Guitar scales on the neck: every scale, key and position
A scale is a set of notes, and on the guitar each set repeats all over the neck. Pick a key and a scale below to see every place its notes fall, from the open strings to the 17th fret, then step through its positions, the shapes that fit under one hand, and hear each one played.
The pentatonic, blues, major and minor scales and the modes are all here, in all twelve keys, spelled the way they're written. Each position links up with the next, so learning them one at a time builds into the whole neck.
The scale on the neck
A minor pentatonic: A C D E G (1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7)
The five pentatonic boxes
The A minor pentatonic, A C D E G, in its five positions from the open strings up, the roots filled. Each box shares its edge with the next, and above the 12th fret they start again, box 1 at the 17th fret. In another key, the same shapes move along the neck with the root.
The scales, their intervals and their notes in A
Intervals count from the root: 1 is the root, ♭3 a minor third, 5 the fifth. Two scales with the same intervals sound the same in any key; the notes change with the key.
| Scale | Intervals | In A | Where you hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minor pentatonic | 1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7 | A C D E G | Rock, blues and metal solos; the first scale most guitarists learn to improvise with. |
| Major pentatonic | 1 2 3 5 6 | A B C♯ E F♯ | Country, pop and major-key blues: bright and open, with no notes that clash. |
| Blues scale | 1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7 | A C D E♭ E G | The minor pentatonic with the flat fifth added: the blue note that gives blues its bite. |
| Major (Ionian) | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 | A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ | The scale every other one is measured against, and the sound of most pop and folk melodies. |
| Natural minor (Aeolian) | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 | A B C D E F G | The sad or serious sound of most minor-key songs, from ballads to metal. |
| Harmonic minor | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 7 | A B C D E F G♯ | The natural minor with a raised 7th: the exotic, neoclassical sound of metal leads and flamenco. |
| Melodic minor | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 7 | A B C D E F♯ G♯ | The natural minor with a raised 6th and 7th: jazz, and classical melodies going up. |
| Dorian | 1 2 ♭3 4 5 6 ♭7 | A B C D E F♯ G | Minor with a bright 6th: funk, soul, Santana-style rock and modal jazz. |
| Phrygian | 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7 | A B♭ C D E F G | Minor with a dark flat 2nd: metal riffs and Spanish-sounding lines. |
| Lydian | 1 2 3 ♯4 5 6 7 | A B C♯ D♯ E F♯ G♯ | Major with a raised 4th: dreamy, floating, heard in film music and Satriani's leads. |
| Mixolydian | 1 2 3 4 5 6 ♭7 | A B C♯ D E F♯ G | Major with a flat 7th: the sound of classic rock riffs, blues and Celtic tunes. |
| Locrian | 1 ♭2 ♭3 4 ♭5 ♭6 ♭7 | A B♭ C D E♭ F G | The darkest mode, with a flat 2nd and 5th: rare, used for tension in metal. |
How to practise a scale
- Learn one position at a time. Play it up and down slowly, one finger a fret, and find its roots: they're your way back home in a solo.
- Play it in time, with the exercises below or a metronome, at a tempo where every note is clean, and let the speed come later.
- Play it in sequences, in threes and fours, so the notes come out as phrases rather than a run.
- Join it to the next position: a run that starts in one and ends in the other, until the line between them disappears.
- Make music with it. Improvise a few notes at a time over a backing track or a drone on the root, and listen to which notes sound like home.
Scale exercises
- C major, open positionFingers 1, 2 and 3 for frets 1, 2 and 3; each note rings until the next.
- A minor pentatonic, box 1Fingers 1 and 4 for the three-fret gaps, 1 and 3 for the two-fret ones; bend the 8th fret of the B string with the 3rd finger, helped by the 2nd.
- A minor pentatonic, box 2The 1st finger takes the 7th and 8th frets, the 3rd and 4th the 9th and 10th; bend the 10th fret of the D string with the 3rd finger.
- Pentatonic in 3sThe first note of each group lands on the beat; count the threes in your head.
- Pentatonic across the neckShift on the first note of each bar, with the finger that starts the new shape; the rest of the bar stays in it.
- G major, three notes per stringStretch for the whole steps rather than moving the hand; the thumb stays behind the neck.
- G major in groups of fourAccent the first note of each group; the hand stays in one place, one finger a fret from the 2nd.
- A minor, three notes per stringEach string starts on the other stroke from the last; accent the first note of every beat.
- Fretboard notes trainerLearn the note names the scales are spelled in.
Questions
Which guitar scale should I learn first?
The minor pentatonic, if you play rock, blues or metal: five notes, two a string, with no wrong notes to avoid. Its first box, from the root on the low E string, is where nearly everyone starts. If you play folk, pop or classical, the major scale in open position is the better first step.
What are scale positions?
A position is the part of a scale that fits under one hand place on the neck. The pentatonic has five, one starting on each of its notes; seven-note scales are often learned as seven three-notes-per-string shapes, or as five CAGED shapes. Together, a scale's positions cover the whole fretboard.
What's the difference between a scale and a mode?
A mode is a major scale started from another of its notes: D Dorian has the same notes as C major but centres on D, which gives it a minor sound with a bright 6th. On the guitar the shapes are the same as the major scale's; what changes is which note you treat as home.
What is the CAGED system?
A way of mapping the neck through the five open chord shapes C, A, G, E and D. Each scale position sits around one of the shapes, so knowing where a chord's five shapes are tells you where the scale's positions are. The pentatonic boxes line up with them one to one.
How do I memorise scale shapes?
One position at a time, played slowly and in time, saying or thinking the root as you pass it. Then join two positions with a run that crosses from one to the other, and use the shape to make up short phrases over a backing. A shape you make music with sticks far better than one you only run up and down.