Child Guitar

Many people are searching the internet trying to find a good child guitar. I think it’s really important to get your kid started on the right acoustic guitar. I realize you want to make sure they stick with it but the wrong child guitar can lead to poor technique, slow progress, difficulty to play, won’t stay in tune, etc…obviously I could go on and on.

I got to say, I made the same mistake buying a kid guitar for my little girl. I should know better! My wife bought her one of those cheapies at Target or Wal-Mart that has color coded tuners. It won’t stay in tune for beans! L

I don’t think some of these problems will surface if you buy your child a guitar that has some decent quality. You know the old adage “you get what you pay for”, well you might not even get that!

If you want your child to be inspired and have an identity with their guitar, it’ll be made with a quality acoustic guitar.

That said – fortunately, most major manufactures have come out with some quality acoustic kid guitars.

How do you choose the right size child guitar?

The length between the nut and bridge of the acoustic guitar has a lot to do with it. This portion of the guitar can come in 4 basic lengths (can vary slightly).

Guitar	Length	Your Childs Height
¼ size	19″	3’3″ – 3’9″
½ size	20.5″	3’10″ – 4’5″
¾ size	22.75″	4’6″ – 4’11″
Full size	24.75″ – 25.5″	5′ or more

Obviously, these are very general guidelines. The above chart will be good if you want to buy on the internet.

Another general rule of thumb – the guitar’s headstock should reach your child’s waist.

I see a lot of suggestions that a classical nylon string guitar is the way to go because of the space between the strings. Also, the nylon strings are much easier to press down. However, my feeling is the necks are wider too. This makes it much more difficult for a smaller hand to fit around the neck.

Some may ask electric or acoustic. I wouldn’t even let my wife buy my kids whistles or any of those kind of noise makers. Am I making my point here? An acoustic guitar has no volume control! I know most guitar amps have a headphone jack, but then you’ll just have to be yelling “PUT YOUR HEADPHONES ON” all the time! I’d go with an acoustic kid guitar. J

I wasn’t able to find any ¼ size acoustic guitars at the major online music stores.

Here’s some 1/4 size Guitars on eBay but they’re all electrics and not acoustic guitars.

Click on the links below to see kid guitars for the ½, and ¾ size guitars.

See my post on 5 beginner acoustic guitars here.

½ size acoustic guitars @ amazon.com

¾ size acoustic guitars @ amazon.com

1/2 size Acoustic Guitars on eBay

One final note: one accessory you will need for your child guitar player is a good tuner. You’re simply not going to be able to learn how to play when your acoustic guitar is not in tune. It takes time to develop your ear to know that the guitar is in tune. So when you shop be sure to pick up a good electronic tuner.