The Best Online Guitar Lessons (Reviews with Comparisons)

Updated November 1, 2022

Who provides the best online guitar lessons? Lucky for you we’ve done the hard research to help you choose the best service that fits your needs perfectly.

Our Top 3 Picks:

Best Choice

VIEW

Most Diverse

VIEW

Premium Pick

VIEW

Who Offers the Best Online Lessons for Acoustic or Electric Guitar?

There are more guitar lesson providers than ever before, making the instrument hyper-accessible for students in the 21st century.

If you’re one of the thousands looking to learn guitar online, you may be wondering which website or subscription is the one for you. Which one is the best choice?

To help you make a good decision, we’ve compared all the major players side by side with thorough reviews to help you find which one is truly the best online guitar lesson site.

Note: This is a long article. For the TL;DR version, you might want to skip to the Final Summaries section, then navigate to any of the full reviews you may be interested in.

The most important questions;

• • How easy is the website to access/navigate?
  • How affordable are the lessons?
  • Are the lessons and instructors engaging?
  • And how diverse are the song or lesson video options in genre, style, or difficulty?

By pitting the top, most popular and well known sites against each other, we’ll analyze how well they stand up to these questions giving you a solid start on which lesson site is best for you.

Each site has been thoroughly reviewed by our Guitar Niche staff slowly working through beginner, song, and advanced technique lessons, as well as trying out some of the extra features like tuners, chord finders, ear training, and more.

We certainly hope you find this article helpful, informative and unbiased. Just so you know, we may receive compensation if you use the links on this page. If you do, thank you so much!

Top Guitar Lesson Websites Compared:

Service	Cost	Rating	Offer?
1. GuitarTricks	$19.99 per Month	(4.1 )	14 Day Free Trial
2. TrueFire	$29.00 per Month	(4.3)	30 Day Free Trial
3. ArtistWorks	$35.00 per Month	(4.1)	Free Samples
4. Justin Guitar	$0.00 per Month	(4.2)	Trial – N/A
5. Fender Play	$9.99 per Month	(4.0)	50% Discount on Annual Plan
6. JamPlay	$19.99 per Month	(3.9)	Free Trial
7. Guitareo	$10.58 per Month (billed annually)	(4.3)	30 Day Free Trial

Top Online Guitar Lesson Sites Reviewed

1. Guitar Tricks

Guitar Tricks is one of the most complete, and user friendly lesson sites on the market featuring a wide range of tools, lessons, and add-ons.

Boasting over 11,000 video lessons per their website, there is surely something for everyone on Guitar Tricks.

Before we dig in and walk through, some of the highlights include the vast number of lessons previously mentioned as well as the large volume of song lessons the site features.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4.1 / 5)

Overview

At the most basic levels of review, Guitar Tricks checks a lot of boxes you should be looking for. It has an easy to navigate website and homepage in addition to one of the largest selections of diverse technique, genre, and song lessons databases online.

The linear and easy to follow “core lesson plan” starts all players off with a series of video levels split into multiple chapters.

Each level is taught by the same instructor throughout and lets you branch off into specific genres as you move up in skill.

While there are no famous, “rock star” instructors like some of the other sites boast, the instructors are nonetheless engaging and informative.

Product Services/Highlights

One of the best features of Guitar Tricks has to be how user friendly the website is while still retaining the highest quality video lessons.

The site doesn’t overcomplicate itself, and clearly labels where beginners should start while displaying the paths they will soon follow on their learning journey.

GuitarTricks’ video lessons are engaging, high definition videos featuring pop-up tablature and musical notation along with multiple screens displaying the strumming and fretting hands of the instructor.

Lessons can also be sped up or slowed down to help you follow along with the video at your own pace while the more advanced song lessons feature a more interactive set up with built in guitar tuner and recommendations for gear.

The ease of use and quality of lessons is really where the value of Guitar Tricks is fully on display.

In addition to the diverse lesson toolbox, the site has great add-ons such as a diverse list of song lessons available, a jam station for improvisation practice, and forums for chatting with other students.

The Good / What We Like

While many of these sites bombard you with too many features and tools to remember, Guitar Tricks focuses on offering easy guitar lessons for beginners are easy to access and keep up with.

This emphasis on making it easy to learn guitar is a more important but less glamorous selling point.

