Lady playing guitar at laptop
(Image credit: Getty/Westend61)
Guitar Tricks has established itself as a heavyweight in the online guitar lesson arena, boasting a massive library of content accumulated since 1998. With over 11,000 video lessons, 800+ songs, and a roster of 44 instructors covering 12 genres, it’s clear that Guitar Tricks offers quantity. But does it deliver on quality? In this comprehensive Guitar Tricks Review, we’ll dive deep into the platform to see if it lives up to the hype and whether it’s the right choice for your guitar learning journey.
For this review, we were granted full access to the Guitar Tricks platform to bring you an up-to-date and thorough assessment of its features, content, and overall user experience.
First Impressions: Navigating the Guitar Tricks Platform
Guitar Tricks immediately impresses with the sheer volume of resources available. Navigating the site, you’ll find a slightly dated but functional user interface. While it may not have the modern, gamified feel of platforms like Yousician or the sleek design of Fender Play, Guitar Tricks exudes an air of authority and substance. It prioritizes content and quality instruction over flashy aesthetics, which many serious learners will appreciate.
Signing up is straightforward, offering options to create an account via email or through Google, Apple, or Facebook. While a limited selection of free lessons is available without a credit card, the platform’s confidence in its offerings is underscored by a generous 60-day money-back guarantee. This allows ample time to explore the platform and determine if it aligns with your learning style.
Guitar Tricks is accessible via desktop browser and dedicated apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Android devices, ensuring a consistent learning experience across platforms.
The homepage presents a wealth of options: new tutorials, the weekly Guitar Insider Q&A series, and themed song collections. However, the primary navigation is driven by three central panels: Beginner Lessons, Experienced Lessons, and Song Library. Let’s delve into each of these key areas.
Beginner Lessons: Building a Solid Foundation
(Image credit: Simon Fellows)
The Beginner Lessons section forms the bedrock of Guitar Tricks’ structured learning paths. Divided into Guitar Fundamentals 1 & 2, these levels provide a comprehensive introduction for newcomers and those returning to the guitar. Level 1 starts with the absolute basics – tuning, open chords, and simple strumming – progressing to major and minor scales, power chords, and introductory riffs in blues and rock. Guitar Fundamentals 2 elevates the learning curve, introducing fingerpicking, 7th chords, and barre chords.
Each level is organized into chapters, with each chapter containing several lessons, and each lesson broken down into concise tutorials typically lasting between 3 to 6 minutes. This bite-sized approach makes learning manageable and prevents overwhelm. Instead of mandating specific songs within these levels, Guitar Tricks intelligently recommends practice songs relevant to each chapter, fostering student choice and engagement. This flexible approach is a welcome change from platforms that force learners to play songs they might not enjoy.
For true beginners or those restarting their guitar journey, Guitar Tricks’ fundamental levels offer a robust and well-structured foundation that will serve them well as they advance.
Experienced Lessons: Genre-Specific Deep Dives
(Image credit: Simon Fellows)
Upon completing the Beginner Lessons, Guitar Tricks opens up specialized learning paths within the Experienced Lessons section. Here, you can choose to focus on four core genres: Blues, Country, Rock, or Acoustic. These advanced modules mirror the structure of the beginner lessons, featuring two levels of increasing complexity, divided into chapters, lessons, and tutorials.
Taking the Blues path as an example, Level 1 explores 12-bar blues forms, rhythm patterns, blues progressions, and expands upon power and barre chords. Level 2 delves into blues licks, the Blues Scale, style breakdowns of blues legends like Albert King and B.B. King, soloing techniques, and introductions to slide guitar and regional blues styles.
The beauty of Guitar Tricks’ design is that you aren’t confined to a single genre. Learners are encouraged to explore multiple paths, broadening their musical horizons and skill sets across Blues, Rock, Country, and Acoustic styles.
Song Library: A Vast Repertoire to Explore
(Image credit: Simon Fellows)
With over 800 songs in its library, Guitar Tricks provides ample material for practical application of learned skills. Songs are rated by difficulty using plectrum icons (1 to 5), adding a playful visual element. Many popular songs also include “Made Easy” versions tailored for beginners. For instance, The Beatles’ “Let it Be” is available as a beginner-friendly one-plectrum tutorial and an advanced five-plectrum version.
While the learning paths concentrate on four genres, the Song Library expands to twelve: Acoustic, Bluegrass, Blues, Classical, Country, Funk & Soul, Jazz, Metal, Pop, Rock, Rockabilly, and Surf. As expected, Rock and Blues are heavily represented. However, some genres, like Surf, are less developed. The Pop section, while present, could benefit from more contemporary additions to attract younger learners. While there are some modern pop tunes, incorporating recent chart-topping hits would enhance its appeal to a broader audience.
