In this article we aim to answer the oft-asked question ‘How long does it take to learn guitar?’ We’ll give you some idea how long it takes to get good and what you can reasonably expect to achieve on the instrument within certain timeframes.
As you probably guessed, in reality ‘How long does it take to learn guitar?’ is an impossible question to answer!
Everyone is different, and everyone has their own idea of what being able to ‘play the guitar’ actually means. For example, being able to strum a few chords is different to being able to play a classical guitar concerto. The latter would take considerably more time to accomplish!
One way to get better quicker is to get lessons. Either find yourself a good local teacher, or use an online provider like . If you’ve invested some money into learning guitar, you’re likely to work harder towards your goals.
It is possible to give a ‘ballpark’ answer to the ‘How long does it take to learn guitar?’ question, and it all depends on your expectations …
If you’re learning the guitar in order to be able to accompany yourself singing a few songs then you could expect to be able to ‘play’ the guitar within a fortnight!
Learning four or five chords and how to strum a basic rhythm may well be adequate for your needs. Why not give it a try?
Although your fingers might be a bit sore and the chord changes a little slow, you’d be playing the guitar!
If you’re learning the guitar in order to play in a band then in theory you could be doing so within six months – perhaps even sooner.
At the beginning of your guitar playing career it all comes down to how much time you can dedicate to practicing.
… And this depends on what else you’ve got going on in your life at the time.
Kids, work and modern life in general can make it very hard to set aside regular practice time. However, with fifteen to twenty minutes every day – and longer whenever you can manage it – within six months you’ll easily be able to play passable rhythm guitar and improvise some simple lead solos.
If you’re at school or college you probably have the advantage of having more free time (although it may not seem like it!). Learning basic guitar in 6 months should be possible.
You won’t be in 6 months, but neither will you sound like an absolute beginner. At the end of 6 months you may even be coming up with your own riffs and starting to write your own songs.
Guitar lessons, either with a local teacher or online from a site such as are helpful at the start. You’ll get a better grasp of the basics and you’ll be more focused.
Of course, many people choose to teach themselves how to play guitar, and there are some excellent books on the market if you want to go down this route. You can find out about some of the best ones here: .
After 6 months a beginner classical guitarist will be able to play simple tunes, and will have a basic understanding of how to read music.
Reading music is the major difference between classical and rock guitar. It’s not a requisite for rock and pop guitar playing, but classical guitarists need to know how to read ‘the dots’.
In classical music the emphasis is on playing music as it is written. Surprisingly, there’s just as much potential for artistic expression doing this as there is in improvisation and songwriting.
Learning classical guitar tends to be a more structured process. There is a recognised technique that you should aim to use. It’s harder to teach yourself classical guitar, and you should find yourself a qualified classical guitar teacher if you intend to go down this route.
You can find out more about learning classical guitar here: .
After a year’s worth of dedicated practice, you should easily be ‘gig-ready’. You’ll no longer sound like a beginner. People might even be willing to pay money to hear you play!
Perhaps a reasonable answer to ‘How long does it take to learn guitar?’ would be about eighteen months to two years.
After a year or two, you’ll know more about where you want to go with the guitar. You’ll be able to play confidently, without making mistakes. You’ll be tuning up by ear, and have a good knowledge of chords and scales at your disposal.
You might decide that you’re happy at this level, and remain a reliable, solid gigging musician.
Or you might have decided that you want to continue honing your skills, perhaps by specialising in a particular area of guitar playing.
You may have decided that acoustic guitar is your thing, and that strumming chords and playing simple arpeggios is not quite enough – you need to be playing virtuoso solo pieces to hushed, admiring audiences.
Or perhaps you’re a metal fan and want to concentrate on shredding, or maybe you’ve discovered a hitherto unrealised desire to ditch the distortion and play jazz, or classical guitar.
After around two years, with the basics under your belt, you’ll be ready to choose a path and take your playing to the next level.
Whichever path you take, provided you are dedicated and can commit the required amount of time, then within three to four years your playing will be at a high standard.
You’ll be able to impress people with your guitar skills and express yourself with music. You might even be able to be making a living as a guitarist.
After three to four years, further improvements to your guitar playing tend to come in smaller increments – you’ll spend more time refining your playing, finding your own voice, and identifying areas in your technique that need work and rectifying them.
There are many, many good guitarists around, and far fewer exceptional players. In a way, this is where the real hard work comes in – having the confidence, dedication and ability to concentrate on the minutiae, in order to find a unique style and to master the instrument.
The truth is that the answer to ‘How long does it take to learn guitar?’ is ‘a lifetime’!