📘 Guitar Scribble Help & Instructions
Complete guide to creating guitar tabs with Guitar Scribble
Last Updated:
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🚀 Getting Started
Guitar Scribble is a free, fully-functional guitar tab editor that works entirely in your browser. No downloads, no installations, and no rhythm entry required – just focus on the notes!
What Makes Guitar Scribble Different?
- No Rhythm Required: Unlike other tab editors, you don't need to specify note durations or time signatures
- Visual Cursor: See exactly where you're typing with a highlighted cursor
- Click to Edit: Click anywhere to position your cursor instantly
- Cloud Saves: Save your work and access it from any device
✏️ Basic Editing
Positioning the Cursor
- Click: Click on any position in the tab to place your cursor there
- Arrow Keys: Use ←→ to move horizontally, ↑↓ to move between strings
- Home/End: Jump to start/end of current line
Adding Notes
- Type 0-9: Enter fret numbers directly
- Double Digits: For frets 10+, type both digits (e.g., "12")
- Letters: Type letters for special notation (x for muted strings, etc.)
- Bar Lines: Type | to insert a bar line
- Dashes: Type - to add spacing
Deleting & Editing
- Backspace: Delete the character before cursor
- Delete: Remove character at cursor position
- Ctrl+Backspace: Remove entire last column from all strings
💡 Tip: Click directly where you want to type – no need to arrow-key your way there!
🎸 Alternate Tunings
Guitar Scribble supports any tuning you need!
How to Change Tuning
- Click on any tuning letter (e, B, G, D, A, E) on the left side
- Type the new tuning (up to 2 characters)
- Press Enter or click elsewhere to confirm
Popular Alternate Tunings
| Tuning Name |
Strings (High to Low) |
| Standard |
e B G D A E |
| Drop D |
e B G D A D |
| DADGAD |
d A G D A D |
| Open G |
d B G D G D |
| Half-Step Down |
Eb Bb Gb Db Ab Eb |
💡 Tip: Use sharps (#) or flats (b) for non-standard tunings. Example: D# or Eb
🎵 Adding Symbols
Symbols add expression and technique notation to your tabs.
How to Add Symbols
- Select notes: Click and drag across the notes you want to mark
- Click symbol button: Choose from the toolbar on the left
- Cycle options: Click the button multiple times to cycle through variations
Available Symbols
⌢ Hammer-on / Pull-off
Creates a curved line (⌢) connecting selected notes. Perfect for legato techniques.
Example: 5h7 (hammer from 5th to 7th fret)
/ Slide
Adds a slide symbol (/) or (\) between notes. Select multiple notes to create consecutive slides under one arc.
Cycles: Slide above → Slide below → Remove
Multi-note slides: Select 3+ notes (e.g., 5-7-6) to create slides between each pair under one continuous arc.
⤴ Bend
Adds bend notation with different intensities.
Cycles: 1/4 bend → 1/2 bend → Full bend → Arrow only → Remove
⤵ Pre-Bend
Indicates a note bent before striking (release bend).
Cycles: Same as regular bend but with inverted arrow
~ Vibrato
Adds vibrato wave (~) above selected notes.
◇ Harmonic
Wraps notes in < > brackets to indicate harmonics.
Example: <12> (harmonic at 12th fret)
🎸 Picking Marks
Add picking direction and fingerpicking notation to your tabs.
How to Add Picking Marks
- Click on the note where you want to add a picking mark
- Click the picking symbol button in the toolbar
- The symbol appears above the note
Important: Picking symbols are added at the current cursor position. To remove a picking symbol, click the symbol's button at the desired cursor position to cycle it on or off.
Available Picking Symbols
| Symbol |
Meaning |
| ⊓ (n) |
Downstroke |
| V |
Upstroke |
| p |
Thumb (pulgar) |
| i |
Index finger |
| m |
Middle finger |
| a |
Ring finger (anular) |
| c |
Pinky (chiquito) |
| T |
Tap |
🎼 Chord Names
Add chord names above your tab for reference.
