Best Electric Guitar For Beginners: Top 14 Picks + Buyers Guide!

Best Electric Guitar For Beginners

Introduction

As a newbie, selecting your first electric guitar is simple however deciding on the appropriate one for your needs may be hard. The market is stuffed with numerous amount of beginner electric guitars which might puzzle beginners. So don’t fear as we’ve got your back.

Particularly in case, you’re a brand new guitarist, the sheer quantity of choices in the marketplace can result in some severe choice paralysis. Would you like a guitar with a single or double cutaway, humbuckers, or maybe single coils? A maple or rosewood guitar body? All rough choices to make.

That’s why we’re right here. Our staff of consultants has been playing, shopping, promoting, and writing about electric guitars for a few years – and with this definitive guide to the very best beginner electric guitars, you’re getting all of their hard-fought years of experience in a single place that will help you discover the best beginner electric guitar for you.

So, regardless of your type, musical style, or ambitions, we’ll provide you with a complete overview of what you have to be on the lookout for when trying to find your first-ever electric guitar. From the completely different shapes available to the particular features and capabilities that matter most whenever you’re first beginning out, our article has you fully covered.

We just want to let you know that we’ll list these best electric guitar reviews in no particular order. They’ll be randomized as we don’t wish to sort them from best to worst.

Listed below are our Top 14 Best Electric Guitars for Beginners for 2023:

1. Ibanez Artcore AS73 Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar

Ibanez actually likes their semi-hollow and hollow-body guitars. They’re really excellent at making them. Great players like George Benson were determined to make it their guitar of choice. If individuals like that choose it for turning out their jazz, you might be doing one thing right.

They’ve been making these designs for over 30 years and have constructed a giant status at all levels. In some ways, they’ve set new requirements of what a semi or hollow body needs to be.

The AS73 is an Ibanez semi-hollow electric guitar that is a big member of their Artcore range of guitars. They have been first offered in 2002. Ibanez wanted to offer a variety of semi-hollow and hollow-body guitars at cost-effective costs.

The early designs of semi and hollow-body guitars got here with bad exterior noise problems. The hum they created, generally at 60Hz, made them troublesome to handle at times.

The answer was the humbucker that ‘bucked the hum.’ Ibanez developed their very own range of humbuckers for their Artcore range known as the Classic Elite.

They have been designed to offer you a full tone with loads of responses. With the AS73, they’ve fitted two humbuckers; the ACH1 on the neck and the ACH2 on the bridge.

2. PRS SE Standard 24

To begin with, the SE on this range of PRS guitars means “scholar edition.” The PRS SE Standard 24 is their most inexpensive electric guitar. It’s basically a lower-cost model of their SE Custom 24.

The PRS SE Standard 24 guitars are available in your selection of three beautiful body finishes. You might have a tough time selecting, however, you could finally purchase one in every color on the worth of this electric guitar.

The ceramic magnet does an awesome job balancing out the pure warmth of the guitar’s all-mahogany body. 85/15 S pickups are articulate and warm-sounding with loads of chime.

Each pickup sounds wealthy and well-balanced without sounding too “out-of-phase” or shallow when used together in both humbucker or single-coil configurations. The cut-up bridge pickup (single-coil configuration) has lots of bite without being too harsh sounding.

Each pickup sounds nice when performed via a high-gain amp or with distortion pedals. Notes stay distinctive when playing rhythm, even with complicated chords.

Though PRS has been identified for its “high-end” guitars which are usually out of the financial reach of most players, the corporate has branched out into the extra inexpensive “SE” market, focused on the beginning guitarist.

3. Epiphone Les Paul Studio Wine Red

The Epiphone Les Paul Studio Wine Red from the Inspired-by-Gibson sequence is a contemporary interpretation of the legendary electrical guitar with a simple no-frills concept that places sound and playing consolation within the foreground.

Accordingly, the electric guitar has a mahogany body with a top manufactured from veneered maple, whereas the glued mahogany neck has extraordinarily agile playing traits because of the slim “1960s Slim Taper D” profile.

On the guitar amp, the mix of Epiphone Alnico Classic and Alnico Classic Plus humbuckers present a variety of sounds between blues and rock, which can not deny its origins in the legendary PAF pickups.

