best online guitar lesson websites

The  best guitar lessons on YouTube would have to be Brian Sherrill's program, Active Melody. It's set up with a massive percentage of free content on YouTube, while there's also a paid side hosted on a private Vimeo account. Sherrill's teaching style is similar to Sandercoe in that he's patient, methodical, and extremely detailed in how he explains concepts. You'll learn a lot about improvising and dissecting scales as Sherrill takes you through soloing processes step-by-step. There's also a big emphasis on music theory and plenty of structure if you go through content on the Active Melody website, as opposed to the YouTube channel itself.

Read the full review:   Active Melody

Though content is limited to Sherrill's style, interests, and expertise, the quality of Active Melody is great for a YouTube platform and competes with much larger sites.

WEAKNESSES OF ACTIVE MELODY

Like Justinguitar, Active Melody has a similarly difficult time expanding into other styles and more advanced content. Again, this is an issue that seems to arise when you have just one instructor. There's also some organizational limitations that come with browsing the content only on YouTube.

Active Melody content, particularly if browsing only via YouTube, is a little harder to navigate and sort through than other programs, though still scores a respectable 72 out of 100.

However, these detractions are not enough to make Active Melody a bad choice, even if you decide to add the paid content in addition to what you can get on YouTube.

I DEAL FOR: Beginners, lead blues fans, and improvisation study

• Improvisation and lead material is excellent
• Free YouTube side is already a ton of content
• Paid side is less than $10 a month
• Sherrill's teaching style is detail and beginner friendly
• Organization can be a bit disjointed in some spots

Conclusion & Questions

We've built and will continue to maintain this as our primary directive and reference for the best online guitar lessons we've tested, reviewed, and recommend. If you have or know of a resource that deserves inclusion in this list, in that it would be helpful to those seeking to learn guitar, please feel free to get in touch and share it with us. Or, if you'd prefer, leave it in the comments section below.

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Bobby is the founder and editor of Guitar Chalk, and is responsible for developing most of its content. He has worked with leading guitar industry companies including Sweetwater, Ultimate-Guitar, Seymour Duncan, PRS, and many others. You can shoot him an email to get in touch.

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Making real recommendations and producing high-quality content is what Guitar Chalk is all about. Committed to informing today's guitar player.

April 12, 2023 at 12:51 pm

I have used Guitar Tricks and am very satisfied with the content and the progress made. I also use National Guitar Academy, Desi Serna Guitar Music Theory Courses, and Six String Fingerpicking and would recommend them all. Added a Premium Membership to Dave Tran’s GuitarZero2Hero program. Went to it after learning several songs with Dave’s youtube videos. I am really really impressed with the Premium course. This is the best visual/audio interface that I have encountered. Wish that others would copy this. His instruction is really well paced and I find it a real worthwhile program. Not as exhaustive as guitar Guitar Tricks material but a great value to supplement and review.

April 13, 2023 at 8:43 am

Thanks for sharing, Tim. I’m somewhat familiar with NGA, but haven’t heard of the others. I’ll check ’em out.

November 28, 2022 at 1:05 pm

Hi Bobby, this is a very useful article. I am 65 and have picked up the guitar again after a 55 year hiatus. I was given 3 years of classical guitar lessons as a child. My question comes from this: In food preparation, you can learn a recipe and know how to make one dish, or you can learn a technique and be able to prepare many dishes. That said, which of these would you recommend? I’m willing to put in the work and have been since 2/22. I would like to be able to know and change chords quickly and accurately. I would also like to be good at finger picking. I own a classical, steel string, and electric guitar. Thanks for any direction you care to offer. Best Regards, Erwin Shatzen

December 1, 2022 at 9:52 am

Hey Erwin – for chord changes and basic fingerpicking, I’d probably start with Guitar Tricks or Justinguitar. From there you could move to TrueFire for more specified courses. Let me know if you have any additional questions.

December 2, 2022 at 8:26 pm

Thank you for this direction. I’ve been on Tony’s Accoustic Challenge since 2/22. I will look at Guitar Tricks and Justin and make a decision. Best regards, Erwin

December 2, 2022 at 10:11 pm

Let me know if I can help further.🤘🏻

February 2, 2021 at 4:14 pm

Thanks for this great list! I’ve been using https://chordlines.com/ . It’s a choice to get free tabs without those unwanted ads inside lyrics.

