The Best Online Guitar Lessons (2022 Buyers Guide)

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Quick Comparison Table

A quick look at how each of the best online guitar lessons stacks up

	Guitar Tricks	Fender Play	JamPlay	True Fire
Overall Rating	7.8/10	7.7/10	7.1/10	7.5/10
Ease of Use	7.5/10	8/10	6/10	6/10
How Comprehensive	8.5/10	7/10	7/10	9/10
Lesson Quality	7.5/10	8.5/10	7/10	7/10
Affordability	7/10	8.5/10	7.5/10	8/10
Standout Features	8.5/10	6.5/10	8/10	7/10
Price	$19.95 USD / Month	$9.99 USD / Month	$19.95 USD / Month	$19 USD / Month
Who it’s Best for?	Best Option for Most Students – Comprehensive + Guided	Complete Beginners Who Want an Easy to Follow Guided Approach	Not Complete Beginners Who Want Varied Style/Skill Lessons	Best for Intermediate Students
Biggest Advantage	Easy to use and navigate	Most affordable option	Comprehensive set of lessons and instructors	A “go-your-own-way” training program
Biggest Disadvantage	No community/1-on-1 training	Not as Comprehensive as Other Options	Overwhelming + No longer updated with new content	Overwhelming
#1 Best Feature	Core Learning System for beginners (guided approach)	Learn it all – acoustic, electric, bass, ukulele	Famous guitarists as instructors	Most Comprehensive Program (54000+)
	Read More or Try it Today!	Read More or Try It Today!	Read More or Try it Today!	Read More or Try It Today!

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Overview of the Best Online Guitar Lessons

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Guitar Tricks – The Best Guitar Training Platform Overall

BEST FOR: MOST PEOPLE – ESPECIALLY BEGINNERS WHO WANT A GUIDED APPROACH AND COMPREHENSIVE LESSONS

Guitar Tricks has one of the best online guitar lessons platforms available. And it’s one of the most comprehensive that we’ve come across. It used to be our runner up pick, but this year it’s moved to the #1 spot for a few reasons.

They’ve got over 11,000 videos now – it was only 8000 the first time we reviewed the program – so it’s comprehensive. And that means they are continually updating the program and the content.

Moreover, they’ve re-designed the website and it provides a better user-flow making it more easy to use. There isn’t any overwhelm or confusion on where to go or what to do next.

And that’s why Guitar Tricks is now our top pick for best online guitar lessons! If you’re a beginner that wants a tried and true, but continually updated set of training material, definitely pick up this program.

Program Highlights:

• Pricing: $19.95 per month, OR $180 per year (saves 25%)
• Fully online, video-based lessons platform
• Guided, hand-held approach via the “Core Learning System”
• Includes downloadable media and tools/resources
• Free Trial available
• 60 Day Money Back Guarantee

Key Factors:

• Ease of Use: one of the more easy to use platforms. The “Core Learning System” is a hand-held beginner/fundamentals course that takes the overwhelm out of learning online.
• Comprehensiveness: One of the more comprehensive options available with over 11,000+ videos, being expanded all the time
• Lesson Quality: Well shot videos that are well structured, though some can be pretty boring at times. Very traditional style of teaching.
• Affordability: Not the most affordable option, but in line with other players in the market. Best value for the amount of content + extras
• Standout Features: Easy to use site + good user experience. Very active community forum. Lots of nice-to-have extras.

The Good:

• Very easy to use website and platform – no confusion/overwhelm
• Guided and hand-held for beginners, choose-you-own-lessons for intermediate students
• Covers lots of ground – genres/style, techniques, fundamentals, skills, practice and more
• Comprehensive song library to learn from
• Progress tracker makes it easy to pick up where you left off
• Ability to book live one-on-one coaching (extra fee)
• Forum/community section to interact + get advice/feedback
• New content added regularly
• Lots of extras + bells/whistles (chord/scale finders, tuner, trainers, etc)

The Bad:

• Not a ton of lesson material or song choices for R&B/Soul styles
• Mostly focused on Blues/Country/Rock
• Very traditional approach to teaching guitar
• Less fun getting through the first few lessons than other options

Check out our Full Review of Guitar Tricks

More About This Training Program

The best things about Guitar Tricks is the sheer amount of learning material and their “Core Learning System” as the foundation of the platform – it’s a guided A to Z approach to get you playing your favorite style of music as efficiently as possible. And then you break off into different styles and techniques you’re interested in.

