How do you tune a guitar step by step, with and without a tuner?

Guitar notes in standard tuning

Strings are numbered from the thinnest (1st) to the thickest (6th). When you hold the guitar to play, the 6th string is at the top, closest to your face, and the 1st is at the bottom, closest to the floor. Mixing up the string numbers is the most common tuning mistake.

The two E strings play the same note two octaves apart. The number next to the letter (E2, E4) indicates the octave. You don't need it to tune, but it helps explain why a tuner can display "E" for a string that is actually an octave higher than it should be.

How to turn tuning pegs without breaking strings

Each string ends at a tuning peg on the headstock. Before turning anything, trace the string with your finger from the sound hole to its tuning peg to make sure you're turning the right one.

• Don't memorize "right" or "left." The direction depends on the side of the headstock and the guitar model. Turn a quarter turn while the string rings and listen: if the pitch rises, you're tightening it; if it falls, you're loosening it.
• Turn while the string is ringing. That way, you hear the change as it happens and avoid blindly turning too far.
• Make small adjustments. Near the target note, an eighth of a turn or less is enough, especially on the thin strings.
• Always tune up to the note. If you overshoot, loosen the string to just below the note and tune up again. This keeps the mechanism engaged and prevents the string from slipping.
• On a classical guitar (nylon strings), new strings stretch for several days and keep going flat. That's normal: patiently retune them. We explain this in how to change guitar strings.

How to tune a guitar with a tuner

Clip-on tuners attach to the headstock and detect vibrations in the wood (ideal in noisy places); pedal tuners are for electric guitars; and apps or web tuners use a microphone. You can use our free online guitar tuner on your phone or computer. The same tuner also has modes for bass, ukulele, and bowed strings.

1. Find a quiet place if you're using a microphone. Open the tuner and allow microphone access.
2. Start with the 6th string. Play it open with moderate force and let it ring without muting it.
3. Check which note it displays. If it shows a lower note (for example, D♯ or E♭ when you're aiming for E), tighten the string; if it shows a higher one (F), loosen it.
4. Turn the tuning peg slowly until the needle or indicator is centered and the tuner displays the correct note.
5. Repeat with the 5th, 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st strings.
6. Make a second full pass: changing one string's tension slightly adjusts the neck and shifts the other strings.
7. Check with a chord you know, such as E major or G. If it sounds "clean," you're ready.

One important detail: if a string is very loose, the tuner may show a note far from your target (for example, C instead of E). Don't tune it to that note: raise the pitch gradually through C♯, D, and D♯ until you reach E. If the string feels much tighter than usual, stop: you may be taking it an octave too high.

How to tune a guitar by ear: the fifth-fret method

This method tunes the guitar to itself. The 6th string needs to be in tune, using a piano, another tuned instrument, or a tuner as a reference. Without a reference, the strings will be in tune with one another, but perhaps a little higher or lower than standard tuning. That works for practicing alone, but not for playing with others.

1. Press the 6th string at the fifth fret, just behind the metal fret wire, without pressing too hard.
2. Play that note, then the open 5th string. Let both ring together.
3. If you hear a pulsing "wah-wah" sound, the pitches don't match. Turn the 5th string's tuning peg until the pulsing slows down and disappears.
4. Repeat across the strings as shown in the table, remembering to use the fourth fret on the 3rd string.
5. Check the result by comparing the open 6th and 1st strings: they should sound like the same note, two octaves apart.

Why your guitar goes out of tune (and what to do)

• New strings: they stretch over the first few days, especially nylon strings.
• Changes in temperature and humidity: traveling from Bogotá's dry cold to a warmer area, or leaving your guitar in a car in the sun, affects the wood and strings. Let the instrument acclimate in its case for a few minutes before tuning.
• Playing hard or bending strings: these repeatedly tighten and loosen the strings.
• Worn or loose tuning pegs: if a string keeps going flat even though it's fitted correctly, ask your teacher or a luthier to check the tuning machines.
• A poorly positioned capo: if it's crooked or too tight, it pulls the strings sharp. Tune without the capo and place it just behind the fret.

For all these reasons, tuning isn't a one-time task: do it whenever you pick up the guitar, just as you adjust a car's mirror before driving off.

Common guitar tuning mistakes

• Turning another string's tuning peg and tightening it until it breaks.
• Tuning a string an octave too high because the tuner shows the correct letter.
• Pressing too hard in the fifth-fret method: this raises the pitch and carries the error over to every string.
• Tuning amid background noise with a microphone-based tuner.
• Stopping after the first pass without checking all the strings together.
• Using the fifth fret on the 3rd string instead of the fourth.

If you're starting out, your teacher will check tuning with you during your first acoustic guitar lessons or electric guitar lessons, until you can do it yourself in under a minute. Once your guitar is ready, the next step is basic guitar chords.

Frequently asked questions