Are you having a tough time finding a guitar for your child? If so, we’ve researched what the best guitar for kids have to offer so that you don’t have to. All you need to do is have a read through the options in this review to learn more.
A buyers guide section can also be found at the end which includes some additional information that can be useful if you weren’t sure which guitar to choose.
Musical instruments are an incredible way to develop your son or daughters auditory learning and memorization skills while also providing them with hours of fun. You can’t go wrong getting this type of toy to allow your kids to have the most fun while also making playtime a very educational experience.
What To Look When Buying Your Kid’s First Guitar?
There are many things to be considered when buying a guitar, however, for your first guitar, the process is very simple. You basically have to only look at two things when buying your kid, his or her first guitar.
– Size of the guitar
– Guitar type
What Guitar Size Is Appropriate For My Kid?
A standard size guitar is around 40 Inches (101.6 cm). This size is also known as ‘full size’. Generally, only adults are comfortable with a full-size guitar and for a kid, a full-size guitar could definitely overwhelm him.
Luckily, guitars come in several sizes. The most common of them are; full size, 3/4, 7/8 and 1/2. The half size model or 3/4 would be perfect for any kid. And any child above the age of 12 can easily play a standard guitar. But to give you a better understanding of these sizes, we have a chart below that accurately displays the kid’s height and guitar size ratio.
What Type of Guitar Should I Get For my Kid: Acoustic, Classical or Electrical?
The answer totally depends on your child!
There is no hard and fast rule for what guitar you should get for your kid. It all depends on what he or she likes to play. If your kid wants to play and learn an electrical guitar, then so be it! If he wants to play the classical or acoustic guitar then it is his choice too!
A child learns the fastest when he is doing what he loves. However, if your child does not have a specific opinion on this matter, then a nylon classical guitar would be the best for him. Unlike acoustic and electrical guitars, a classical guitar has nylon strings instead of steel strings. Nylon strings are easy on the finger, and they are easier to press and play when compared with a steel string. And if your kid is a beginner learner, then he should spend the maximum amount of time with the guitar and practice more and more with it.
our Top 5 best kids guitar picks
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Brand
Model
Our Rating
Our Rating
Fender
Squier by Fender Mini Stratocaster Beginner Electric Guitar
Yamaha JR1 3/4-Scale Acoustic Guitar Bundle
As a leading musical instrument manufacturer, Yamaha offers instruments to all levels of musicians. It understands that it is today’s beginner that becomes tomorrow’s legend. It therefore ensures that just as it pays attention to the provision of quality instruments to the pros, it also does same for the young beginner.
This acoustic guitar bundle contains practically everything your kid needs to start playing. The bundle is built around the Yamaha JR1 3/4-scale acoustic guitar.
It is built with a Spruce top, a Meranti back and sides and a Nato neck with Rosewood fingerboard and bridge.
The size makes it perfect for the young player while its tone and playability makes continuous play a pleasure.
The bundle also includes a gig bag, a clip-on tuner, extra strings, a string winder, picks and even a polishing cloth for keeping your guitar clean.
On top of all these, you also get an instructional DVD to help with getting started on the guitar with ease.
Pros
- Bundle – It includes everything you need to get started.
- Quality – It is well built and does not show bad craftsmanship.
- Playability – It is setup to make playing easy for beginners.
Pros
- Sound – The sound is okay for its price. You cannot expect too much.
Yamaha JR2 Junior-Size Acoustic Guitar
This is another offering from Yamaha. We earlier looked at the Yamaha J1 but we will now be looking at the J2 junior size 33 inch acoustic guitar.
This guitar is another 3/4 size one designed for beginners, younger players and for use as a traveling guitar. It has a Spruce top, a Mahogany back and sides, a Nato neck and a Rosewood fretboard and bridge. This is a compact guitar that is modeled after Yamaha’s popular FG series.
This guitar also comes as part of a bundle. The bundle includes a clip-on tuner to help you keep the guitar tuned at all times, a gig bag for easy transportation and storage, extra strings for emergencies, a string winder for easy stringing, picks (if choose to use them) and a polishing cloth for keeping your guitar clean. It also comes with an instructional DVD to properly get the beginner started.
This guitar can also effectively serve as a travel guitar.
Pros
- Quality – It is a well-built guitar.
- Sound – It has a sound that rivals some more expensive models.
- Accessories – It comes with sensible accessories for beginners.
Pros
- Strap – No provision is made for a shoulder strap.