Despite some genre imbalances, Guitar Tricks excels in niche areas where other platforms often fall short. The Classical guitar instruction, for example, is notably high-quality, thanks to instructors like Christopher Schlegel.
Quality of Instruction: Expert Teachers and Production
Guitar Tricks boasts a strong roster of 44 instructors, including notable figures like Anders Mouridsen, Dave Celentano, and Mike Olekshy. Across numerous lessons and songs reviewed, the quality of instruction remains consistently high.
Each lesson or song features an instruction page with a central video player, accompanied by sections like Description, Content, Lyrics, Notation, and Q&As. The content is always thorough and tailored to the tutorial.
The notation includes both TAB and standard notation, a valuable feature for understanding timing and musical nuances, and arguably more effective than animated fretboards for serious learners. The notation is clear and easy to follow alongside the video.
Video production is excellent, with most lessons now in 4K resolution, featuring multiple camera angles, variable playback speed, and looping controls. The instructors are clearly experts who communicate effectively, making complex concepts accessible and engaging.
Extra Features: Beyond the Lessons
Guitar Tricks interface screen grabs
(Image credit: Simon Fellows)
Beyond its core lessons and song library, Guitar Tricks offers valuable supplementary features. These include standard resources like chord charts, a metronome, scale finder, and guitar tuner. More impressively, Guitar Tricks provides a feedback service where you can upload a video of your playing and receive personalized critique from a Guitar Tricks instructor via a private YouTube link.
For more direct interaction, 1-to-1 online lessons are also available with a selection of instructors, starting at around $40 for 30 minutes. Additionally, for learners seeking long-term commitment and guidance, Guitar Tricks offers personalized private tuition plans for $99, aimed at fostering sustained progress and preventing learners from abandoning their guitar goals prematurely.
Who is Guitar Tricks For?
Guitar Tricks distinguishes itself by catering to a wide range of skill levels, from absolute beginners to advanced players. While many online guitar platforms primarily target beginners, Guitar Tricks offers substantial content to challenge and engage intermediate and advanced guitarists.
While advanced players might find less content proportionally compared to beginners, the platform’s depth in specific genres and techniques can effectively address knowledge gaps and provide ongoing learning opportunities.
Guitar Tricks is particularly well-suited for those interested in Rock and Blues styles due to its extensive resources in these genres. However, the platform’s breadth of content ensures that guitarists of various interests and skill levels will find valuable material to improve their playing.
Pros and Cons of Guitar Tricks
Pros:
- Vast Content Library: Over 11,000 lessons and 800+ songs provides extensive learning material.
- High-Quality Instruction: Experienced and knowledgeable instructors deliver clear and effective lessons.
- Comprehensive Learning Paths: Structured paths for beginners and genre-specific paths for experienced players.
- Genre Depth (Rock & Blues): Particularly strong in Rock and Blues instruction and song selection.
- Valuable Extra Features: Feedback service, 1-to-1 lessons, and helpful tools enhance the learning experience.
- 60-Day Money-Back Guarantee: Provides risk-free trial period to assess the platform.
- Cross-Platform Accessibility: Available on desktop and mobile devices.
Cons:
- Dated User Interface: UI feels less modern compared to competitors.
- Genre Imbalance: Weaker in Pop and some niche genres compared to Rock and Blues.
- Song Library Recency: Could benefit from more contemporary pop song additions.
Conclusion: Is Guitar Tricks the Right Choice?
Guitar Tricks stands out as an exceptional online guitar tuition platform. Its extensive library, high-quality instruction, and structured learning paths make it a powerful tool for guitarists of all levels. While its user interface could use a refresh and genre representation isn’t perfectly balanced, the sheer depth and quality of content are undeniable.
For beginners, Guitar Tricks offers a robust and comprehensive starting point, capable of guiding them throughout their entire guitar learning journey. Experienced players will find ample advanced material and genre-specific deep dives to refine their skills and expand their repertoire, especially within Rock and Blues.
If you’re serious about learning guitar and value in-depth, quality instruction over flashy interfaces, Guitar Tricks is definitely worth considering. Take advantage of their free trial or the special offer for your first month to experience the platform firsthand.
Guitar Tricks Specs:
- Price: $19.95 monthly, $179.99 yearly, free limited account
- Free trial?: 14 days, or get 1 month for $1
- Key features: Guided paths; digestible lessons; comprehensive song tutorials which include amp and guitar settings; artist and genre studies that cover all the basics of a range of styles; additional resources such as scale charts and maintenance tips
- Genres: Acoustic, rock, blues, bluegrass, classical, country, jazz, funk and soul, rockabilly, surf, world
- Platforms: Desktop, iPhone, iPad, Android
- Contact: Guitar Tricks
Guitar Tricks Alternatives:
- Fender Play
- Yousician
- TrueFire
- JustinGuitar.com
- JamPlay