They’ve also got a great set of additional features. They’re not deal-breakers, but definitely nice-to-haves – a very active community forum, lesson progress tracking, and a tool-kit full of things to help learning become easier like chord/scale finders, tuners, metronomes and more.

And you won’t find many online platforms that are as comprehensive and growing as Guitar Tricks that also offer the option for one-on-one private training with instructors. That’s a pretty handy feature to help you correct bad technique or habits.

What Sets Guitar Tricks Apart from Competitors

It’s a combination of the guided approach, comprehensive lessons and commitment to growth that really sets these guys apart from the competition.

Most established online guitar lessons out there are overwhelming and difficult to use. But Guitar Tricks does a good job at trying to alleviate that. Jamplay, for example, is a lot more overwhelming in terms of getting started and knowing what to do next. It’s not just the ease of use of the website, but also the structure of the tutorials themselves.

The extras we mentioned above are also things you won’t find in most of the competitors out there. Beyond that, they’re continuing to evolve, which some of the competition has no doubt neglected.

Who Should Use It?

Most people who want to learn how to play the acoustic or electric guitar will be best suited to Guitar Tricks as their training platform. It’s comprehensive and guided, so you’ll be able to learn everything you need AND everything you want to learn in the most efficient way.

Even intermediate and experienced guitarists will find lessons in Guitar Tricks that will help them level up their skills. The sheer amount of training material on their site almost guarantees this.

Further, if you’re looking for a set of lessons that will take you from A to Z and continue honing your skills, this is your best choice. If you want the option of one-on-one feedback without the commitment of a local guitar teacher, it’s also the best choice for you.

Who Shouldn’t Use It?

The only people we would steer away from Guitar Tricks are people who plan on learning multiple types of instruments. If you want to learn acoustic, electric and bass plus the ukulele at some point, then we recommend going with a yearly subscription to Fender Play instead. That platform allows you to switch your “learning path” back and forth to different instruments and styles.

But if you’re pretty set on just mastering electric or acoustic, then Guitar Tricks is still your best bet.

All in all, Guitar Tricks is the best online guitar lessons platform out for most people who want to learn how to play the acoustic or electric. You won’t be disappointed.

Click Here To Try Guitar Tricks Absolutely RISK-FREE

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Fender Play – Best Design and User Flow

BEST FOR: ANYONE WHO GETS BORED EASILY, WANTS TO LEARN SEVERAL GUITAR TYPES – BASS, UKULELE, ETC. – OR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO BUY FENDER PRODUCTS.

Fender Play is also one of the best online guitar lessons on the market. Although they’re newer relative to the other options on this page, they’ve done a great job with their offering.

It’s very similar to other programs out there but it’s got one of the better designed sites we’ve reviewed. It’s clean, and eye-catching and very easy to use.

When you first sign up you’ll be asked a few questions to determine your “learning path.” The learning path is a custom flow of lessons specific to what instrument and style you want to learn.

The lessons themselves are short enough to not be boring, and the flow of the lessons is great. If you want a fun-to-use, engaging learning experience and the ability to learn multiple types of guitar, Fender Play is your best choice.

Program Highlights:

• Pricing: $19.99 USD / Month OR $99.99 USD / Year (for first year)
• Yearly plan includes 10% discount on all Fender products (for US/UK/AUS residents)
• Guided, hand-held approach with short videos and fun learning experience
• Includes downloadable material, online tuner, “chord challenge” game for finger dexterity
• 2 week free trial available
• Starts with questions to determine your “learning path” (based on genre/instrument)
• Acoustic/electric guitar lessons can have Rock, Blues, Pop, R&B/Soul, Country or Folk focus
• Bass lessons can have Funk or Rock focus. Ukulele lessons has no genre/style focus.

