How do I tune a guitar?

Standard tuning, tuning up to the note rather than down, and why a guitar that will not stay in tune usually needs new strings.

Difficulty: beginner
Time: 10 min
Read: 4 min

Short answer

Standard tuning is E A D G B E from the thickest string to the thinnest. Use a clip-on tuner or an app, always come up to the note rather than down to it, and stretch new strings in before expecting them to hold.

Tuning is a two-minute job that determines whether everything else sounds right. It also diagnoses several other problems, because a guitar that will not stay in tune is usually telling you something.

What you'll need

A clip-on tuner or a tuner app
A wound-string winder (optional)

Step by step

Learn standard tuning.From the thickest string to the thinnest: E, A, D, G, B, E. Any of the usual mnemonics works — the point is to know which string you are adjusting.
Use a clip-on tuner.It reads the vibration through the instrument rather than the sound, so it works in a noisy room and on an unamplified electric. Phone apps work well in a quiet room.
Tune one string at a time, in order.Play the string on its own, watch the tuner, adjust. Changing one string's tension slightly alters the others through the neck, so go round twice.
Always tune up to the note.If the string is sharp, go below the note and come back up. Approaching from below takes up the slack in the tuning post and the nut, so the tuning holds far better.
Turn slowly and watch the tuner.Small movements. It is easy to overshoot and snap a thin string, particularly the top E.
Check which direction tightens.Pluck and turn slightly — if the pitch drops you are going the wrong way. Guitars vary in how the machine heads are arranged.
Stretch new strings.Pull each string gently away from the fretboard along its length, then retune. New strings settle for the first day or two and will go flat repeatedly until they have been stretched.
Go round the strings twice.Once everything is roughly right, do a second pass. The neck settles as the total tension changes and the first pass will have drifted.
Check tuning at the twelfth fret.The harmonic and the fretted note at the twelfth fret should match. If they do not, the intonation needs setting at the bridge — a setup job, not a tuning one.
Diagnose a guitar that will not stay in tune.Usually old strings, badly wound strings, or a nut that is binding. Pencil graphite in the nut slots helps binding, and new strings fix most of the rest.
Retune after a temperature change.Moving a guitar from a cold car into a warm room shifts the tuning considerably. Let it acclimatise and retune before playing.
Learn relative tuning as a backup.Fifth fret of one string matches the open string below it, except the G to B pair, which uses the fourth fret. Useful when the tuner battery dies.

Tips

Always come up to the note. Tuning down leaves slack that slips.
Go round all six strings twice — the neck settles as tension changes.
New strings need stretching or they will drop flat all day.

Common mistakes

Tuning down to the note — The string tension is then taken up by slack at the post and friction at the nut, which releases as soon as you play and the string goes flat again.
Tuning once and stopping — Every string you adjust changes the total tension on the neck slightly, which pulls the others out. A second pass, and often a third, is what gets it genuinely in tune.

If it doesn't work

Goes out of tune within minutes

Cause: Old strings, unstretched new strings, or slipping at the post — Fix: Stretch new strings, replace old ones, and check the strings are wound neatly with three or four turns.

One string always drifts

Cause: Binding in the nut slot or a faulty machine head — Fix: Rub pencil graphite into the nut slot; if it persists, check the tuner for play.

In tune open, out of tune up the neck

Cause: Intonation needs setting — Fix: Compare the twelfth-fret harmonic with the fretted note; adjust the saddle position or have it set up.

Tuner cannot get a reading

Cause: Noisy room, or too quiet a note — Fix: Use a clip-on tuner, which reads vibration rather than sound.

Snapped a string tuning

Cause: Overshot the note or tuned the wrong string — Fix: Turn slowly, check the pitch is rising before winding far, and confirm which string the tuner is reading.

Questions people ask

What is standard guitar tuning?

E A D G B E, from the thickest string to the thinnest. Alternative tunings such as drop D lower the thickest string to D, and are used for specific songs and styles.

How often should I tune?

Every time you pick the guitar up. Strings drift with temperature, humidity and playing, and a few minutes on an out-of-tune instrument trains your ear badly.