Many guitar players start by teaching themselves. Some scour the internet for free tutorials, others buy books to study on their own, and some learn by ear. There’s nothing wrong with the self-taught method. It’s a free, rewarding way to learn the guitar.
Unfortunately, the self-taught method doesn’t work for all players. Some need structure and direct feedback, leading them to take in-person lessons. However, in-person lessons come with their own downsides. They can be expensive and require you to travel at least once a week. And, it might be difficult to find the right instructor in your area.
This is where online guitar lessons come in. They give players comprehensive lesson plans while remaining affordable and convenient. Know that not all online courses are created equal. Some are simply scams, while others will genuinely help you refine your skills.
Check out our review of the best online guitar lessons! We help you decide which course is right for you so you can improve your playing.
| Brand | Best For… | Rating | Price | Read More |
 | Best All Around + Best Beginner Course | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $19.95/month ($239.4/year) Yearly: $179/year ($14.92/month) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
 | Best Value For Your Money | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $9.99/month ($119.88/year) Yearly: $89.99/year ($7.50/month) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
 | Best Community | ⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $19.95/month ($239.4/year) Yearly: $13.33/month ($159.96/year) PRO: $25/month ($300/year) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
 | One Time Payment | ⭐️⭐️ | Lifetime: $97 One Time Payment | Click Here For A Free Trial |
 | Best For Advanced Players | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $29/month ($348/year) Yearly: $149/year ($12.42/month) Lifetime: $1499 One Time Payment | Click Here For A Free Trial |
Table of Contents
Guitar Tricks – Our Top Pick! The Best All Around + Best Course Progression
If you really want to learn guitar, you can’t go wrong with Guitar Tricks. It has everything you need to learn the basics, stay motivated, and take your skills to new heights.
What’s Unique About This Course
Guitar Tricks has a very clean, user-friendly website. The homepage has shortcuts for beginner lessons, experienced lessons, songs, and styles, making it easy to find what you’re looking for. You can also browse by instructor, visit the last lesson you left off on, and view your progress.
What really sets Guitar Tricks apart is its Core Learning System. Beginners can go through the step-by-step course, learning valuable fundamentals. They can further develop these skills by branching off into additional lessons.
Unlike other online guitar lessons, Guitar Tricks isn’t just meant for beginners. It has an Experienced Core Learning System for advanced players. The lessons in this course are bound to improve your skills, especially if you’re interested in exploring new genres (specifically country, blues, and rock).
Things To Watch Out For
Guitar Tricks has over 1,000 song lessons and adds at least one new one every week. There are plenty of songs for both beginners and advanced players.
However, you might not be able to find songs from your favorite artists. Guitar Tricks teaches many songs by smaller artists and lacks some of the most popular artists/songs. It somewhat makes up for this with its “style” lessons. In these lessons, instructors teach you how to play in the style of prominent artists.
One other thing to watch out for is Guitar Tricks’ one-on-one lessons. If you want more help, you can book a lesson with an instructor of your choice. These lessons are not included with your membership. While helpful every once in a while, the lessons can become expensive if you book them constantly.
Don’t let Guitar Tricks’ one-on-one lessons be the reason you buy this course. We recommend using another service if you want regular one-on-one instruction.
What To Expect When You Buy This Course
Many players appreciate the extras that come with Guitar Tricks. With your membership, you get access to its community forum and guitar toolbox (includes a tuner, metronome, scale finder, chord finder, etc.).
Users love this course because of its practicality. You can learn anything you want to know thanks to its 11,000+ lessons and 1,000+ songs. It offers plenty of structure while giving you the freedom to explore new things. And, it features some of the world’s best instructors. From just watching the videos, you can tell they are knowledgeable and passionate about helping you learn.
So, if you are serious about learning guitar, try Guitar Tricks (14-day FREE trial!). This course is a useful, comprehensive option for beginners and advanced players alike.
Learn More…
Check out our full review of Guitar Tricks for more information.
Fender Play – Best for Players on a Budget
Players don’t want to break the bank just to learn how to play the guitar. Luckily, Fender Play is a great option for you budget-conscious guitarists!
What’s Unique About This Course
Like many other online guitar courses, you need a membership to access Fender Play’s lessons. But, Fender Play costs only about half as much as competitors. If you choose the annual membership instead of the monthly membership, you’ll save even more. Plus, a Fender Play membership gets you a 10% discount on all Fender gear.
Even though Fender Play is cheap, it still has high-quality guitar lessons. The instructors thoroughly cover each concept and prepare you to learn songs. Speaking of songs, the song library has a fairly large selection. The helpful videos, tabs, and chord sheets will help you learn songs by your favorite artists.
