The best apps to learn guitar in 2026

The best app to learn guitar for most beginners is Justin Guitar, because it follows one clear, graded path from your first chord to Grade 3, with short video lessons, a daily practice routine and over 1,500 songs. Fender Play is the strongest alternative if you want a large video library and no tracking on the privacy label. No full guitar course in this list is free, but the best free option is Songsterr, whose free version plays back every tab in its catalog, and Justin Sandercoe's lessons are also free on his website.

Quick answer

• Best overall: Justin Guitar. A structured beginner course (Grades 1 to 3) with 210 video lessons and a 10-minute daily routine.
• Best video lessons: Fender Play. 3,000+ short lessons and 1,000+ songs for guitar, bass and ukulele, with no tracking declared.
• Best for play-along feedback: Simply Guitar. The app listens through your iPhone and tells you when you play a chord or note right.
• Best for multiple instruments: Yousician. Game-style lessons with instant feedback for guitar, bass and singing in one subscription.
• Best for songs and tabs: Songsterr. Over a million tabs synced with original audio, free to view and play back.
• Best for learning chords: ChordBank. 14,000+ chord shapes, a coach that listens, and rebuilt beginner units.
• Best for exploring styles: Guitar Tricks. 11,000+ lessons that branch from a core course into rock, blues, country and acoustic.
• Best for intermediate players: TrueFire. 1,800+ courses from 400+ artists and educators, for players past the basics.

Comparison table

How to choose a guitar app

• If you have never played, start with Justin Guitar or Simply Guitar. Justin Guitar teaches a fixed sequence of skills; Simply Guitar gets you playing along with songs sooner.
• If you learn best by watching a teacher, Fender Play and Guitar Tricks are built around short instructor videos.
• If you need a game to keep practicing, Yousician and Simply Guitar score your playing in real time.
• If you already know a few chords and want songs, Songsterr's free tier gives you accurate tabs with playback. It teaches songs, not technique.
• If you are past the beginner stage, TrueFire's artist courses go deeper into specific styles and techniques.
• If you are on a budget, the lowest listed prices are ChordBank's items from $2.99 and Justin Guitar's $8.99 monthly item. Check the free trial length before you subscribe to anything.

Most of these apps also ask for a subscription, so try one free trial at a time. If you also play keys, see our comparison of apps to learn piano.

Justin Guitar: Best overall

Justin Guitar, published by Musopia, turns guitar teacher Justin Sandercoe's beginner course into an app. The description lists 210 video lessons (36+ hours) covering beginner Grades 1, 2 and 3, a Daily Practice Routine that combines key exercises into a 10-minute plan, One-Minute Chord Change drills, a color-chord system, a tuner and progress tracking. The song side has over 1,500 songs, a chord filter and a player that shows the next chord diagram, the strumming pattern and lyrics, with adjustable tempo. The screenshots show a day-one plan (intro video, tuning, learning the E minor chord, a chord trainer, strumming, first song) and a song search filtered by the chords you know.

On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list includes "Full Access 1 Month" at $8.99, "Full Access 1 Year" at $64.99 and "Justin Unlimited Access" from $10.99 a month to $129.99 a year. The listing does not say what the free version includes.

Strengths: a clear graded path, rated 4.8 from about 27,400 ratings, updated in November 2026.

Limits: the course stops at beginner Grade 3, the app is English only, and the privacy label declares tracking of identifiers.

Fender Play: Best video lessons

Fender Play is Fender's lesson app for guitar, bass and ukulele. The description lists 3,000+ bite-sized video lessons, a 1,000+ song library (from Nirvana to Taylor Swift), a personalized path by instrument and genre, and playing feedback from MatchMySound listening technology. It says the app has no ads. The screenshots show a home screen with recommended videos and an "Electric Guitar: Rock Path" at Level 1, with riff courses built around songs such as Tame Impala's "The Less I Know the Better".

The description says you can start for free but does not say what the free tier covers. On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list includes monthly plans from $7.99 to $19.99 and annual plans from $44.99 to $149.99.

Strengths: a large, song-based video library, rated 4.8 from about 60,600 ratings, no tracking declared.

Limits: requires iOS 16.6, the description aims it at beginner and intermediate players, and the free tier is not described.

Simply Guitar: Best for play-along feedback

Simply Guitar is made by the team behind Simply Piano. You place your iPhone in front of you and play; the description says the app recognizes what you play and tells you when you are right or need guidance. Lessons cover fundamentals, reading tabs, chords, chord switching and strumming, with video lessons and a built-in tuner. The screenshots show a scrolling chord and tab track with a C chord, a speed control from 60% to 120%, and a song menu with beginner-friendly picks.