Whereas the body of the Epiphone Les Paul Studio Wine Red features the confirmed LockTone Tune-O-Matic bridge and LockTone Stopbar tailpiece, six Grover Rotomatic tuners on the stylish Kalamazoo headstock guarantee exact and stable tuning.

Les Pauls have all the time been versatile guitars. The Alnico Classic humbucker pickups within the Epiphone guitars offer you every part from snarling rock aggression to velvety jazz smoothness. These humbucking pickups pack a ton of output, so you may by no means get lost within the mix.

Plus, with push-pull quantity pots, you possibly can break up the coils for different tonal textures. It doesn’t matter what type of music you play, the Epiphone Les Paul Studio comes right.

4. Squier Bullet Mustang

Squier – being the budget-friendly extension of Fender – has been chargeable for a number of the best beginner electric guitars you can get your arms on. In the event you’ve ever listened to music, we assure you’ll have heard a Fender, or presumably even a Squier electric guitar.

Straight out of the box, the Squier Bullet Mustang positively appears to be like the part. It’s accessible in Imperial Blue, Sonic Grey, and a regular Black gloss finish.

The finish is daring, even, and just about flawless, which is spectacular for beginner guitars that price nicely below $200. Paired up with the white pickguard and two Squier humbuckers, the Bullet Mustang is a guitar that appears like it’s prepared for action.

When it comes to hardware, the Bullet Mustang pleasantly stunned us, with a strong six-saddle hardtail bridge and die-cast tuners holding up nicely in all of our assessments. Particularly with regard to guitars for beginners, hardware is typically ignored, however a crucially necessary factor.

In case your guitar goes out of tune increasingly more with every chord performed, then it won’t be a guitar you wish to pick up very much. Fortunately, the Bullet Mustang doesn’t undergo too dramatically from these hardware qualms.

5. Ibanez Artcore AS53

If indie, blues, or jazz are your style, the Ibanez Artcore AS53 may nicely be the guitar for you. This semi-hollow electrical thrives on ringing, open chords due to a wealthy bridge humbucker whereas switching to the neck pickup will get you within the territory of some splendid warm, creamy tones.

The AS53 has a wooden middle block, which eliminates a number of the feedback related to hollow-body guitars, however, we’d nonetheless veer away from something too high-gain.

That stated this isn’t meant for the metalheads. The Ibanez Artcore AS53 as an alternative delivers way more in the way of a clear, pure tone which makes it straightforward for us to suggest.

Ibanez designed the AS53’s Infinity R pickups to offer you a warm and well-balanced tone. They actually carry out the depth and tonal complexity within the AS53’s all-Sapele body. At a similar time, Infinity R pickups do a tremendous job suppressing noise and decreasing the feedback that tends to plague semi-hollow body guitars.

Semi-hollow body guitars are utilized in most genres of music. The AS53 is nice for jazz, rockabilly, and plenty of different kinds of music. Remember that hollow bodies have additionally been utilized in rock ‘n’ roll, fusion, and even country bands. Get the Ibanez AS53 and begin playing with an enormous, fat hollow body tone immediately!

6. Fender Limited Edition Player Telecaster

The standard Telecaster stays the guitar world’s most enduring workhorse, and its Mexican-built 2018 incarnation is great as well!

Key additions this time around embrace a 22nd fret, all-purpose 241mm (9.5″) fretboard radius (which seems throughout the range), a set of old-school bent-steel saddles, and Alnico V Tele single-coils. Apart from this maple-fingerboard spec, you can too get a pau Ferro ’board for an additional tenner, whereas the hot-rodded dual-humbucker Tele HH is available at £579.

The Player Tele immediately wins points for its satin maple–finished neck, which handles like a dream. It makes a welcome change from the over-glossed necks that when populated Fenders on this value range and under, and it’s hard to think about a guitarist who wouldn’t get on with the comfy trendy C-shaped neck.

That bridge single-coil is likely one of the most well-rounded Tele bridge pickups we’ve heard at this value level – neither brash nor overloaded within the low-end, it’s completely balanced, supreme for Keef-style open G chordal riffage and large, open chords with a touch of a drive.