Key Factors:

• Ease of Use: Extremely easy to use and follow – completely guided approach, no confusion/overwhelm, easy to navigate website
• Comprehensiveness: Lots of content to keep you busy for a long time, but not as comprehensive as something like Guitar Tricks
• Lesson Quality: Well shot, very short (bite sized) video-based lessons, theory interspersed with practice exercises and riff/song exercises. Easy to watch, fun to follow along with.
• Affordability: The most affordable program out of all the picks here (at least for your first year)
• Standout Features: Best designed website and “learning path” for beginners. Start playing riffs/songs almost immediately.

The Good:

• Well designed, eye-catching design
• Great user flow and structure for complete beginners – no confusion/overwhelm
• Learn acoustic/electric guitar, ukulele and bass all with one subscription
• Great selection of songs in available genres – including newer releases/artists
• Bite-sized lessons make learning experience fun and engaging
• Start playing riffs and song sections almost immediately
• Videos are well shot, interspersed with easy-to-follow online exercises
• Easy to find customer support section

The Bad:

• Not as comprehensive as something like Guitar Tricks
• Material not added as often as some of the competitors
• Not enough genre/style selection – only 5 to choose from
• Not a lot of “extras,” no community

More About Fender’s Platform

The best part of Fender Play is that for one subscription price you can learn electric/acoustic guitar, bass or even ukulele. So you can buy an annual subscription and spend a few months learning each of those instruments if you want. That’s an insanely valuable feature in any set of online guitar lessons. They also teach in several styles – funk, soul/r&b, rock, country, etc.

So there’s no shortage of content in the program. Beyond that, you get to playing cool stuff right away – riffs and songs. There’s no droning on about theory. It’s very concise and to the point in the way it teaches.

And it’s easy to switch your “learning path” if you decide you want to learn Rock instead of Funk. The core material stays very consistent, but the exercises and songs/riffs you practice will change. There’s a variety of instructors and they all do a good job with the bite-sized, well-shot video lessons. Exercises are a part of the learning path and the web app for them works pretty damn good.

What Sets Fender Play Apart from the Competition?

The biggest criticism we have of Jamplay and Guitar Tricks is that the amount of content they have is just completely overwhelming. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. But it can lead to confusion and paralysis for beginners just starting out.

Guitar Tricks does a good job of avoiding that with the core learning system, but Fender Play is an even easier to follow path for going from knowing nothing to being able to play at a novice/intermediate level quickly.

Lastly, and maybe most importantly, I personally enjoyed the learning experience from Fender Play the most out of any of the platforms reviewed. Although I still think Guitar Tricks is the best online guitar lessons option overall, I enjoyed using Fender Play the most – you got up and playing almost immediately. The site is the easiest to use, the learning path is the most straight-forward and hand held – it’s just an overall enjoyable experience.

Who Should Use It?

Honestly, the design of Fender Play makes it one of the best online guitar lessons out there, but it’s not the most comprehensive. That means it’s perfect for beginner and intermediate students – especially those that don’t like long, drawn out boring material. If you’re someone that likes short videos and wants to get right to playing without focusing on theory at the very start, this is a great option.

If you’ve got only a little bit of time for lessons and practice, it’s the best option. Further, if you want to learn both guitar AND bass (or ukulele), Fender Play is the best option for you. If a hand-held approach but one that’s immediately fun to follow is important to you, get Fender Play.

Who Shouldn’t Use It?

If you’re someone that wants a truly A to Z online guitar lessons platform that is constantly updated with new content and is a complete and comprehensive program, don’t get Fender Play. Guitar Tricks would be a much better option. It’s got more material and is better suited to the “everything but the kitchen sink” approach to learning.

Step Your Guitar Playing Up Today!

Read Our Full Fender Play Review

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Jamplay – A Cheaper Alternative to Guitar Tricks

BEST FOR: ANYONE WHO WANTS A COMPREHENSIVE SET OF LESSONS LIKE GUITAR TRICKS BUT DOESN’T NEED AS MUCH GUIDED/HAND-HELD LEARNING.

JamPlay is an online guitar lessons platform very similar to Guitar Tricks in that it’s a fully comprehensive set of training material, with bonuses/extras and has been around for a long time.

