Guitar scale · pentatonic & blues
G Major Pentatonic Scale
Sweet 5-note major scale used for uplifting melodies in country, southern rock, and acoustic pop.
Tap any note to hear it.
G Major Pentatonic Scale tab: all 5 positions
Each tab climbs from the low E string to the high e string. Play it up, then back down.
e|---------------3-5-| B|-----------3-5-----| G|---------4---------| D|-------5-----------| A|-----5-------------| E|-3-5---------------|
e|-------------------5-7-| B|---------------5-8-----| G|-------------7---------| D|---------5-7-----------| A|-----5-7---------------| E|-5-7-------------------|
e|------------------------7-10-| B|-------------------8-10------| G|---------------7-9-----------| D|-----------7-9---------------| A|------7-10-------------------| E|-7-10------------------------|
e|-------------------------10-12-| B|-------------------10-12-------| G|----------------12-------------| D|-------------12----------------| A|-------10-12-------------------| E|-10-12-------------------------|
e|-------------------------------12-15-| B|-------------------------12-15-------| G|-------------------12-14-------------| D|-------------12-14-------------------| A|-------12-14-------------------------| E|-12-15-------------------------------|
How to play G Major Pentatonic on guitar
Find the root first: G is at fret 3 on the low E string and fret 10 on the A string. The blue notes on the diagram are every G on the neck; the gold ones are the rest of the scale's home chord (3, 5), the safest notes to land on at the end of a phrase.
Learn it one box at a time. Position 1, the E shape, sits at frets 3–6. Once it's under your fingers, move to position 2 (the D shape) and play the notes the two boxes share, then keep going up the neck. After all five, the scale joins up into one pattern across the whole fretboard.
G major pentatonic has the same five notes as E minor pentatonic, so the same box shapes work for both. See the E Minor Pentatonic Scale.
Degrees
| Degree | Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | G |
| 2 | A |
| 3 | B |
| 5 | D |
| 6 | E |
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Practise G Major Pentatonic anywhere, even offline.
This page is a small slice of Fretwise. The app adds practice: exercises that play as tab, a new routine every day, and the tools to tune and keep time. On iPhone, iPad and Android, no sign-up.
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Questions
- What notes are in the G Major Pentatonic Scale?
- The G Major Pentatonic Scale has 5 notes: G, A, B, D, E.
- What is the formula of the major pentatonic scale?
- 1 2 3 5 6, which is the step pattern W W W+H W W+H (W = whole step, H = half step).
- Where do I play G Major Pentatonic on the guitar?
- The root G is at fret 3 on the low E string and fret 10 on the A string. Position 1 (the E shape) covers frets 3–6, and four more positions connect it up the neck.