Guitar Tricks also has one of the largest and most diverse collections of song lessons, an important feature that keeps students engaged as they move past the beginner stage and begin to lose interest or the need for formal lessons.

Furthermore, these advanced song and technique lessons come with expanded tools like chord finders, scale finders, and jam stations that really increase the practice capabilities of students.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

While it isn’t necessarily a negative, all these top notch features that make it one of the best guitar lesson sites come at a cost of $19.99 per month, in the mid to high range of the subscription options reviewed here.

For this price, some students may expect perfection, and the lack of some features like an “ask the teacher” button on video lessons or section for taking notes that other sites has been replaced by other add-ons like lyrics or external links.

However, this is generally nit picking and we feel the subscription cost is fair for the volume of lessons available to the student.

GuitarTricks Summary

View Guitar Tricks’ Free Trial Here >>

2. TrueFire

TrueFire is a bit unique when compared to other guitar lesson sites in the sense that it comes jam packed with great features, but also has many different subscription options.

Free to sign up for, you can pay for all-inclusive access, or buy and download individual lessons or lesson plans.

With over 600+ collaborating instructors, over 900 courses, multiple thousands of videos, and great reviews from students and critics alike, TrueFire is one of the most dense, complete lesson sites you can learn from.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4.3 / 5)

Overview

With an easy to follow website and linear lesson plans, anyone should be able to navigate their way around and search through the site’s many, engaging lessons with ease.

For those looking to learn from the pros, you’ll be happy to know TrueFire also boasts several famous instructors such as Steve Vai, JD Simo, Robben Ford, Alex Skolnick, Jennifer Batten, and a host of other recognized personalities.

In addition to straight ahead lesson plans based on the genre or style you wish to learn, there is also a Channel section to help build community involvement.

For beginners, there is a Learning Paths section designed to take the edge off of having to read music and make the getting started process as easy as possible.

Basic subscription packages start at $29 per month for complete access to the site, players who sign up for free have access to a decent selection of free lessons or can pay per downloaded video lesson.

Product Services/Highlights

When compared to cheaper or free alternatives, you’re certainly getting access to a huge volume of lessons for the price.

And we were impressed with the number of free lessons available, over 6000+ according to the site at the time of writing.

But there were not many free online guitar lessons for beginners, so these are probably better suited for more advanced players.

One of the best services that comes with this site has to be the “In the Jam” function that lets you practice improvising over pre-recorded full band or guitar arrangements for different styles, scales, and genres.

TrueFire also have a somewhat limited number of song options to learn, but the selection is very diverse in artists and genres.

Furthermore, they have a request a song function that allows students to ask for lessons for their favorite songs, which could really help grow that list in the months to come.

The Good / What We Like

We really love the “In the Jam” function and think that the volume of options it has is a great tool for students.

Improvising and creating your own music can be one of the hardest things to practice or learn, especially if you’re a solo guitarist alone in your home.

The addition of famous instructors is always a cool way to learn techniques or playing styles from the people using them every single night on tour as well.

For more advanced students, access to a large number of free lessons makes this a very appealing option for those looking to continue their education, not begin it.

Another cool feature is their interactive video jam sessions with some of their top artists and instructors called “Trading Solos” which lets students learn directly from the source in an engaging manner.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

As with some of the other sites, the $29 per month can be a financial roadblock for many students, especially younger, less independent ones.

From a value standpoint, while the site has thousands of video lessons, the limited song selection, and presence of free access to the “In the Jam” function, may not make it worth paying for.

Likely, this would be a great supplementary site to others or live, in person lessons.

TrueFire Summary

Special for GuitarNiche readers: use code “PARTNER10” and get 10% OFF TrueFire >>

3. ArtistWorks

ArtistWorks is another site that strays a bit away from the basic template of the others reviewed here.

ArtistWorks features lesson plans built around what style of guitar playing you wish to learn such as Electric Rock Guitar or Acoustic Classical guitar, with each being taught by one dedicated instructor who leads you through the whole series.

ArtistWorks is also home to video lessons for almost every instrument you can imagine, outside of the guitar, making it the most musically diverse site discussed.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4.1 / 5)

Overview

ArtistWorks’ flagship lesson series may be the Electric Rock Guitar lessons taught by modern day icon Paul Gilbert, which are some of the best online rock guitar lessons.

Each series features its own unique teacher that guides you through lessons ranging from 2 to 15 minutes, keeping students engaged through various techniques, riffs, and songs.