February 2, 2021 at 4:18 pm

Hey Dereck – this is a GREAT find. Do you know who runs this site?

January 17, 2021 at 11:09 am

Great list! I’ve been a member of jamPlay for the last 4 years and have loved it. Once you get in on the holiday promos re-upping becomes a breeze. Their new toolkits really sweeten the deal, as well!

I was wondering if you’d be willing to check out and possibly add my site to the list: https://thebestguitarlessons.com .

Our mission is to provide high quality guitar lessons tailored to bring the fastest results possible. Lessons feature supplemental TAB, imagery and GuitarPro files as often as possible. We also review gear and other guitar lesson programs, such as you’ve done here, as well as industry news.

Thanks for the consideration and love the site! Been following for a while now. Take care!

January 18, 2021 at 11:08 am

Hey, thanks for getting in touch and sharing your site. If I get a chance I’ll take a look. Is it a paid membership site, or just ebooks/articles?

January 18, 2021 at 11:39 am

Thanks for the consideration! All of our lessons and content is 100% free. No memberships required. Let me know if you have any other questions. Take care!

October 19, 2020 at 4:13 pm

Hi, have you ever heard of the Rik Emmett books, “For the Love of Guitar”? I was wondering if you had and what you thought of his teaching. http://www.rikemmett.com/store/for-the-love-of-guitar/ Thanks! Gordon

October 21, 2020 at 8:53 pm

Hey Gordon – I haven’t heard of him, but it looks interesting. Have you been through his books?

October 6, 2020 at 7:38 am

Thank you for the very detailed reviews, they are excellent. I was wondering if you had a look at Paul Davids’ course: learnpracticeplay?

October 6, 2020 at 2:29 pm

Hey Ethel – thanks for the kind words. I haven’t seen LearnPraticePlay but I’ll put it on my list. Thanks for the heads up!

April 30, 2020 at 3:45 pm

Wow thanks for your help on lefty guitar Mr. Kittleberger. That sounds awesome! Have you heard anything about “The Ultimate Beginner to Expert Guitar Lessons Bundle Discover Your Inner Hendrix with This Beginner to Expert, 59-Hour Guitar Training Extravaganza” by Dan Dresnok? Is it any good? It’s selling for $30 and I thought it might be interesting. The crazy long link to it is below. Thank you! Bob

https://api.jetlore.com/layouts/section0/item4jl_cid=f2f441ec6c0607793eab9ae9aa28024b&jl_id=bobcatzy%40aol.com&jl_layout=2020_March_Tech_Amplify_20wide_10sub&feed=stackcommerce&jl_cmpn=20200430_Tech_DailyDeals_28159_SafeTouch_a0x1P000004NNe8&utm_term=jetlorewide4&div=170&params=%7B%22sections%22:%5B%7B%22id%22:0,%22exclude_product_id%22:%2228159,24208%22%7D%5D%7D&utm_source=StackSocial%20Deals%20Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20200430_Tech_DailyDeals_28159_SafeTouch_a0x1P000004NNe8

April 30, 2020 at 4:04 pm

Thanks, Bob. I honestly haven’t heard about the one you mentioned. Looks like the link isn’t working.

May 5, 2021 at 11:07 pm

Hi, Bobby. I found your site because I was googling this same course “The Complete 2021 Beginner to Expert Guitar Lessons Bundle” after seeing it offered for $29 through a local news channel article. It would appear this coursework and pricing has been offered from time to time from quite a few sites including Forbes. I would love to know if it’s worth the purchase. Sounds too good to be true. Also sounds like an overwhelming amount of content. https://deals.click2houston.com/sales/the-complete-2021-beginner-to-expert-guitar-lessons-bundle?utm_source=click2houston.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=the-complete-2021-beginner-to-expert-guitar-lessons-bundle_031521&utm_term=scsf-479865&utm_content=a0x1P000004eRhbQAE&scsonar=1

May 6, 2021 at 8:32 am

Hey Kerin – I looked and that course isn’t familiar to me. To be honest, it does look a little sketchy. For that price I would assume it’s fairly basic, or maybe even some kind of re-purposed content. Are you familiar with the creators at all? Sorry I can’t provide more info on it.

May 6, 2021 at 10:02 am

Thanks for looking into it, Bobby. I thought it was interesting that Bob had commented about the same/similar offer. I haven’t seen any comments/reviews about it online. I’m not familiar with the creators, but that doesn’t mean much as I’m new to the guitar lesson world. Perhaps this is a sign to spend my $29 elsewhere! Thanks again!