It’s got everything you’d ever want to know about playing the electric or acoustic guitar.

It also has a lot of nice additional features like 1 on 1 consultations (extra fee), various “toolkits” full of lessons and practice plans, plus regularly broadcast live workshops.

If you’re looking for a VERY comprehensive training program with well-shot video lessons from the best guitarists in the world, and don’t need as guided/hand-held an approach as Guitar Tricks, JamPlay is a great choice, because a yearly subscription is cheaper than a yearly Guitar Tricks subscription.

Program Highlights:

• Pricing: $19.95 USD / Month OR $159.96 / Year
• Yearly+ option comes with 4 1-on-1 private lessons ($299.88 USD/year)
• Has content on everything you’d ever want to know – from skills/techniques through genres/styles and more.
• 7500+ videos from 120+ instructors (including big-name musicians
• Huge library of songs to learn with interactive tabs/notation
• No free trial available
• 30 Day Money Back Guarantee

The Good

• Very comprehensive, A to Z style course
• Very affordable yearly subscription option
• Instructors include some of the greatest and most well-known guitarists in the world.
• Continually updated with new content (mostly workshops)
• Most varied amount of genre/style and skills (not limited selection)
• Great bonuses and extras (toolkits, apps, backing tracks, etc)
• Website is fairly easy to navigate
• Offers cheap 1-on-1 coaching for technique feedback

Click Here to Try Out JAMPLAY Today *RISK FREE*

The Bad

• No new content updates, new workshops, etc – content is old
• Completely overwhelming, not very hand-held/guided
• Multiple “beginner” sets from different instructors – totally confusing/overwhelming
• Beginner lessons are pretty boring and drawn out
• Not enough modern songs to learn (lots of classics, though)
• Not enough funk/soul/r&b content – more focused on rock/country/blues/etc
• Bass guitar classes are a separate subscription

Check out our Full JamPlay Review

More About JamPlay’s Course Offering

The best thing about JamPlay is that it’s a comprehensive course with a lot of varied lesson options.

You can choose how you want to learn and what you want to learn. Unfortunately that can lead to overwhelm and confusion – especially for beginners. But it’s got the most genres/styles/skills variety of any of the lessons we’ve reviewed.

That’s why JamPlay is still an ok option. It used to be our top pick, but it’s just no longer the best online guitar lessons option.

Once you’re playing the basics, you can quickly move on to your favorite genre/style (there’s ton’s of options), specific guitar skills (like shredding, finger-picking, etc) and learning real songs from real bands/artists.

For example, they have sections on how to play Beatles songs, Jimi Hendrix, etc. And the videos are well-shot with newer lessons being shot in 4k.

How Does it Stack Up to the Competition

JamPlay has some of the best instructors as part of their lessons. They have world-renowned guitarists on their site, and not everyone can claim that. It’s yearly option is much more affordable than the closest alternative (Guitar Tricks), and it’s got more bonuses/extras than any of the other competitors.

But it isn’t as good as Guitar Tricks or Fender Play.

It used to be our favorite, but nowadays I just don’t think it’s a better option than Guitar Tricks for most beginner students. It’s similar, in that it’s very comprehensive, but it’s not as guided and can be pretty overwhelming. For example, there are so many different sets of “Beginner Courses” that you have no idea where to start or why.

Further, some of the lessons – especially the beginner ones – can also be pretty boring and not the most compelling to follow-through with. And they’re long and drawn out, with most beginner courses having 8+ hours of video alone. It’s nowhere near as concise or easy to start/follow as something like Fender Play.

Who Should Use It?

I would say JamPlay is the best online guitar lessons platform for anyone who is an novice/intermediate guitarist that wants to really master their instrument with various skills or styles/genres. If you’re planning on subscribing for a year and have been playing a bit of guitar before this (i.e. you know the basics) it’s a good choice for you since it’s cheaper than Guitar Tricks.

Who Shouldn’t Use It?

Complete beginners shouldn’t use it. Also, if you’ve never taken online lessons before you should steer clear. Absolute beginner’s will do better with something like Guitar Tricks. And if you’re someone that gets bored easily or loses focus fast, don’t use JamPlay for their beginner lessons – Fender Play would be a much better option for you.