Unlike all the other sites here, ArtistWorks doesn’t seem to have a dedicated page or database for song lessons.

Meaning you can’t just scroll through a list of options looking for your favorite Beatles or ACDC song.

What it may lack in songs or extra tools it makes up for diversity with woodwind, piano, mandolin, and many other instrument learning videos that can expand your musical skills.

Furthermore, the video exchange feature helps students connect, learn from each other, and stay engaged throughout their playing life.

Product Services/Highlights

The services here are a bit more straightforward than other lesson sites, you simply pick what style of music and instrument you want to play, and then you follow along from there.

There is also a menu that shows you all the instructors the site boasts, where you can choose which path or style to follow based on their description.

The biggest highlight has to be the Video Exchange Learning feature, which lets you post a live video of yourself playing and receive feedback from other students and a tailored video response from an instructor.

This helps make your online guitar learning experience much more personal than you may otherwise experience on rival websites.

This is site is really tailored towards beginners, and honestly doesn’t have many features meant to engage more advanced students such as a song database, gear demos, or musicianship training.

New From ArtistWorks

More recently, ArtistWorks has added a new Beginner Acoustic Guitar Course hosted by David Butler who is also the Chairman and Cofounder of ArtistWorks.

With a focus on comprehensive, step by step instruction, this fresh online guitar course is designed to help first time players avoid getting frustrated.

The Good / What We Like

The Video Learning Exchange feature is really something special, especially because you get that detailed video response from an instructor helping to critique your playing.

Having that personal interaction can really help keep some students engaged and motivated to improve, practice, or complete their whole lesson series.

Overall, the video lessons are great and the ones we had access to showed off the instructor’s enthusiasm for the material as well as an active community of students responding to the videos.

They most certainly are good guitar lessons for beginners, but lack upper levels of advancement.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

ArtistWorks is overall the most expensive out of all the sites, with a yearly package coming in at $35 a month (3 month term), to as low as $23.25 a month for a twelve month term.

Personally, we think you may not get enough value for that price, especially without advanced musicianship training such as ear interval or songwriting lessons.

Although, their recent expansion of courses, especially their full Beginner Acoustic Guitar Lessons course from Chairman and Cofounder David Butler to their platform, have added exceptional value to their platform.

But with no song database, student’s may be inclined to go to YouTube or tablature websites to learn their favorite songs.

This may ultimately pull them away from the site as they advance and grow towards other guitar coaching online.

ArtistWorks in Review

View ArtistWorks’ Master Players >>

4. Justin Guitar

Justin Guitar is the brainchild of popular YouTube teacher Justin Sandercoe and features an interactive and modern website.

The site features all the same videos as his YouTube channel, in a more organized, user friendly package.

Justin Guitar is further unique in that he is the sole instructor and produces hundreds of videos, lessons, and content himself without the help of other instructors, famous or otherwise.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4.2 / 5)

Overview

Justin Guitar is shockingly on par with all the other sites despite being a largely solo effort and has many of the same features you find elsewhere.

Song lessons, beginner lesson plans, and advanced techniques can all be found on Justin Guitar along with some interesting extras like podcasts and advanced theory lessons.

With engaging lessons for a variety of styles and genres, Justin Guitar has something for everyone and costs exactly zero dollars for full access. If you want to know how to learn guitar easily, this site may be the ticket.

Product Services/Highlights

For that incredibly tempting cost of $0, what do you get with Justin Guitar? The answer is a lot more than you might expect at that price point.

At the time of writing, the site boasts 940 lessons, 554 songs, musicianship lessons, and interval ear training.

Lessons and songs are color coded to indicate difficulty, and a helpful “beginners start here” path and welcome video make it easy for new students to navigate the web page and lesson plans.

At first glance, the song selection is also incredibly diverse with everything from Tracy Chapman to Ritchie Valens.

Justin’s musicianship lessons struck us as very impressive simply because they are featured or advertised so prominently on the site.

The drop down menu goes on to list really advanced lessons on production, songwriting, ear training, and transcribing, features that will surely keep students engaged long past their beginner days.

The Good / What We Like

Generally speaking, Justin Guitar has just about every major option, lesson, or section of all the other sites, but for free.

That’s a huge plus that could potentially make up for any of the limitations in lesson quantity or available tools that could be hampered by the site being a one man operation.

