each note functions relative to the root.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most important guitar scales to learn?
Start with the minor pentatonic and major pentatonic scales — they cover most rock, blues and pop soloing. Then learn the full major and natural minor scales, and finally the modes (Dorian, Mixolydian and others) for more color.
Why do guitar scale shapes repeat up the neck?
Because standard tuning is regular (mostly fourths), a scale pattern keeps the same fingering when you move it to a new root position. Learning a handful of movable shapes lets you play any scale in any key.
What is the difference between a scale and a mode?
A mode is a scale built by starting the major scale on a different degree. Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian (natural minor) and Locrian all use the same seven notes as their parent major scale but center on a different root, giving each a distinct character.