May 6, 2021 at 1:10 pm

Yeah, I would agree, Kerin. Good luck!

August 9, 2023 at 10:09 am

I’ve been a student at Creative Guitar Studio (Andrew Wasson) for almost a year. I’ve been playing guitar for over w0 years by ear. After a few months with Andrew I’m better than ever. Can’t believe I wasted all those years without properly learning. Andrews course layout is superb and very detailed. It took me 6 months of intense study to complete all 3 of the intensive courses. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced. It’s tough but well worth it. Takes many hours of lessons and practice but I’m so good right now I can pickup and play almost anything. I thoroughly enjoyed all the courses.

April 30, 2020 at 2:46 pm

Thanks for this Bobby. I am an intermediate left-handed guitarist and also have a visuoperceptual disability that makes it very hard for me to turn things around in my head if I’m watching someone opposite me play. Could you recommend a guitar learning website/program for someone like me during COVID?

April 30, 2020 at 2:50 pm

Hey Bob – if I’m not mistaken, TrueFire allows you to mirror or “flip” the video which then makes it appear as though you’re watching a left-handed demonstration.

I would start there if that’s a priority for you. Underrated feature, for sure.

Let me know if you have any additional questions.

January 23, 2020 at 3:40 pm

Looking at your reviews….great job! However at the top of this page the $99 link for GuitarTricks has no code and simply connects to the standard annual fee.

Will look around your site more…loks intriguing

January 23, 2020 at 3:47 pm

Hey thanks, Jerald. The button was for a promo that they just stopped running. I switched it back to the trial which is your best bet. https://www.guitartricks.com/trial_splash.php?a_aid=55097c8e80b04

If you want, I can share other promo codes with you. Just let me know. Hope this helps.

July 31, 2018 at 5:23 pm

It’s really great list, no doubt. To me, particularly, I get use two websites that helps me a lot and have excellent resources besides videos. E-Chords ( https://e-chords.com ) and a new one called Guitar Camera ( https://guitarcamera.com )

August 1, 2018 at 8:31 am

Hey Gabriel – thanks for sharing. I use E-Chords as well and they probably should be on this list.

July 7, 2018 at 6:27 am

Hi there, Thanks very much for this. This is a great resource – very useful indeed. I have tried many of the lessons you recommend and feel that they all have their particular strengths. At the moment I’m learning Blues guitar from absolutebluesguitar.com. Bobby Harrison is an incredible teacher and the site provides a very high level of detail for so many aspects of electric blues guitar. More importantly for me, it provides the continuity and progression that I found lacking in the other sites. The lessons are clear and well structured and you really feel like you’re playing the blues rather than just exercises. Please check it out and include it in your review as it doesn’t seem to have very high visibility online. It took me such a long time before I stumbled across it and it would be great if it could be featured on your listing. Many thanks! Ken

July 7, 2018 at 7:47 am

Hey Ken, thanks for turning me onto this. I’ll take a deeper look once I get a chance and see if I can get in touch with Bobby Harrison.

July 7, 2018 at 7:54 am

That’s great Bobby, thanks for your response. Hope to see it featured in your listing soon! Ken

July 7, 2018 at 3:07 am

Great article! I have a membership in Truefire and love it. I will definitely check out the books mentioned as I have not seen any of them prior to this article.

I would also second the Andrew Wasson site and, for jazzers, the jazz guitarlessons.net run by Marc-Andre Seguin.

July 7, 2018 at 7:44 am

Thanks, Scott. Pretty much all the Hal Leonard guitar stuff is really good. I’ve corresponded some with Marc-Andre Seguin but I’m not super familiar with his material. Look good on the surface though.

July 6, 2018 at 3:44 pm

Fantastic article!!! All great! I recently started with an up and comer, Crazy Mo Guitar! Great instructor and material. Thanks!

July 6, 2018 at 3:49 pm

Hey, Scoots – thanks for the kind words. How long has Crazy Mo been around? His site looks great (new).

January 31, 2018 at 4:45 pm

Absolutely terrific article with reference to sources I will visit repeatedly. I have also enjoyed content online from Andrew Wasson – Creative Guitar and from Scott’s Bass Academy.

January 31, 2018 at 9:52 pm

Thanks much. Those both look like resources worth including. We’ll do a bit more research and then likely add them in the article.