The familiarity of having the same teacher for all lessons is valuable as students who enjoy Justin’s style and lessons will be engaged time and time again while feeling comfortable with their learning.

Furthermore, the web site is beautiful built and offers super accessible guitar lessons for beginners by experts with clearly labeled options.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

Justin Guitar does lack some of the features that are standard on other sites such as pop up tablature that follows along or is displayed next to the video.

Other in-lesson tools such as a tuner or notepad are also missing when compared to the diverse user interface of JamPlay or Guitar Tricks.

Otherwise, there is a lot to like and a ton of excess value thanks to the free membership.

Justin Guitar Summary

View Justin Guitar for Free Here >>

5. Fender Play

One of the newest additions to this best online guitar lessons review, Fender Play was launched by the legendary guitar company just within the past few years.

Fender Play has become an important part of Fender’s attempt to preserve their legacy of excellence in all things guitar while attracting new players from an ever changing student pool.

Using a wide variety of instructors in age, gender, and race, Fender hopes to appeal to the ever diversifying musical scene with a modern update on traditional guitar lessons.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4 / 5)

Overview

Despite a much shorter history than competitors, Fender Play is another strong contender featuring an affordable monthly subscription cost of $9.99 per month.

Furthermore, the website has a wonderful, easy to navigate design that is integrated into Fender’s main website.

Boasting a number of instructors, interviews, and gear demos, Fender Play has something for everyone even if it lacks some of the famous instructors of other sites.

Fender Play lessons are engaging and are super accessible as every Squier and Fender guitar or bass sold comes with a free, 6 month subscription to the service.

Product Services/Highlights

The Fender Play lesson plan is designed around a linear progression called “My Path”, which makes it super easy for students to begin learning, get hooked, and make steady progress.

Each student chooses their path based on the genre they wish to learn and options include rock, blues, folk, country, and pop for electric guitar as well as other options for acoustic, bass, and ukulele.

Fender Play also features a diverse list of song lessons, many that they incorporate directly into your path, as well as gear demos, articles, guitar tuners, and support for their IOS app to help you learn guitar online fast.

All of this comes included free with your monthly subscription giving you plenty of value compared to many of the $20 per month options.

The Good / What We Like

Fender’s “My Path” lesson plan is one of the most easy to use and streamlined lesson plans on the market, and is paired with an exceptional user interface that is so easy to use.

Videos have great tools comparable to other sites like playback speed options and pop-up tablature along with the song or style lessons.

They also boast over 500 song lesson options which are all very diverse in style, difficulty, and range from classics to modern hits.

Get 50% Off Fender Play >> Use Code “learntoplay50“

Lastly, one of our favorite things is how they incorporate songs and riffs into the “My Path” lesson plans early on.

This puts an emphasis on how making music can be a part of learning the guitar, which is important for engaging students and motivating them to practice.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

There isn’t much to complain about here, but while the $9.99 per month is on the cheap side, it can still create an extra monetary barrier to learning the guitar.

This is fairly mitigated by the 6 month subscription that comes with every new Squier or Fender guitar, making it more ideal for students planning on purchasing one of those specific products.

As with any new product, some people may be wary of the short history and lack of years of coverage in reviews for online guitar lessons.

Fender Play Summary

Try Fender Play Here >>

6. JamPlay

JamPlay is another veteran of the guitar lesson website world and has a long history of successful guitar coaching online.

While the site has a number of appealing features such as live lessons, famous instructors, and a plethora of tools, its song selection is widely focused on the rock and metal categories.

This makes it one of the best online rock guitar lessons even though it is structured around five, somewhat redundant genre based lesson plans.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(3.9 / 5)

Overview

Once again, JamPlay provides a lot of what beginner guitar students are looking for; quality instructors, song lessons, and a lot of diversity in the lesson options.

One nice touch is that the roster of instructors features a few high profile musicians, including Tosin Abasi, Steve Stevens, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, and Kaki King.

However, the web page and lesson choices are a little harder to navigate, presenting many options as opposed to a one stop shop for beginners that then branches as you progress.

Product Services/Highlights

As stated before, many of the highlights of JamPlay are based around the sheer volume of video lessons for techniques, theory, and professional styles. Another great service is the diverse set of tools found with each video lesson.

Tabs for supplemental info (tablature, backing tracks, PDF documents), notes, comments, and ask a teacher functions are all easily accessed below the videos.