Click Here to Try JAMPLAY Risk-Free Today!

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TrueFire – The Most Comprehensive Online Guitar Lessons Platform

BEST FOR: NOVICE/INTERMEDIATE GUITARISTS, NOT COMPLETE BEGINNERS, WHO WANT A “GO-YOUR-OWN-WAY” SYSTEM THAT HAS THE MOST AMOUNT OF CONTENT

TrueFire is one of the older and most established online guitar lessons out there. It’s the most comprehensive lesson platform we’ve reviewed with tens of thousands of videos.

The platform is setup like a store, so you can purchase individual courses on a variety of topics.

But they also have an “all-access” monthly subscription where you can get streaming access to every course they offer.

They do have “learning paths” for beginners that you can subscribe to that work similarly to JamPlay – along with the accompanying confusion and overwhelm in what to choose.

If you’re looking for the MOST comprehensive lesson platform out, then TrueFire is the best choice for you. If you’re a complete beginner, you’d be better off choosing something else, but if you know the basics and want the widest variety of material in style/genre/skill then choose TrueFire.

Program Highlights:

• Pricing: Individual Courses for $30+ USD, All Access Subscription for $19 USD / Month OR $99 USD / Year
• Can individually purchase courses from store for permanent access
• All Access monthly subscription comes with 1 “course download” per month
• Over 54,000 videos – topics/skills, genres, specializations, etc – and continually growing
• Has several “learning paths” for beginners, or a “go-your-own-way” approach to skills/etc
• Comes with similar bonuses/extras as JamPlay – backing tracks, progress tracker, etc.
• Includes harmonica, ukulele, bass and banjo lessons
• “Satisfaction Guarantee”

The Good:

• Largest selection of video lessons gives you everything you could possibly want to learn
• Legendary guitarists as instructors (like Steve Vai from Frank Zappa)
• Interactive tab/notation for exercises/lessons/songs
• Comprehensive and very affordable option compared to JamPlay/GuitarTricks
• Has many of the same types of extras and site design options as JamPlay
• Can get permanent access to courses with all-access pass – keep it even if you unsubscribe

Try TrueFire Today!

The Bad:

• Guided learning paths are not the best – similar to JamPlay: not best for beginners
• Way too much content makes it overwhelming
• Don’t know where to start or what to do
• Not the best site design – bland/plain

More About TrueFire’s Learning Platform

The best thing about TrueFire is definitely just how much content they have. But as with any of the comprehensive platforms out there, it’s prone to confusion and overwhelm – especially for beginners. But for those who want to go their own way, it let’s you choose your own path. Here’s the content, learn whatever you want.

The video lessons are good quality – shot well and the interface of the website isn’t terrible. It’s not the most eye-catching, but it works well for what it is. It has an interactive practice/exercise web app, and probably has the best instructors out of all of the programs we’ve reviewed. You’ll learn from some of the top musicians in the world.

And that’s really one of the main advantages of this set of online guitar lessons. If you’re someone who doesn’t need to be hand-held and wants the most possible options for learning content, TrueFire will be a great choice for you.

How it Stack Up to the Competitors

TrueFire is most similar to JamPlay, though it is more affordable if you choose to pay yearly. It also has much more content – JamPlay and Guitar Tricks have a great amount of content, but nowhere near what TrueFire offers. And even though you’ll get some great (and famous) instructors with JamPlay, you’ll get more with TrueFire.

However, it’s not great for beginners. Fender Play and Guitar Tricks definitely come out on top with how hand-held and guided their programs are. Fender Play is similarly priced for a yearly plan, but Guitar Tricks is actually more expensive. If you’re a complete beginner, you don’t want to choose TrueFire unless you deal with indecisiveness and overwhelm well.

In terms of quality, the online guitar lessons from TrueFire are great – very on par with Guitar Tricks or JamPlay. But Fender Play still beats them out in terms of easy-to-follow, short and concise video lessons

Who Should Use It?