The Player Series Telecaster is an inexpensive possibility that is surprisingly refined. With a price ticket that is available well below $1,000, Fender has managed to pack in an impressive quantity of features without sacrificing construct quality.

7. Yamaha Pacifica 112V

First launched in 1993, the Yamaha Pacifica 112V electric guitar has earned its place on the table of high-quality electric guitars for learners. Whereas it doesn’t carry with it fairly the identical mojo as a Fender or a Gibson, this spectacular Strat-style guitar makes up for that with ranges of playability and construct quality that far exceeds expectations from its smaller price ticket.

A juicy-sounding humbucker on the bridge proved to us that overdriven sounds had been effectively attained during the testing, whereas the 2 single coils pickups offered an excellent breadth of tones. Whereas there are undoubtedly ‘low cost’ guitars you’ll outgrow very quickly, the Pacifica has sufficient interest to stay a staple in your roster for years to return.

Within the flesh, the Pacifica 112V – the ‘V’ denotes Alnico V pickups – seems much less Stratocaster than they do within the pictures, with extra pronounced higher horns on the body and an extra futuristic-looking headstock.

The unique Pacifica 112 line was virtually synonymous with the pure wooden finish which allowed the grain of its alder body to point out through nicely. Yes, you may get them in black or sunburst, however, the natural finish virtually gave the 112 an identification of its own.

8. Squier Affinity Strat

Probably one of the best beginner electric guitars out there, this ax is of nice help to kickstart your musical journey. The one factor we particularly like about it’s the C-shaped maple neck.

The poplar body is lightweight but gives sufficient support while shifting up and down the laurel fretboard. For additional steadiness, the bolt-on maple neck will make it more sturdy and durable.

In case you have your heart set on a Stratocaster to study, then the Squier Affinity Series Stratocaster might be just the ticket. As a genuine offshoot of Fender itself, Squier caters to learners and budget-conscious players with a broad variety of guitars that mirrors its huge brother.

The Squier Affinity Stratocaster features the identical visible stylings and options of its established brethren, together with three single-coil pickups, a lightweight alder body and maple neck, and a classic tremolo bridge. As a foot on the ladder, the Squier Affinity Series effectively value your consideration.

With the usual 25.5-inch scale size and 21 narrow-tall frets, it is extra fun to play with this guitar. It comes with the humbucking bridge pickup, single-coil center, neck pickup, and the 5-way blade pickup swap to provide you with more tonal choices.

9. Gretsch G5425 Electromatic Jet Club

Barely off the beaten track for beginners comes the Gretsch G5425 Electromatic Jet Club. As a longtime model in its own right, Gretsch electric guitars have an ideal heritage in delivering vintage-era tones and vibes however are often extra related to its variety of oversized hollow-body guitars. The Electromatic Jet Club, however, is solid-bodied electrical with two humbucking pickups that ooze class.

For players of rock, indie, and country, the Electromatic Jet Club will present a great-looking, excellent-sounding guitar that can last you properly past your preliminary learner stage. Additionally, they make an ideal alternative to all the standard Les Paul model guitars that beginner players more readily migrate to.

Beginning with the electronics and you could be excited to see a pair of Filter’Tron pickups, though don’t be too enthused – these are simply normal dual-coil humbuckers designed to seem like Filter’Trons. Nonetheless, inventory pickups, supply a high output.

With the pickup selector switch, you can select between the 2 or play both collectively by utilizing the toggle switch within the upper bout, whereas a master volume and tone management sit under the buckers.

To maintain the prices down, there isn’t a Bigsby tremolo, which we’re used to seeing on most Gretsch models. Nonetheless, the fastened Adjusto-Matic bridge is an effective addition, maintaining tuning stability and sustaining pretty long.

10. Yamaha Revstar RSS20

This entry-level Yamaha is so simple as it comes, selecting to forgo fancy options in favor of a no-nonsense approach. This amazing horned ax is paying homage to the old-school Yamaha SG, providing you with the look and vibe of this cult classic at a much more affordable value.

Like all of the Revstars, it’s a Gibson-esque set-neck design; these offset SG- impressed horns and a rounded heel make access to the highest 22nd fret a doddle, whereas the darkish rosewood ’board includes a slightly flatter-than-Gibson 350mm (13.75-inch) radius and medium-gauge, finely honed frets.