Furthermore, with your subscription of $19.99 per month, you get access to live lessons, their “jamchat” forum, interviews, and fun training games. Definitely a lot of bang for your buck in terms of extras.

The Good / What We Like

There are tons of awesome features packed into the subscription mentioned above, and there are so many lessons ranging from beginner to pro level options.

All these, along with access to lessons from famous musicians, make it one of the best guitar lesson sites, but again it comes at a decent monthly price.

From the step by step acoustic guitar lessons for beginners to the plethora of electric rock and metal songs, there is a lot to like about JamPlay.

JamPlay also features one of the best sets of in-lesson or in-video toolboxes that should allow you to maximize your learning experience with supplemental materials or follow-along tablature.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

As engaging as the lessons are, there is one flaw in their beginner lesson plan in our opinion. Instead of one, streamlined beginner lesson plan that branches out as the guitarist learns, they lead students to a page with dozens of beginner lessons and ask them to choose their own.

Some people may enjoy digging through each lesson to find the best one, but it may also frustrate some students who struggle to find what they are looking for, or begin a lesson sequence only find out half way through it isn’t the one for them.

Furthermore, your song lesson options and famous instructors are mostly focused on hard rock and heavy metal, with very little diversity otherwise, which may make it one of the best online rock guitar lessons site, but not generally the best site overall.

Jamplay Summary

View JamPlay’s Free Trial Here >>

7. Guitareo

Guitareo, though relatively new, has actually been around for years in the form of GuitarLessons.com hosted by Nate Savage.

As part of the Musora Media Inc family of music education platforms, Guitareo essentially has a rocket attached to its future as a guitar lessons provider that must be taken seriously.

In a highly competitive remote learning market, you gotta be different – and good at what you do. In this respect, Guitareo is making huge gains.

EDITOR’S RATING:

(4.3 / 5)

Overview

Guitareo’s core offering is “The Method” which is designed to give players an easy and wholistic way to start enjoying the guitar.

Aimed primarily at beginners, the course walks you through each step of learning guitar starting with basic functions such as tuning, all the way through to the principles of complex soloing.

But there’s much more than that, Guitareo is packed with highly informative video-rich content.

From a user’s point of view, the video lessons are in bite-size lengths of around 15 minutes, but can be longer or shorter depending on how long it takes to fully illustrate the lesson.

This short-form video length format not only makes it very easy to digest individual topics and concepts, it gives you a real sense of progress and lets you manage your time more effectively.

Similar to GuitarTricks, Guitareo is not necessarily driven by leveraging historically recognizable guitar gods. Still, the instructors are extremely personable, engaging and knowledgable professionals.

Product Services/Highlights

If you’re oriented towards value, Guitareo has it in spades.

Compared to other platforms, their price point is extremely reasonable at $15.00 per month. Not quite Fender Play territory and certainly not free, but you do get the insights and benefits of multiple instructor insights versus a single individual.

As video becomes more of the standard in media used for teaching, the bar keeps getting set higher. And Guitareo is no slouch – instructional videos are well produced in terms of production value using multiple angles and split screens wherever appropriate.

As mentioned, beyond the Method, you’ll find multiple sections covering specific topics in detail. If there’s a particular topic, concept, chord, scale or technique, chances are Guitareo has a lesson for it.

Like any service, you should like the people you’re working with. Guitareo’s instructors make that very easy, but some players may find the presentations a little too gimmicky for their tastes.

As for the instructors, this area is a little thin, at least for the time being. If you’ve been actively seeking out guitar lessons online, there’s no doubt you’ve come across the “Guitareo girl” Ayla Tesler-Mabe – who is a featured instructor for many of the lessons.

As we pointed out previously, you’ll find a substantial amount of course material hosted by Nate Savage. It’s clear to see the majority of Nate’s previous educational guitar material has been incorporated under the Guitareo umbrella.

If you’re a fan of having materials to work with offline, you’ll appreciate the fact that many of the lessons have downloadable assets for handy reference later.

There are jam tracks, a quick tips section and lesson “packs” which are bundles of lessons that comprehensively cover top-level techniques and topics very thoroughly.

In the Student Focus section, you have the ability to get first-hand feedback from the instructors by submitting a video. There’s also a library of live Q&A lessons, each about an hour in length, packed with insights from the teachers and feedback from students in real-time.

