Ukulele Fretboard

Learn the fretboard

Do you even need to learn the notes?

Short answer: not to strum songs. If you are happy playing chords, you already know enough. But the moment you want to pick out a melody, work out a riff, or just understand what your fingers are doing, knowing the notes on the neck makes everything click. It is the difference between following shapes and actually knowing your way around.

And do not let it scare you. It looks like a wall of notes, but it is far less than it seems once you break it up. Most players learn it slowly, a little at a time, and so can you.

Start with the four you already know

Your four open strings are G, C, E and A. You learned these the first time you tuned up, so that is a quarter of the job done already. A lot of people use a silly phrase to keep the order straight, like Good Cats Eat Anchovies. Whatever sticks is fine.

G   C   E   A

Get those four rock solid before you worry about anything else on the neck.

How the fretboard actually works

Here is the whole idea in one line: every time you move up a fret, you move to the next note along. Play an open string, then the 1st fret, then the 2nd, and you are just walking through the notes one step at a time.

Two things make it easier than it looks. First, once you pass the 12th fret everything repeats, so you only ever have to learn the first eleven frets. Second, most notes have a sharp or flat between them, but a couple do not: B and C sit right next to each other, and so do E and F. That is really all the theory you need to get going.

How to make the notes stick

This is where most people go wrong. They stare at a chart and try to cram it. These are the tricks that actually work, straight from players who have been there.

1. 1
   Say the note out loud every time you play it. It feels daft, but saying "C… C… C" as you land on it is the single most recommended trick, and it works.
2. 2
   Lean on the chords you already know. Play a C chord: that finger on the A string, 3rd fret, is a C note. You already know loads of notes without realising it, hiding inside your chord shapes.
3. 3
   Learn frets 5 and 7 next. They have no sharps or flats, so they are easy wins. Across the strings the 5th fret spells C, F, A, D and the 7th spells D, G, B, E. Make up a daft phrase for each, like Can't Fight Angry Dogs and Don't Get Bad Energy.
4. 4
   Do a little, often. Two minutes a day beats an hour once a week. Pick one note and find it everywhere on the neck, then move on.
5. 5
   Check yourself with the tool above. Tap a note to see where it lives, or hit Show Scales to see how the notes join up. Seeing it beats reading about it.

Be patient with it

Everyone finds this slow at the start, and that is completely normal. You are not bad at it, you just have not done it enough times yet. Keep chipping away and one day you will glance at the neck and simply know where things are. Until then, enjoy your playing. You do not need every note memorised to have a great time on the uke.

Common questions