Housing two pretty high-output ceramic humbuckers, the Revstar RSS20 most positively brings the noise, making it the proper alternative for hard rock, punk, and even metal. The mahogany neck and body are lightweight and very comfy – particularly for beginners – whereas the slim neck profile is enjoyable to play with.

Hardware is pretty generic but actually purposeful, whereas the pickups, were designed by Yamaha and made by Korean giant G&B. Consequently, the 320 excels at playing rock ’n’ roll. It feels meaty and sounds it, too, from the mid-targeted crunch of the bridge to the saturated neck lead voice. It’s not essentially the most versatile guitar on the market, but it’s plenty of fun.

11. Squier Classic Vibe ’50s Stratocaster

Stealing from the wealthy archives of Fender Stratocaster and giving to the poor (ie, us), the Classic Vibe Strat provides 50s specs – maple fingerboard, single-ply pickguard – with modern playability, courtesy of the gloss-finished C form neck, full with skunk stripe down the rear.

The guitar’s sound of the Strat is so ingrained, that you already know when it isn’t right; thankfully, Squier has captured the model’s tonal to the fullest.

Each of the 5 pickup positions is snappy with a woody midrange that is quintessentially Strat, albeit a considerably generic one – these aren’t probably the most characterful or articulate single coils we have played, however evaluating them to higher-priced Fender models is lacking the point.

The cool neck, mellow center, and sharp bridge are all wonderful examples, however, the stars of this Strat are the in-between positions; if you wish to get your harder sound on, simply plug in a compressor and let fly.

The pickups are good overdriven performers, too; the maple board lends a little bit of additional sizzle, which helps them to cut through, though, as with a variety of Strats, we might rather the second tone control allow you to tone down the sharpness of the bridge pickup slightly than the middle. Nonetheless, there’s not a lot to dislike here.

12. Ibanez GRGA120

In case your inspiration to study the guitar comes from these super-fast players in the rock and metal world, you’re going to want an ax with a sure set of traits. The Ibanez GRGA120 would possibly simply be that guitar.

Using a slim neck with quick access throughout all of its 24 frets, and a pair of Infinity humbuckers, the GRGA120 is the right guitar for any budding Joe Satriani and Steve Vai followers.

It might not be essentially the most versatile – you’re unlikely to search out many indie bands utilizing Ibanez metal guitars, for instance – but we want to frame it one other means. It is a specialist guitar for a specialist model of music, and a really respectable one at that.

A guitar is simply as playable as its neck. The good factor the Ibanez GRGA120 has an easy and fast-playing maple neck. This snug neck is capped by a rosewood fingerboard with a super-flat 15.7″ radius and 24 jumbo frets, supplying you with the agility to execute quick single-note runs with ease.

From big dive bombs to delicate vibrato to stutter-like warbling, the Ibanez GRGA120’s tremolo is prepared for anything you throw at it. When not in use, the tremolo is strong and in tune; when in use it does your bidding all the way down to the microtone. Whether or not you want the trim for cool ’50s-era dips or large metal dives, the Ibanez GRGA120 is prepared.

13. Harley Benton SC-550

Thomann model Harley Benton’s single-cut electric is derivated by a classic; the Gibson Les Paul, with a bit of modern ESP Eclipse body horn effect too for good measure. Nevertheless, it’s no crass knock-off, both, with options that may profit beginner players.

The trendy contoured neck heel permits for comfy upper fret entry, The Roswell humbuckers (another Thomann) are pitched between mid and high-output; good all-rounders for players discovering their feet with totally different classic and trendy tones.

The SC-550 is not any straight-up LP knock-off, either. The cutaway is totally different. The neck heel is extra contoured, and extra trendy, whereas nobody is going to be fooled by the headstock and inlays. What would possibly bamboozle folks is after they reckon with the tone, feel, and that price.

The SC-550 has a jatoba fretboard, and whereas this appears ebony-esque it feels a bit more like rosewood. It is soft and familiar. Mix this with the SC-550’s D-profile neck, the 24.72″ scale, and the body’s stability, it makes for a basic single-cut feel. The SC-550 ships with a set of 0.010 D’Addario XL strings that actually get the perfect out of the single-cut robustness.