Likewise, the forums section is a lively communications hub where members can interact with each other. It’s also a pipeline to the platform developers and folks behind the scenes who take feedback from users, and rightly so, very seriously.

Between the Student Focus and Forums sections, you get the impression Guitareo’s platform is highly geared towards interaction.

One interesting, and ambitious feature is 500 Songs in 5 Days. The underlying premise here lies in illustrating the basic skills that can be used to play hundreds of familiar songs.

While the 500 Songs concept is sound, it’s definitely more of a primer geared towards beginner students.

The Good / What We Like

What Guitareo lacks in current content, it makes up for in opportunity.

With the amount of work being put into the platform’s growth, compatibility and usefulness, there’s no doubt you’ll see a steady stream of new content and even more robust features in the very near future.

Well illustrated lesson videos feature close-ups and split screens of the skills being applied, topics are covered thoroughly, plus the accompanying diagrams, tabs or notation are downloadable.

Even though the platform is relatively new, there’s a robust forum and options to get real, meaningful feedback from the instructors.

The Bad / What We Don’t Like

Guitareo’s strength is also it’s weakness. Because it’s one of the newer players in the lessons market, it has relatively few instructors. Additionally, compared to other sites in the space that have been around for a long time, not nearly the same volume of instructional material.

Furthermore, while the vast majority of the site is well-populated, some sections are still in the process of being fleshed out.

While there is a section specifically for Chords, scales are mysteriously missing, though they are available as videos lessons in the Courses section or can be found using the site’s search field.

Guitareo Summary

View Guitareo’s Free Trial Here >>

Online Lessons Guide

When looking for online guitar lessons it’s important to remember what the end goal is; to learn the guitar.

You should always be looking for ease of use, helpful features and tools, quality instructors, and tons of lesson options to keep you engaged as you grow.

Let’s take a look at key factors you need to consider when trying to learn guitar online.

What to Look for

An Easy to Navigate Website

Regardless of your comfort with technology, you always want to easily find what you’re looking for when you’re on a lesson site.

Time wasted searching for beginner’s lessons or a song page is practice time wasted.

Websites that have well labeled “Beginner’s Start Here” functions on their homepage are some of the best online guitar training sites because they make it so easy for new students to get started.

Even better, helpful features like prominently displayed drop down menus or website introductions serve as awesome tutorials and introductions to the product you’re either trying or buying.

A Large Volume of Diverse Lessons

Whether you’re a beginner or more experienced player, one of the first things you should look for on a lesson site is how numerous and variable the lessons are.

Unless you’re going there to strictly learn punk rock and that’s it, explore the song options, techniques, genres, or musicianship offerings to see if there is enough, engaging content to keep you on the site.

• Are there lessons on the same topic with different skill lessons so you can grow in a linear manner?
• Can you learn a handful of genres or playing styles on the site?
• How many of your favorite songs are featured?

All important things to consider when searching for the best beginner guitar lessons.

Engaging, High Quality Guitar Instructors

Different sites offer different instructor options and you should carefully comb through to find which suits you best. Do you want to learn from only one instructor who you can build familiarity and trust with?

Or, would you rather have numerous, diverse teachers and maybe a few recognizable touring musicians?

When it comes to guitar coaching online you need to be careful to make sure your instructors have a history of good reviews, testimonials from pros, and guitar skills that align with what you want to learn.

Lastly, you have to like the instructors, maybe they crack jokes, maybe they know a ton about gear, whatever it is, make sure you want to be watching them for minutes or hours at a time.

The Cost of the Lessons Makes Sense to You

For those students on a tighter budget than others, it is always important to maximize the value of your guitar related purchases.

Similar to gear shopping, you always want to get the best quality without paying top prices.

If you’re looking strictly for free online guitar lessons that may limit your options. First off, you should decide which site you like best regardless of price, and hopefully it’s one you can afford.

If not, start going down your list or ranking of the sites, and think about all the things you absolutely need to learn guitar, this is different than what you want.

Also, consider how long you want lessons or access to the site, if it’s a short time it may be worth it to pay for access to a ton of lessons, even at premium prices.

Answers To Common Questions

Not sure where to start when looking for online guitar lessons? Feel like you have more questions than answers? We’ve collected some FAQs (frequently asked questions) and with our best answers to each one included below.

Be sure to check here for a definitive guide on how to learn guitar online thanks to our reviews, informative articles, answers, and other resources.

