How to Tune a Guitar

A guitar that's out of tune sounds bad no matter how well you play. Tuning is the first skill, and it takes about a minute once you've done it a few times. This guide covers the six standard notes, the three ways to get to them, and the small mistakes that keep beginners stuck slightly flat.

If you just want to start tuning right now, open our free online tuner in another tab and follow along.

What "in tune" actually means

Every note has a pitch measured in Hertz (Hz) — the number of times the string vibrates per second. The note A above middle C, for example, is 440 Hz. When two strings or two instruments play the same note at exactly the same Hz, they sound clean and resonant. A few Hz off and you'll hear a wobble or beating between the notes; further off and it just sounds wrong.

"In tune" means each open string matches the standard pitch within a few cents (a cent is 1/100 of a semitone). Most tuners are accurate to within ±1 cent, which is more than precise enough — the human ear can't reliably hear differences smaller than 5 cents.

The six standard notes (EADGBE)

Standard guitar tuning, from the thickest string to the thinnest, is E A D G B E. The thick low E is the 6th string; the thin high E is the 1st. Many beginners learn the mnemonic "Eddie Ate Dynamite, Good Bye Eddie."

This tuning — called E standard— is what almost every song you've heard on guitar uses. If you're working from chord charts that don't specify a tuning, assume E standard. You can verify or set it with our guitar standard tuner.

Three ways to tune a guitar

1. A digital tuner (recommended)

The fastest and most accurate option. A digital tuner listens through a microphone (or a clip-on contact pickup) and tells you exactly how far each string is from its target note. Modern browser-based tuners are accurate to ±1 cent — the same as a dedicated hardware unit. Use our online guitar tuner on any device with a microphone.

2. By ear, using the 5th-fret method

If you have one string already in tune, you can tune the rest from it. Fret the 5th fret of the low E and pluck — that note is A, matching your open A string. Adjust the open A until the two pitches are identical. Repeat: 5th fret of A matches open D, 5th fret of D matches open G. The G-to-B step uses the 4th fret (because of how the standard tuning is offset). Then 5th fret of B matches open high E.

3. From a reference pitch

Match your low E to an external reference — a piano's E2, a tuning fork, a phone playing 82.41 Hz, or another guitar that's already in tune. Once that string is correct, use the 5th-fret method for the other five.

Step-by-step: tuning with the Tunory tuner

1. Open the Tunory tuner and tap "Start Tuner." Grant microphone permission when your browser asks.
2. Pluck the low E (thickest string) once, firmly but not aggressively. You'll see the detected note and a needle showing how far off it is.
3. Turn the tuning peg slowly. If the needle is left of center, the note is flat — turn the peg to raise the pitch. If it's right, the note is sharp — turn the peg to lower it. Always finish by tuning up to the note.
4. When the needle centers on E and the display turns green, you're in tune. Move to the next string: A, then D, G, B, and high E.
5. Re-check the low E at the end. Tightening the higher strings puts extra tension on the neck, which can pull the lower strings slightly out. A second pass is normal.

The whole sequence takes about 60-90 seconds once you're used to it. New strings will keep drifting for a day or two as they stretch — that's normal, just re-tune more often.

Common mistakes

• Tuning down to the note instead of up. If you overshoot and the string is sharp, drop below the target then bring it back up. Tuning down leaves slack in the peg and the note drifts within minutes.
• Not re-checking after stretching new strings. Fresh strings need 2-3 full retuning passes during their first hour. Stretch each string gently by hand a few times after installing.
• Plucking too hard. A loud pluck initially reads sharp because the string deforms before it settles. Pluck at normal playing volume.
• Tuning in a noisy room.Microphone tuners can latch onto the wrong fundamental if there's background TV, traffic, or someone else playing. Find a quieter spot or use a clip-on contact tuner.
• Ignoring the octave. A tuner showing E might be detecting E3 (one octave high) instead of E2. Check the octave number — the low E is E2.

Alternate tunings: a primer

Once you're comfortable with E standard, alternate tunings open up new sounds and song possibilities. The most common ones:

• Drop D (D A D G B E) — drop the low E down a whole step to D. Common in rock, metal, and folk because it lets you play power chords with one finger. Tune it with our Drop D tuner.
• Half-step down (Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb) — every string tuned a half step lower. Used by Hendrix, SRV, and a lot of metal. Easier on the voice for singers in lower keys.
• DADGAD — Celtic and modern fingerstyle staple. Easy to play droning, open-string chords.
• Open G (D G D G B D) — strumming open gives a G major chord. Used heavily in slide guitar and old blues.
• Open D (D A D F# A D) — strumming open gives a D major. Another slide-guitar favorite.

All of these are supported in our tuner — pick the instrument and the tuning from the dropdown, and the target frequencies update automatically.

FAQ

Next steps

Now that you're in tune, the obvious next move is learning chords. Start with the open shapes: G major, C major, and D major cover hundreds of songs between them. From there, learning the C major scale is the gateway to soloing and writing your own parts.