How to Add Chords
- Position your cursor at the column where you want the chord
- Click the ♪ Chord button in the toolbar
- Type your chord name (e.g., Am, G7, Cmaj7, C#m7)
- Press Enter or click "Add Chord"
How to Remove Chords
- Position your cursor at the same column as the chord
- Click the ♪ Chord button again
- The chord will be removed
💡 Tip: You can add any text as a chord name - use it for chord names, section markers (Intro, Verse, Chorus), or any annotations you need!
⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts
Navigation
| Shortcut |
Action |
| ← → |
Move cursor left/right |
| ↑ ↓ |
Move cursor up/down between strings |
Editing
| Shortcut |
Action |
| 0-9 |
Insert fret number |
| | |
Insert bar line |
| - or _ |
Insert dash/spacing |
| Backspace |
Delete previous character |
| Delete |
Delete character at cursor |
| Ctrl+Backspace |
Remove last column from all strings |
Selection & Clipboard
| Shortcut |
Action |
| Shift+→ Shift+← |
Extend selection horizontally |
| Shift+↑ Shift+↓ |
Extend selection across strings |
| Ctrl+C |
Copy selected notes |
| Ctrl+X |
Cut selected notes |
| Ctrl+V |
Paste notes at cursor position |
Undo/Redo
| Shortcut |
Action |
| Ctrl+Z |
Undo last action |
| Ctrl+Y |
Redo last undone action |
💾 Exporting Tabs
Important: Upon PDF/PNG export, lines will appear solid for quality printing and display.
Export to PDF
Creates a high-quality PDF perfect for printing or sharing.
- Song title and artist are required and appear at the top
- All tab lines render as solid, professional lines
- Automatically paginates for multi-page tabs
- Includes "Created by GuitarScribble.com" watermark
- Optimized for printing (4x resolution)
- Clean, readable output suitable for performers
Export to PNG
Creates a PNG image of your tab.
- Song title and artist appear at the top
- Tab lines render as solid for clarity
- High resolution (2x scale)
- Includes watermark at bottom right
- Perfect for social media or embedding in websites
- Sharp, clear output ideal for digital sharing
💡 Tip: The song title is used for the export filename automatically! Exports use solid lines optimized for readability.
☁️ Saving & Loading Tabs
Saving Your Work
- Log in to your account
- Enter a song title and artist name (both required)
- Click the 💾 Save Tab button (appears when logged in)
- Verify the title and artist in the save dialog
- Click Save
Loading Saved Tabs
- Go to My Tabs page
- Click Load on any saved tab
- Tab opens in the editor with all your work
What Gets Saved
- Song title and artist (required fields)
- All tab content (notes, symbols, chords)
- Tuning customizations
- Picking marks
- Multiple staves
📱 Mobile Usage
Mobile Compatibility
Limited mobile use is possible, but GuitarScribble.com was intended to be best used on a desktop or laptop computer for the best possible experience and reliability.
Mobile-Specific Features
- Tap to position cursor: Tap any position in the tab
- On-screen keyboard: Appears automatically when you tap a position
- Touch selection: Tap and drag to select notes for symbols
- Hamburger menu (☰): Access navigation on mobile
💡 Recommendation: For the best editing experience, use Guitar Scribble on a desktop or laptop computer with a physical keyboard.
🌟 Tips & Best Practices
Tab Organization
- Use bar lines (|) to organize your tab into measures
- Add section markers using the chord button (Intro, Verse, Chorus, Solo), or directly type them on the tab lines
- Use the "Add Staff" button to split long tabs into multiple sections
Readability
- Add spacing between sections with dashes or extra bar lines
- Use chord names to show harmony changes
- Add picking marks for complex patterns
Workflow Tips
- Save frequently! Use Ctrl+S... wait, there is no autosave yet – just click Save Tab often
- Use copy/paste for repeating sections
- Work on small sections at a time
- Export to PDF before sharing for best quality
Performance
- Very long tabs (50+ staves) may slow down the editor
- Split extremely long tabs into multiple files
- Clear your browser cache if the editor feels sluggish
ℹ️ Version & Support
Version: v1.0.0
Last Updated:
Browser Support: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge (latest versions)
Report Issues
Found a bug or have a feature request? We'd love to hear from you!
- Use the thumbs down button on any response in the tab editor
- Include details about what happened and what browser you're using
Copyright
Guitar Scribble is © Rob Andrew. All rights reserved.
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