Your Fender Play membership also gives you access to:
- Exclusive articles on their website
- A community forum where you can interact with other members
Things To Watch Out For
As nice as Fender Play is, we have a couple of complaints.
For one, the instructors are a bit monotonous. They explain everything thoroughly and know what they are talking about, but they lack the energy we’ve seen from other online instructors.
We also have an issue with the structure. In the beginning, the course asks you whether you are an electric or acoustic guitarist and what style you are interested in learning. Then, it sets you on a path specific to these choices.
But, we’ve found each path teaches pretty much the same techniques. These techniques are crucial when you’re first learning, but it’s frustrating that Fender Play tries to sell you on customization.
What To Expect When You Buy This Course
Fender Play is definitely one of the most affordable options out there. It has plenty of lessons that will teach you the fundamentals. The course also has lots of popular songs for you to learn. And, it even has lessons for ukulele and bass guitar, making it ideal if you want to learn multiple stringed instruments.
Fender Play has a 14-day free trial so you can give the course a try and see if you like it!
Learn More
Check out our in depth Fender Play Review for more information.
JamPlay – Best For Those Who Want A Strong Community
JamPlay has some of the best online guitar lessons available. Users particularly love its interactive approach.
What’s Unique About This Course
JamPlay, like other courses, facilitates a sense of community. It lets users interact with each other thanks to its online forum. There is so much to love about this course.
- Interactive. Through JamPlay, instructors can interact with students. They answer questions on the forum and are available 8+ hours each day for live Q&As.
- Live Streams. Instructors also hold weekly live streams where students can follow along and interact. If you can’t make it to a live stream, no worries! JamPlay archives all of its live streams, giving you access to hours of content.
- Massive Library of Lessons. World-class instructors guide you through every topic, technique, and style you could possibly want to learn. Each video lets you replay in slow motion and comes with looping capabilities. And, you never have to worry about losing your place as there is automatic progress tracking.
- Popular Songs Available. Your JamPlay membership also helps you learn hundreds of popular songs. Chord sheets, tabs, and backing tracks make learning easy and let you play along. With JamPlay, you’ll look forward to practicing!
- Quality Instructors. JamPlay has some of the best instructors available. You’ll learn from musicians that have played with some of the most well-recognized artists in the world. Masterclasses give you insight into their unique playing style, ultimately making you a better guitarist.
- Toolkits. This is a new feature that gives you access to 75-100 items focusing on a specific skill set or genre. Items include video tutorials, guided practices, backing tracks, etc. With Toolkits, players can zero in on common problem spots and master a specific skill.
Standard membership gives you access to one Toolkit for life. A Year Pro membership gives you access to all eight Toolkits that JamPlay offers. This course is the best for those who want an interactive approach.
Things To Watch Out For
JamPlay doesn’t have the structure one might find in something like Guitar Tricks’ Core Learning System. This is because instructors organize lessons. There is no clear starting point, but you can browse through each lesson description to see which ones suit your goals.
Also, note that JamPlay’s one-on-one consultations come at an additional charge. You can also access them if you have the Year Pro membership. Other than that, we really don’t have any complaints about JamPlay. This course is a safe bet, no matter what your skill level or learning goals are.
What To Expect When You Buy This Course
A JamPlay membership costs about the same as other online courses. However, the value you get is unmatched. At the time of this writing, JamPlay features 7,542 lessons from 126 instructors and a huge archive of live courses. Plus, there is a 30-day money-back guarantee so you really have nothing to lose by giving JamPlay a try!
Learn More
Checkout out our full JamPlay Review to learn more.
TrueFire – Best for Advanced Players
TrueFire has the best online guitar lessons for advanced players! Read on to learn why so many experienced guitarists love this course.
What’s Unique About This Course
Most online guitar lessons are geared toward beginners. This makes sense as online courses are a convenient way for newbies to start learning. Unfortunately, many courses fall short when it comes to offering advanced content. This is frustrating as many experienced players still have plenty to learn.
Luckily, TrueFire fills this void in the industry. It has plenty of advanced lessons that will help you develop your skills even further! On the website, you’ll find over 40,000 video lessons. They cover just about every guitar topic you can imagine. Lessons cover all of the basic genres, but you’ll also find content on more specific sub-genres. So, if you’ve ever wanted to master gypsy jazz or bebop, TrueFire is the place to do it!
Like JamPlay, TrueFire offers live streams and paid private lessons. These provide more personalized instruction that can drastically help you improve.