Intermediate, advanced and maybe some novice players will find TrueFire a gret choice. If you’re a self-starter that doesn’t need to be hand-held then try it out. If you want the widest breadth of lesson content, these guys definitely excel in that regard. If you were thinking about joining JamPlay but don’t really care for the extras and are more interested in the wide range of content, TrueFire would be a cheaper (if you subscribe yearly) and better option for you as well.

Who Shouldn’t Use It?

Complete beginners should steer clear of TrueFire as there are better options. Also if you don’t want any confusion or overwhelm then TrueFire may be a difficult platform to use. Further, if you are interested in one-on-one training privately along with your video lesson archive, there may be a better choice for you (like JamPlay, for example).

Become a Better Guitarist With TrueFire Today!

Read Our Full TrueFire Review

What Guitar Tutorials are Best For You?

So what’s our recommendation on the best online guitar lessons for you? It’s pretty safe to say we love both Fender Play and Guitar Tricks.

We think they are the best choices overall for any guitarist.

If you want the most amount of content with a great user experience, then choose Guitar Tricks.

If you’re a complete beginner who wants a more engaging experience, go with Fender Play.

Both sets options are great – professionally shot, easy to follow/understand and with a large number of different instructors.

You’ll learn all the basics of playing, any style/genre of music you want, a bunch of important “master-level” skills and a ton of the most classic songs ever made.

As for the other two programs we mentioned, they’re good options but nowhere near Guitar Tricks or Fender Play.

There is no reason to recommend them over the main picks we told you about, even if you have a specific learning goal or situation. If you still aren’t happy after your free JamPlay/GuitarTricks trial, try one of the “other notable options.”

But in all honesty, we think you’ll love JamPlay as much as we do.

Are Internet-Based Guitar Tutorials Worth It?

So the real question most people ask is “are online guitar lessons better than a real-life guitar teacher?”

In our humble opinion here at Deviant Noise – ABSOLUTELY.

The problem with an in-person coach is you’re stuck learning their technique. Unless you’re rich and can afford a master-level guitarist, you’re probably getting someone who isn’t really interested in teaching.

And if you don’t like one instructor’s style, you can switch it up.

If you have something specific you’re trying to learn (whether it’s a style/genre, a difficult skill or popular song) there are training videos for that. You don’t get the flexibility, depth or variety with a real guitar teacher. It’s not humanly possible. Beyond that, private lessons are costly.

A single lesson from a private teacher will cost you TWICE as much as the monthly JamPlay membership. Online guitar lessons are simply the best way to learn in the 21st century.

Personal Experience with Learning Guitar on the Internet

When I first wanted to learn guitar (I was a little kid) I was extremely excited to learn my parents bought me a guitar for my birthday. I was about to be a rock star.

Except… I wasn’t.

Because after about 4 of the most BORING lessons in history, I quit. The teacher they hired just wasn’t good. Rather than stoke my passion for music and the guitar, he killed it.

So I didn’t pick up a guitar for a long time after that. It was like I was scarred (lol).

Could It Be Done For Free?

Eventually, years later I learned to play drums, piano and make beats but I still had my old guitar sitting around. So I decided to get it re-stringed and try learning it again.

And by now YouTube was in full swing, so it was the perfect opportunity. I started searching around for some guitar lessons that were free. What I found was:

• A few basic articles
• A few good videos that showed me the basics
• A bunch of useless, unprofessional (sometimes boring) videos from random people

Daily Practice? Sure if I was a better man, I could take that free info and master the guitar without needing more. But that would take a lot of digging and a lot of practice.

And I’m bad at practicing without the proper help and motivation.

Then, Finally Came Game Changer

After going through numerous frustrating paths and going nowhere, I finally said to myself “what the hell, just pay for something.” But I was still turned off of personal/private teachers.

So I found JamPlay and dove right in. It was one of the best decisions I made when it came to learning how to play the guitar. Everything about JamPlay just excited me about playing (and learning!) again.

It was much better than the private guitar teacher I had as a kid. It kept me engaged and I could jump around to whatever I wanted to learn when I got bored.

I’m a big fan of learning music online through these types of structured lessons and think all students can benefit from it.

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