Yamaha FG JR1 3/4 Size Acoustic Guitar
It’s Yamaha again but this time rather than a bundle, it is simply offering the guitar. The Yamaha JR1 is the guitar in one of the bundles we looked at above.
This guitar is highly rated because it was designed and built in the mold of one of the brand’s legendary guitars – the FG series. This is however designed for younger or small-handed players who find full-sized guitars uncomfortable to play.
The thought that goes into the creation of any of these guitars begins to show from the tonewoods used. These are carefully selected to achieve the best tone at a very affordable cost.
This guitar has a Spruce top, Meranti body, Nato neck and Rosewood fingerboard. All these combine to deliver a tone that is solid and bright. They also add to its aesthetic value.
This is a very affordable but good quality beginner guitar that your kids will love and find quite easy to play.
Pros
- Quality – It is well-built and the different components well put together.
- Sound – It offers a solid, full tone.
- Playability – It is very easy to play and will make learning fun.
Pros
- Accessories – It doesn’t come with any other accessory aside from a gig bag.
Squier by Fender Mini Stratocaster Beginner Electric Guitar
This electric guitar from Squier is excellent for kids who want to rock out with some volume (although maybe not so good for mom’s ears).
Electric guitars are often easier to play, as less pressure is needed on the strings. But the Mini has everything a guitar should have, in a compact package, perfect for children.
This model is basically a smaller copy of the iconic Fender Stratocaster. The guitar has a standard five-way switch, plus three single-coil pickups. This means it can make a variety of sounds, from light tones to deep bass, for a real rock ‘n’ roll feel.
The neck is excellent for small players, at about 22.75 inches long.
The issue sometimes with electric guitars is that the neck tends to be wide and therefore difficult to reach. However, this model doesn’t seem to have that issue, since it was specifically crafted for young musicians.
Pros
- Excellent quality and proper sizing for young children.
- Great sound with lots of potential for different genres.
- You can buy it with an amplifier and tuner.
Pros
- It can be difficult to tune and requires frequent re-tuning.
Ibanez GRGM21BKN 3/4 Size Mikro Electric Guitar
Next up is the Ibanez GRGM21 Mikro Electric Guitar, a 3/4-size guitar that’s a great choice if your kid is looking to really rock. Unlike the Epiphone Les Paul and Squier Mini Strat, this one does not come with a bundle. What you get is just the guitar. That said, it’s an impressive guitar considering it’s beginner price-point. As one reviewer said, The Ibanez Mikro is a “beginners bargain set up.”
In the guitar world, Ibanez guitars have more of a following from players who gravitate towards hard rock, progressive rock, and metal. Ibanez guitars have super fast fingerboards for ease of soloing, and that feeling translates well to their little brother the Ibanez Mikro. This is a great guitar for small hands, and your child will really appreciate how easy it is to glide across the fingerboard. The 3/4-size body measures about 35” from end to end.
The color options are nice – you can choose from black, blue, white, metallic purple, walnut sunburst, and yellow (there’s even a left-handed version). The one we received was set up fairly well, and the fit and finish was very good for a guitar in this price range. We did read some reviews that indicate the quality control is hit and miss, particularly when it comes to the finish on the frets. If you happen to get one that needs a little TLC, head to a local guitar shop and ask them to do a basic setup, or you can always ask the store you got it from to send you a new one.
The Ibanez Mikro sounds pretty good. It feels right at home played with high levels of gain and distortion, and the humbucker pickups can sound pretty huge. Again, the pickups aren’t stellar, but we say that with much more expensive guitars in mind, so it’s not quite a fair comparison. Several owners of this guitar have had success swapping out some parts for superior ones, turning it into somewhat of a project guitar. In our tests, the Ibanez Mikro tended to go out of tune more often than we’d like, but supposedly this is a typical grievance of 3/4-size guitars.
Pros
- Good Feel
- Good Tone
- Solid Electronics
Pros
- Fret Buzz
- Wont stay in tune or intonation
- Difficult Setup
Conclusion - choose the best kids guitar
We have reached the end of our journey here folks! Hopefully this guide has been of use to you and hopefully you’ve found the right guitar for your child.
It’s now time to determine your child’s exact needs, preferences and musical tastes, as well as your spending budget, then single out the guitar that seems the best fit. Don’t hesitate to show your kid some of the guitars listed here – if they know what they want that’s even better!
Good luck and don’t forget to thank us when your child becomes a virtuoso!