Users also love TrueFire’s “In the Jam” feature. This unique experience gives you access to backing tracks that you can use to practice. The cool part is that they offer more than your typical backing tracks. You have complete control over each mix. Being able to adjust volume levels, mute, etc., you have the freedom to improvise as you please. The “In the Jam” tracks cost a little extra but are very useful tools.
Things To Watch Out For
TrueFire’s video quality is somewhat inconsistent. This makes sense seeing as the company has been around since 1991, but it can be somewhat distracting.
Additionally, TrueFire is not ideal for beginners. Even though it has beginner lessons, it doesn’t offer a clear starting point. You’ll have to browse through lessons to see where you want to begin. If you want something with more structure, we advise picking a different course.
What To Expect When You Buy This Course
TrueFire is much better suited for advanced players. It doesn’t focus on teaching you songs. Rather, it teaches you the techniques you need to improve your playing style. With the guidance of some of the best musicians in the industry, you’ll quickly go from good to great. Consider signing up for TrueFire’s 30-day all-access trial.
Learn More…
Check out our complete TrueFire review for more details.
Jamorama-Best for Those Who Want A One Time Payment
Skeptical about online guitar lessons? Think you don’t need them or that they aren’t worth the money? Read on to learn why Jamorama is right for you!
What’s Unique About This Course
Jamorama stands out in that it is one of the only online guitar courses that offers a one time fee for purchase. Most of these courses want you to pay monthly or yearly to keep your access to the course, but Jamorama lets you acess the course forever once you pay the one-time fee.
Plus if you aren’t completely satisfied with its lessons, all you have to do is send Jamorama a message. The company will refund you 100% of your money. No questions asked.
So, when you sign up for Jamorama, you have two full months to explore the course. This gives you plenty of time to see if online guitar lessons are the best way for you to learn. You have no excuse not to give it a try!
Jamorama’s risk-free money-back guarantee isn’t the only one it has to offer. It has detailed lessons for beginner, immediate, and advanced players. Qualified instructors walk you through every step and offer helpful energetic explanations.
The course has a comprehensive 10-part guitar system. Like other courses, it starts with beginner tutorials that go over the basics. From there, you can dive into other topics like fingerstyle, speed picking, theory, lead guitar, guitar maintenance, etc.
All of the content is downloadable, meaning you can learn whenever and wherever is convenient for you. You also get access to Jamorama’s comprehensive supplementary learning materials. These tabs, chord charts, and other printouts make it super easy to follow along with each lesson.
Things To Watch Out For
Most online guitar lessons require you to buy a membership. This can be annoying as no one wants to add another monthly bill to their expenses. If you decide you don’t want to pay for the lessons anymore, you lose access to them.
Jamorama is nice in that there is no membership. Users simply pay a one-time fee for access to the entire course. In the long run, it is much more affordable than other courses.
However, this affordability comes at a cost. Jamorama doesn’t have nearly as many lessons or songs as other courses. There’s enough content to keep you engaged for a while, but some players prefer a more extensive lesson library.
What To Expect When You Buy This Course
Jamorama is up against some tough competition. But, considering its one-time fee and a 60-day money-back guarantee, the course is definitely worth a try. It has easy-to-follow lessons for crucial techniques and provides helpful supplementary materials. Plus, you can use it to learn popular songs.
Learn More Here…
Read our full Jamorama Review here.
Conclusion
You really can’t beat online guitar lessons.
- They are much cheaper and more convenient than in-person lessons
- They help you learn exactly what you want to learn
- They give you access to instruction from professional musicians
- They offer structure based on your experience level
Now, you just have to decide what website has the best online guitar lessons for you. It all boils down to your personal goals and skill level.
If one of these courses struck a chord with you, sign up for its free trial! You’ll get to see what it’s all about for yourself. And remember no matter which course you pick, what you put into it is what you’ll get out of it.
| Brand | Best For… | Rating | Price | Read More |
| Best All Around + Best Beginner Course | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $19.95/month ($239.4/year) Yearly: $179/year ($14.92/month) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
| Best Value For Your Money | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $9.99/month ($119.88/year) Yearly: $89.99/year ($7.50/month) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
| Best Community | ⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $19.95/month ($239.4/year) Yearly: $13.33/month ($159.96/year) PRO: $25/month ($300/year) | Click Here For A Free Trial |
| One Time Payment | ⭐️⭐️ | Lifetime: $97 One Time Payment | Click Here For A Free Trial |
| Best For Advanced Players | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Monthly: $29/month ($348/year) Yearly: $149/year ($12.42/month) Lifetime: $1499 One Time Payment | Click Here For A Free Trial |