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Acoustic Guitar from Zero

Your first chords tonight. Your first full song within a month. A practice routine built for busy people, no music theory, no tab-reading, no excuses.

Skill levelComplete beginner

Time needed20–30 min/day

Starter budget£120–200

Step 01

What you need to get started

The guitar world is full of expensive beginner traps. Here's the honest kit — what you need on day one, and what can wait.

The guitar

Buy a full-size acoustic steel-string. Classical guitars (nylon strings) are gentler on fingers but limit what you can play. Steel-string is the right choice for folk, pop, country, and rock.

Yamaha F310 or F370

£110–130 new, £60–80 second-hand

The benchmark beginner guitar. Reliable tuning stability, decent tone, built to last. Used by music schools worldwide for 30 years.

Find on Amazon Find on Thomann

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Fender CD-60S

£170–190 new

A step up in sound quality. Solid spruce top means the sound improves as it ages and opens up. Worth the extra £50 if budget allows.

Find on Amazon Find on Thomann

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Clip-on tuner (Snark or D'Addario)

£8–12

An out-of-tune guitar is the single biggest reason beginners quit. Clip it on the headstock, tune before every session. Non-negotiable.

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Capo (Kyser or G7th)

£10–15

Unlocks dozens of songs immediately by moving the key without changing chord shapes. Buy one from the start.

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Picks (variety pack)

£3–5 for a pack

Start with medium gauge (0.73mm). Thin picks are floppy, heavy picks are stiff. Try a few and find what feels natural.

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Where to buy (UK)

Andertons Music — Best UK guitar retailer, helpful staff, good return policy
Guitar Guitar — Nationwide stores + online, competitive prices
PMT Online — Large selection, frequent sale pricing
Facebook Marketplace — Second-hand Yamaha F310s are everywhere — ideal first buy

Avoid supermarket or unbranded guitars under £60. The necks warp and they're impossible to tune — they teach bad habits.

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Prerequisites

None. You don't need to read music. You don't need prior musical experience. The only useful thing is the willingness to practise for 20 minutes a day for the first month.

Fingertip soreness is normal

Your fingertips will hurt for the first 2–3 weeks. This is universal. Play through it. Calluses form quickly and then it stops completely. Don't buy finger protectors — they delay callus formation.

Part ofMusic Track—Course 1 of 3

Community

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Side quests

Practice drills for this course

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