Guitar Classical Tuner — Tune to Classical in Your Browser
Mic-based chromatic tuner pre-set to Classical. No download, no sign-up, works in your browser.
Tuning summary
- Notes (low to high)
- E2 · A2 · D3 · G3 · B3 · E4
- Instrument
- Guitar
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- About this tuning
- Classical / nylon-string guitar uses standard EADGBE. The slug exists so classical players can land on a page that speaks their context.
Start tuning
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About Classical on guitar
Classical guitar standard tuning is identical to steel-string standard: E A D G B E, low to high. The page exists because classical and nylon-string players approach tuning differently — they more often tune by ear to a fixed reference (typically an A=440 fork or piano), and they are more sensitive to small intonation differences because the nylon strings respond to plucking in ways steel strings do not.
The classical guitar tradition assumes A=440 as a baseline, but performers will sometimes shift to A=415 (Baroque pitch) or A=432 for period-aware repertoire. Most modern recordings and concert work use A=440 to match orchestras and other instruments. The tuner's job on a nylon-string is the same as on a steel-string: get each string to the named pitch and verify with a chromatic readout.
Nylon strings have one quirk worth understanding: they take much longer to settle than steel. A new nylon string can drift in pitch for a week as it stretches, even while in storage. Classical players retune frequently within a single performance because of this, and many learn to retune by feel using harmonics at the 5th and 7th frets to cross-check fifths between adjacent strings.
If you are coming from steel-string guitar, the only change is touch and patience. Tune slowly — nylon stretches more than steel, so you can easily overshoot the target pitch. Use small turns of the tuning peg and let the string settle before checking the tuner again. Once stable, the classical guitar holds its tuning as well as a steel-string, but the path to stable is longer.
Frequently asked questions
- Is classical guitar tuning different from acoustic guitar tuning?
- No — both use standard EADGBE. The 'classical' label here refers to the instrument and tradition, not the tuning.
- Should I tune to A=440 or A=432?
- A=440 is the modern standard. A=432 has a small following but is non-standard for ensemble work; A=415 is used for Baroque performance only.
- Why do my nylon strings keep drifting out of tune?
- New nylon strings stretch for several days. Tune them, play for a few minutes, retune, and repeat. After about a week they stabilise.
- Can I use a steel-string tuner on a nylon guitar?
- Yes — chromatic tuners read pitch regardless of string material.
- How often should classical players retune?
- Every few minutes when the strings are new, and at every performance break thereafter. Classical players retune publicly between pieces as a matter of practice.