How much does a membership to each site cost?

Generally, the prices range from $0 per month to $35 per month based on subscription plans and site to site differences.

Justin Guitar is the only completely free offering we’ve reviewed here, while Fender Play comes in at an affordable $9.99 per month.

True Fire also features over 500+ free lessons but you will have to pay for access to the full beginner lesson plan.

A free six month Fender Play subscription also comes included with every new Squier or Fender guitar and bass purchased from licensed Fender dealers, meaning you can get a good package deal of free lessons with your first guitar.

How long does it take to get good at the guitar?

Check out our very own article on that topic! The short answer is that it is different for everyone and involves a combination of forming good habits.

These habits start to stick quickly over the first few months while also building physical muscle memory and calluses over the first few weeks.

Lastly, it also takes discipline and motivation by you, the student, to make time to pick up the guitar and practice scales, chords, and techniques.

Even if it isn’t always easy or as fun as playing along to your favorite song, practice makes perfect.

What makes a guitar instructor good?

Everyone will have a different answer to this question but usually you should be looking for two things: informative lessons and an engaging personality. You’re not likely to enjoy learning from an instructor you find annoying, boring, or out of touch with your playing goals.

That’s what makes shopping around these sites important, even if one option has all the specs or subscription package you may want, are the instructors a good fit for you?

On the other hand, an engaging personality may be fun to watch, but are they also providing the best teaching and instruction possible?

Can I just learn guitar on YouTube?

Technically yes, but YouTube has a less streamlined platform and does not monitor the quality of the teachers.

Essentially, you have to sift through lots of bad or amateur instructors, and even when you find the good ones you’ve likely wasted precious time.

What’s better to learn guitar on, YouTube or a lesson site?

In that everyone may have different preferences, lesson sites are generally better places to thoroughly learn guitar.

With thousands of lessons you can take in a linear fashion as well as built in tools, you just have access to more, quality information on lesson sites.

While many players learn through some combination of YouTube videos, forums, tablature websites, and lesson sits, the best guitar lessons for beginners can be found on these lesson sites.

When it comes to song lessons, lesson paths, tools like tuners or chord finders, and years of great ratings, these lesson sites have streamlined and improved on much of the info available on these other avenues.

While they may cost more money than the others, there is a reason you are paying, dedication and quality lessons don’t come cheaply – check out our article on the best way to learn guitar online to learn more!

Can I learn my favorite songs on these lesson sites?

For the most part you probably can, unless your favorite song is some obscure, underground single. Many of these sites feature 300+ song lessons and they’re adding more every week.

While tabs and chords can be found at a number of other free websites such as songsterr.com or ultimate-guitar.com, you get the best, most detailed lessons from lesson sites like these.

What sites features famous musicians and guitarists?

JamPlay.com and TrueFire.com feature lessons from guitar luminaries like Tosin Abasi, Steve Stevens, and JD Simo.

FenderPlay.com often features live videos, interviews, or gear demos with famous musicians as well.

What site has the best beginner guitar lessons course?

Each site has their individual benefits, but one will probably stand out as the best fit for you.

Read each review above to make sure you have all the information you need to make an educated decision based on your individual needs.

When you think you’ve found your winner, see below for a quick final comparison to confirm your choice.

Is it worth it to pay for online guitar lessons for beginners?

In the grand scheme of things, you’ll get so much more out of your guitar playing with the right lessons from the get-go.

Pay once to get the best lessons, and you’ll never have to pay again when you need to re-learn or break bad habits.

Wrapping It Up, Which Provider Is Best For You?

Throughout this article, we’ve focused on four main specs throughout this article: engaging lesson plans, diverse lesson choices, affordable monthly subscription cost, and easy to navigate web pages.

But there’s more than what we see on the surface.

Editor’s Personal Notes

The remote learning space in general has become extraordinarily competitive and will continue to do so as the bar keeps getting set higher.

For us users, this is a good thing. In terms of choice, variety and price-points, there’s literally something for everybody.

At the end of the day, there are a number of factors which influence your decision for a particular educational service. Beyond the most obvious – cost, the most important elements in my opinion can be summed up in two simple questions:

• Do you like the people you’re working with?
• And, are you getting what you need out of the lessons?

Considering what you can get out of YouTube, these questions find answers pretty quick. But for some things you have to fish for the exact information you want.

