# Where should I start learning iTensor as a beginner?

**URL:** <https://itensor.discourse.group/t/where-should-i-start-learning-itensor-as-a-beginner/2637>\
**Category:** General Discussion\
**Created:** [September 10, 2026, 10:29pm UTC](https://itensor.discourse.group/t/where-should-i-start-learning-itensor-as-a-beginner/2637 "2026-09-10T22:29:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![MHSZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@MHSZ](https://itensor.discourse.group/u/MHSZ)\
**Post date:** [September 10, 2026, 10:29pm UTC](https://itensor.discourse.group/t/where-should-i-start-learning-itensor-as-a-beginner/2637/1 "2026-09-10T22:29:31Z")

</div>

Hi everyone,

I’m a master’s student studying Quantum Computing and Quantum Information. My semester starts in about 10 days, and I’d like to get a head start on learning iTensor.

I spoke with my advisor, and they recommended that I become familiar with the package before the semester begins. I’m currently looking for reliable learning resources and beginner-friendly examples.

Where would you recommend I start? Are there any tutorials, documentation pages, courses, or example projects that would be particularly useful for someone new to iTensor?

Thanks a lot for your help!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![miles](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/itensor.discourse.group/miles/32/6_2.png) [@miles](https://itensor.discourse.group/u/miles)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2026, 12:34am UTC](https://itensor.discourse.group/t/where-should-i-start-learning-itensor-as-a-beginner/2637/2 "2026-09-11T00:34:59Z")

</div>

Hi MHSZ,  
Thanks for the good question. Right now, the best resources to learn about ITensor are the following:

- Short tutorials with code in the ITensorMPS docs: [https://docs.itensor.org/ITensorMPS/stable/tutorials/DMRG.html](https://docs.itensor.org/ITensorMPS/stable/tutorials/DMRG.html). Try running these to get a feel for how the code runs, what kind of results you can get, etc.
- Code examples inside of the ITensorMPS source: [https://github.com/ITensor/ITensorMPS.jl/tree/main/examples](https://github.com/ITensor/ITensorMPS.jl/tree/main/examples)
- Code examples for more fundamental operators with the ITensor type: [https://docs.itensor.org/ITensors/stable/examples/ITensor.html](https://docs.itensor.org/ITensors/stable/examples/ITensor.html)
- Slides from the 2025 ITensor School: [https://itensor.org/school-2025/](https://itensor.org/school-2025/). Starting with “Talk 2” we show a lot of pieces of actual ITensor and ITensorMPS code.

For more quantum computing specific information and software:

- The “Tensor Network Quantum Simulator” (TNQS) package by Joey Tindall has a lot of powerful features for simulating quantum circuits in arbitrary dimensions: [https://github.com/JoeyT1994/TensorNetworkQuantumSimulator.jl](https://github.com/JoeyT1994/TensorNetworkQuantumSimulator.jl)
- For a pedagogical talk about the link between tensor networks and quantum computation, I have a 1.5 hour talk that many people have found useful: [https://youtu.be/fq3\_7vBcj3g?si=YPPhpA0fSelYnTjb](https://youtu.be/fq3_7vBcj3g?si=YPPhpA0fSelYnTjb)