January 12, 2018 at 10:45 am

Thanks for this information. I was looking for online lessons and this article helped me in my search and in my decision. I’ve chosen and of course I am enjoying it very much. I guess I could have enjoyed many others had I chosen for another website. Initially I was attracted to Fender Play, then I read this article and also considered JamPlay. Finally, I picked Guitartricks. I think their 20 years experience and the fact that they are not expensive is what made up my decision. To everyone, whatever source you decide, I recommend trying lessons online because I think the price is so much less than learning in person with a single teacher. I also value the benefit of learning during your own time, just signing in whenever you want. Anyway, thanks and good wishes to everyone who begins the journey of learning guitar.

January 12, 2018 at 1:01 pm

Hey Albert – thanks for your thoughts on this. I do believe that the online medium is more comprehensive, cost-effective and easier to use than in-person tutoring, though both have their pros/cons.

I did a full Fender Play Review here, https://www.guitarchalk.com/fender-play-review/

Though it seems like you’ve already made your decision. Thanks again for the thoughtful comment.

October 24, 2017 at 3:13 pm

Hi, I have had year-long memberships with Guitar Tricks, Jam Play and True Fire. They have all helped in me achieve more in the last four years that in decades of just noodling around on my own. They all have flaws though as their is a lack of understanding as to what is uniquely powerful about the medium through which they work. Education of all kinds has been a “hit or miss” proposition where failure is seen as an inevitability beyond anyone’s control in a large segment. Therefore they do not pioneer any now modality which uses all aspects of the digital media realm to capture and learn from their own shortfalls. As an instructional designer myself going back to the 1980’s I have been able to ascertain that digital media networking in this the age of information can and should be rethought to offer “no-miss” modalities where all who choose to buy in get orientation to the new relationship where users understand that their honest feedback will be used to improve course-ware. Unfortunately, feedback mechanisms are treated as public comments and because of 20th Century cultural issues anyone who is critical draws nasty remarks. It seems “if you don’t have something positive to say, don’t say anything” still rules, when indeed flaws need to be treated seriously. Interfaces should be re-designed to allow students to isolate and manage everything they do not grasp when they encounter it, and communicate that privately with encouragement to the company. There is no benefit at all to having artists try to teach when professional illustrators and narrators can meet with them and produce course-ware they endorse as conveying their technique. I find that there is very little if any attention to information ergonomics as well where one should be designing to try to keep everyone from having to stop playing to use a mouse to advance music. Sound Slice is a step in the right direction but it just showed up without anyone showing how using it in full screen mode using resizing of the first line of music leads to a wider and automatic scrolling. I also could not find instructions if you can loop parts of Sound Slice. I stumbled across it after wasted time. This is the age of getting rid of waste of time and lax attitudes about failure to get the value you sign up for. I’m too old to start a business doing this. But I feel I must share this grasp as much as I can when given the chance. The services must not remain in a position where they can just do what THEY think will be effective and then get defensive when clients criticize–or they don’t even measure much less care about how many people walk away unhappy and never come back. The unique benefits of this technology are that they make for the grounds for “no-miss”–i.e. both the consumer and the company are in symbiosis, they both get better and better and everyone wins. Free lessons that make money through ads will go way as people pay the $10 YouTube no charges per month to watch videos without waiting for ads. Eventually everything will have to become affiliated if and when no-miss modalities supplant the casual and frankly disgraceful by comparison 20th Century model of glib acceptance of failure as the student’s fault.

October 24, 2017 at 3:54 pm

I think I see what you’re saying, though I would probably disagree with your assertion that a lot of these companies are doing a poor job of considering user/customer feedback.

To be honest, I think I’m a little confused as to the “thesis” of your argument. It’s certainly fair to say that all these companies have flaws, but I would argue that their strong suits far outweigh any concerns you might have, especially if that’s only in relation to how they handle constructive criticism.

Am I misunderstanding you? Let me know, Jim. Thanks for the thoughtful comment.

May 15, 2017 at 12:54 pm

This is so useful and there is so much there to choose from. I would just add to the list a site which I have found really useful learning the guitar. It’s a podcast and I really like listening to it when I travel to work. They cover a lot each lesson! See https://tunein-toneup.com

May 15, 2017 at 1:08 pm

Thanks, Sharna. I’ll try and check it out when I have a chance.

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