How to tune a guitar: step by step, with or without a tuner

Standard tuning: E A D G B E

The six strings, from thickest to thinnest, are tuned to E, A, D, G, B and E. Strings are numbered from the thinnest: the high E is string 1, the low E is string 6.

The two E strings are the same note two octaves apart. That makes a handy final check: played together, strings 1 and 6 should sound clean.

Before you start: flat, sharp and the tuning peg

If a string sounds lower than it should, it is flat; if higher, it is sharp. Tightening a string raises the pitch; loosening it lowers the pitch. If you are not sure which way you are turning, keep plucking while you turn the peg slowly — if the pitch rises, you are tightening.

Tuners show the error in cents: a semitone is 100 cents. When the needle sits in the middle and the error is down to a few cents, the string is in tune.

Always come up to the note from below. If a string is sharp, loosen it a little below the note first, then tighten up to it. That way the gear in the tuning machine settles and the string does not slip back while you play.

Tuning with a tuner, step by step

1. Find somewhere quiet if you can. With a phone, hold it close to the body of the guitar; clip a clip-on tuner to the headstock.
2. Start with string 6, the low E. Pluck it open — without pressing any fret — once, at normal strength, and let it ring.
3. If the needle is on the flat side, tighten the peg; if it is on the sharp side, loosen a little first, then tighten up to the middle.
4. When the needle holds in the middle, move to the next string: 5 (A), 4 (D), 3 (G), 2 (B), 1 (high E).
5. After the last string, check all of them once more. Tightening strings bends the neck slightly and the first strings you tuned can drift — especially with new strings or after a big change in tuning.

A hard pluck goes sharp for a moment. Take the reading not on the attack but a moment later, once the note settles.

Without a tuner: the 5th-fret method

Without a tuner you can still tune the guitar to itself. The idea is simple: the 5th fret of each string gives the same note as the next thinner string played open. The one exception is string 3, where you use the 4th fret.

1. Take string 6 as your reference. If you are not sure it is right, set it against a reference first (see the note below).
2. Press string 6 at the 5th fret and pluck it: that is A. Bring open string 5 to the same note.
3. String 5 at the 5th fret is D: match open string 4 to it.
4. String 4 at the 5th fret is G: match open string 3 to it.
5. The exception: string 3 at the 4th fret is B: match open string 2 to it.
6. String 2 at the 5th fret is E: match open string 1 to it.

When two notes are close, playing them together produces a wobbling beat. As you turn the peg the beat slows down; when it disappears, the notes match. Each step carries its small error into the next, so finish by playing strings 1 and 6 together.

This method tunes the guitar to itself, not to other instruments. If you play with others, take your starting note from a reference: the E on a piano, another guitar that is in tune, or a 440 Hz tuning fork. With a fork the easiest route is the harmonic at the 5th fret of string 5 (touch the string lightly without pressing it down): it gives exactly 440 Hz. Adjust string 5 until it matches the fork, then bring string 6 to it so that its 5th fret matches open string 5.

Classical, acoustic, electric and bass

• Classical (nylon-string) guitar. Same tuning: E A D G B E. New nylon strings stretch for days and keep going flat; tuning often in the first days is normal.
• Acoustic (steel-string) guitar. The most sensitive to changes in temperature and humidity. Coming from a cold car into a warm room, give the guitar some time in its case before you tune.
• Electric guitar. A tuner connected by cable gives the cleanest reading. If the open strings are in tune but notes at the 12th fret are off, the problem is not tuning but intonation: the string length at the bridge needs adjusting.
• Floyd Rose and other floating bridges. The bridge balances string tension against springs: tightening one string pulls the bridge and loosens the others. Expect several passes; on locking-nut models, lock the nut first and finish with the fine tuners on the bridge.
• Bass guitar. A four-string bass is tuned to the same notes as the guitar's four thickest strings (E A D G), one octave lower; a five-string adds a low B. The method is the same.

Alternate tunings: drop D, half step down and open tunings

Some songs ask for a non-standard tuning. The ones you will meet most often:

The quickest way into drop D by ear: lower string 6 while playing it together with open string 4. When they are the same D an octave apart, the beat disappears. To check, string 6 at the 7th fret should give the same A as open string 5.

Half step down is one way to play a song a semitone lower: your fingers make the same shapes and the sound drops. To reach the same key without retuning, you can transpose the chords — then the shapes change instead.

Put songs that need a different tuning next to each other in the setlist; retuning is the longest pause on stage. More in the setlist guide.

Why does a guitar go out of tune?

• New strings. They stretch for the first few days. After fitting them, pull each string gently away from the fretboard, retune, and repeat a few times; the string settles much faster.
• Temperature and humidity. Strings and wood both react to changes. Under stage lights, check the tuning again after the first few songs.
• A string slipping at the peg. Without a few turns around the post, a string slips under tension. Leave enough wraps on the post when you restring.
• A string sticking in the nut. If the pitch jumps with a “ping” while you turn the peg, the string is catching in its slot in the nut at the top of the neck. A little pencil lead rubbed into the slot helps the string slide.
• Capo. A capo pulls the strings slightly and can push them sharp. Check the tuning once the capo is on; more in the capo guide.

Tuning on stage and in rehearsal

• Tune right before you go on, once the guitar has adjusted to the room.
• Do a quick check between songs. Allowing 20–30 seconds per changeover in the setlist makes room for it.
• On a loud stage a phone microphone hears the other instruments too. A clip-on or pedal tuner is more reliable there.
• Most pedal tuners mute your signal while you tune; phones and clip-ons do not. If you don't want the audience to hear you tuning, turn your volume down.
• Everyone in the band should use the same reference, usually A = 440 Hz. If someone's tuner is set to 442 Hz, every chord clashes slightly.

Songlivo's tuner

Songlivo has a guided tuner built in. It is available in the free version, shows no ads and needs no internet: the sound is processed on the phone and never sent anywhere.

1. Choose your instrument under Settings → Instrument: Guitar, Bass Guitar (4- or 5-String), Ukulele, Mandolin or Banjo. The tuner takes the number of strings and their notes from there.
2. Open Settings → Tools → Tuner, tap Start and allow microphone access.
3. Starting with the thickest string, the screen tells you which string to play: “Play string 6”. Pluck it and turn the peg as the screen says: “Tighten — flat” or “Loosen — sharp”.
4. Once the string holds within ±10 cents for a moment, the screen says “In tune”, the phone vibrates and plays a short beep, and the tuner moves on to the next string by itself. At the end it shows “All strings in tune”.
5. To retune a particular string, tap its button on the screen; to start from the beginning, use the refresh icon in the top bar (“Start over”).

The tuner works in standard tuning with an A = 440 Hz reference. There is no target for drop D, half step down or open tunings; for those, use the by-ear method above.

Hold the phone close to the body of the guitar; it gives the most reliable reading in a quiet room. On a loud stage, a clip-on or pedal tuner does the job better.