The ultimate irony is that all of the services listed here got their start or at the very least have a YouTube channel. Moreover, many successful services are the result of aggressive marketing with big budgets; some are more sizzle than steak.

If you do decide to subscribe to a paid service, they better be prepared to offer up something special you can’t find anywhere else – and that’s a tall order.

Every provider has their own “secret sauce”. Hopefully, we’ve provided enough insight to give you a taste of each one.

Final Summaries

GuitarTricks

GuitarTricks has been a fan favorite and for many years. In the online guitar lessons race, it’s the dominant force and one of the most well known websites out there.

The site features great options and an extraordinary amount of material to draw from, but to be frank, we’re not completely convinced they contain anything that strictly justifies the cost of a subscription membership.

However, GuitarTricks does have a long history of success, online reviews and customer testimonials for you to justify a decision.

Truefire

Looking for a runner up? TrueFire would be choice number two thanks to their incredibly useful “In the Jam” feature that should keep students engaged longer, even after they have their beginner phase.

While their lesson selections are engaging and competitive, the price of $29 per month really limits the value when compared to Justin Guitar specifically.

However, the ability for players to practice improvising or song writing with the large selection of pre-recorded “In the Jam” tracks is a huge addition that not all sites have.

ArtistWorks

Our premium pick ArtistWorks, while still good, unfortunately comes in last place for recommended paid programs. Reasons being it has no song database, a top-heavy subscription cost, and relatively limited styles.

Having said that, we still think ArtistWorks is great at teaching specific things in depth and the instrument variety is convenient, but it just doesn’t feel as suited for modern students compared to the other sites.

More recently, ArtistWorks, has raised the bar by aggressively expanding their lesson courses in an effort to become a more robust service for modern students.

They have fully realized the need for a broader range of options for all players, including multiple styles and catering to different experience levels.

JustinGuitar

If cost is your primary motivator, the overall winner in all four categories would have to be Justin Guitar.

Why? First off, lessons via Justin Sandercoe and his website are completely free, which just makes them more accessible and a greater value than any other site listed here.

Furthermore, there is little to no drop off in quality or quantity of lessons when comparing Justin Guitar’s free site to more costly $10 per month or more options.

He has the same or more song lessons, technique lessons, and a really great section dedicated to musicianship training.

But – he’s just one guy. If his personality doesn’t resonate with you, you either have to learn to like him or look elsewhere.

Still, with all these features, we just can’t justify spending more money per month for lessons of the similar or equal quality and diversity. Reddit users certainly seem to agree as he’s one of the guitar favorites with his own subreddit.

Fender Play

If you’re a beginner who is considering buying a Fender or Squier product to learn guitar or bass on, then Fender Play is the choice for you without a doubt.

The 6 month free trial that comes with each new instrument will save you money and give you plenty of time to get comfortable with the instrument and platform before deciding to subscribe or move on to another site.

Jamplay

If you’re more into the aggressive side of guitar (hard rock, metal etc), JamPlay’s your best option with a long list of celebrity instructors, tools, and a massive library of lessons.

Similar to GuitarTricks, Jamplay has shared a long history as a go-to site for guitar instruction. Will they continue to stand up over time? Only history will tell.

Their achilles heel may actually lie in their continuous focus on the heavier style of guitar. Not a bad thing at all, but when heavy music falls out of favor with the trends, it becomes a liability.

Guitareo

Our latest addition Guitareo has a hidden advantage. They get to draw on all the experience of the other competitors to create an educational platform that’s more in line with the what students are looking for – today.

With a modest, yet robust collection of well-produced lessons and courses geared mostly towards beginners, Guitareo is thoughtfully laid out which makes getting a grip on developing your first playing skills that much easier.

On the downside the platform has relatively few instructors and some sections are obviously still under development.

On the upside, Guitareo is constantly evolving: adding functionality, content, new features, additional tools and looks to have a very bright future.

Final Comparisons

Service	Cost	Rating	Offer?
	$19.99 per Month	4.1 / 5	Trial – Yes
	$29.00 per Month	4.3/ 5	Trial – Yes
	$35.00 per Month	4.1 / 5	Trial – Yes
	$0.00 per Month	4.2 / 5	Trial – N/A
	$9.99 per Month	4.0 / 5	Trial – Yes
	$19.95 per Month	3.9 / 5	Trial – Yes
	$10.58 per Month	4.3 / 5	Trial – Yes