A shiny tonal character overall helps the neck humbucker to keep away from the pitfall of sounding darkish and uninspiring, too. Generally, it is a very good single-cut choice for those on a restricted budget.

14. ESP LTD EC-256

The ESP Eclipse might have started life as a tribute to a different very well-known single-cut – and the guitar that takes our last slot – nevertheless it has gone on to develop all of its own. Whereas a full-fat EC can cost a reasonable penny, the LTD EC-256 means that you can get the bone-crushing tone of its massive brother, at a way more manageable cost.

The beginner-friendly guitar market is a fiercely aggressive one. Nonetheless, this trendy, well-built guitar carves out its own place, delivering the single-cut tone you’d anticipate however in a slimmed-down and lightweight package.

We even have the inclusion of a coil-split, which lets you turn this tough rocker into the ultimate clear machine with a pull of tone management. So, in case you’re searching for a flexible LP type ax, that’s extraordinarily pleasant on your wallet, then look no further than the ESP LTD EC-256.

It has a solid mahogany body and rosewood frets and neck. There’s additionally a TOM bridge and a tailpiece hooked up to this guitar. You will be able to find pickups that are ESP-designed LH-150. It is available in two color choices, black and metallic gold.

Is it OK to learn electric guitar first?

Usually, folks want to know what type of guitar is less complicated to play. There are bodily variations between electric and acoustic guitars that could be thought about. Nonetheless, we consider the type of guitar you “want” to play to be the best to study, as you can be extra prone to establish good practice habits early in the process.

Electric guitars are bodily considerably simpler to play, assuming they’re correctly adjusted, as a result, they have a smaller body, thin and very playable neck, and use lighter gauge strings. The pickups and amplifiers do all of the work of projecting the sound, so a lighter contact together with lighter strings makes it simpler to play.

An electric guitar must be plugged into an amplifier, which has to be turned on before playing. For some, the additional effort that it takes to plug into an amplifier and switch it on could also be enough to keep them from playing as typically or benefiting from a spontaneous moment to pick it up and play.

Which guitar is best for beginners?

If you are after the best electric guitar for beginners, we will certainly direct you above and choose from the models we have listed. Those 15 models have a great guitar sound and are among the best electric guitars for beginners.

It all depends on the master tone that you are after. All of these picks have a unique guitar sound quality and will take you on a unique guitar-playing journey. Compared to an acoustic guitar, electric guitars have more electric sound quality than is usually found in electric guitar features.

Here we also listed models that are at a really affordable price if you are after your first guitar. There are also other guitars with a greater guitar sound quality, but in this article, we focused on beginner electric guitars.

How much do you have to spend on a beginner electric guitar?

Discovering the perfect beginner electric guitar is about balancing all the above with the cost. You possibly can pick up something between $150 and $200 that may stand you in good stead for learning; the extra you pay, the extra possible you’ll discover better guitar gear, pickups that provide extra definition, and higher construct quality.

That mentioned, most individuals don’t need to spend an excessive amount on their first electric guitar in case it’s not one thing they take to (plus, it offers you an excuse to improve a couple of years later!).

In the end, you’re the one that’s going to be playing the guitar, so it’s vital that you simply discover something that’s snug to play, and that inspires you to pick it up.

There are a ton of studying resources for beginner guitarists, in books and online guitar classes, too. YouTube has some nice content if you wish to educate yourself, plus there are many lecturers who might be happy to meet in person or educate through video call. There actually has by no means been a greater time to study!

Conclusion on Beginner Electric Guitars

Another great guide for all of the beginners out there. If you decide to get one of those picks we mentioned above, you will not be wrong. We tried to mention as many guitar brands as possible and some from the brands that make iconic guitars. If you are a beginner guitarist, your new electric guitar will enable to you start playing electric guitar with style.

We cannot exclude the best beginner’s electric guitar from this list, that will all depend on your personal preference and the style of music that you are playing. We believe that there is something for everybody here and that you will be able to find your next great starter guitar!

In case you are having any questions about this topic, please let us know in the comment section below and we will be more than happy to answer your question!