The listing does not say what is free. On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list runs from $19.99 ("Full Access" and "Individual Plan") to $199.99 ("Simply Guitar Premium").

Strengths: fast, song-first feedback for total beginners, an Apple Editors' Choice, 11 app languages, rated 4.7 from about 400,700 ratings.

Limits: the privacy label declares tracking of identifiers and links seven data types to you, and the listing describes beginner material more than a long-term curriculum.

Yousician: Best for multiple instruments

Yousician teaches guitar, bass and singing with a game-like screen that listens as you play. The description lists step-by-step lessons from beginner to intermediate, chords, strumming, fingerpicking, lead guitar and theory, scales and arpeggio drills, tab and sheet music reading, a built-in tuner, and progress tracking across 300+ techniques. The screenshots show a note highway with "Perfect!" scoring, a claim of 10,000+ songs and lessons, and a chord view with "instant feedback".

On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list includes "One Instrument" plans at $19.99 a month and $119.99 a year, and Premium Plus plans from $29.99 a month to $179.99 a year.

Strengths: strong motivation through scoring and challenges, one plan for several instruments, Apple Editors' Choice.

Limits: the highest monthly price here, the age rating notes advertising, tracking of identifiers is declared, and location is linked to you.

Songsterr: Best for songs and tabs

Songsterr is a tab player, not a course. We include it because learning real songs is how many guitarists practice, and its free version is unusually generous: the description says you can view and play back all of its more than one million guitar, bass and drum tabs for free. Tabs sync with the original audio for many songs, and the description says there is one accurate version per song. The screenshots show a search list (Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Guns N' Roses), a tab synced to a YouTube recording, and a tab played by a guitar engine.

The description puts the subscription at $9.99 a month; it adds speed control, looping, solo, mute and pitch shifting. The price list includes Songsterr Plus at $9.99.

Strengths: the best free tool here, accurate tabs with playback, 11 app languages, no tracking declared.

Limits: no lessons on technique, you need to read tab, the most useful practice tools are paid, and the age rating notes advertising and user-generated content.

ChordBank: Best for learning chords

ChordBank started as a chord library and now includes lessons. The description lists 14,000+ hand-curated chord fingerings, a Chord Coach that listens through the microphone, games and flashcards, a tuner, a reverse chord finder and video lessons from Berklee-trained teachers. The April 2026 update rebuilt the lessons into units from first chords to alternate tunings. The screenshots show a fretboard with finger positions and a key wheel, lessons such as "Seventh Chords" and "Tuning 101", and a drill telling you which finger goes on which string and fret.

On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list includes items without a stated billing period from $2.99 to $14.99, monthly memberships from $4.99 to $7.99, and a Pro yearly item at $35.99.

Strengths: the deepest chord reference here, low prices, no tracking and no data linked to you.

Limits: requires iOS 18.6, the age rating notes advertising, and it is narrower than a full course.

Guitar Tricks: Best for exploring styles

Guitar Tricks has taught guitar online since 1998, according to the developer. Its Core Learning System guides beginners through short videos and then branches into styles such as acoustic, rock, country and blues. The description lists over 11,000 lessons, hundreds of song tutorials, downloadable tabs and notation, and tools such as a scale finder, chord finder, tuner and fretboard trainer. The screenshots show a lesson video with the tab underneath and a song lesson split into steps with JamTracks.

The price list on the US App Store in November 2026 runs from $14.99 to $179.99, without billing periods in the item names.

Strengths: a large, style-based library, updated in October 2026.

Limits: the privacy label declares tracking of six data types, including location, contact info and purchases, the most in this list. Its 4.5 rating is the lowest of the picks, and the app is English only.

TrueFire: Best for intermediate players

TrueFire is a large catalog of video guitar courses for players who already know the basics. The description lists over 80,000 video lessons, 30,000 tabs, 20,000 jam tracks and 1,800+ courses across blues, jazz, rock, country, acoustic and fingerstyle, taught by more than 400 artists and educators. New members get a 14-day trial of All Access and a free downloadable course. The screenshots show an Eric Johnson masterclass with 62 videos and a "My Courses" dashboard of owned courses.

On the US App Store in November 2026, the price list includes All Access at $29.99 a month and $119.99 or $249.99 a year, single courses at $29.99, and some free beginner courses.

Strengths: depth and variety for intermediate and advanced players, individual courses you can buy once.

Limits: the app was last updated in May 2025, it is less guided for beginners than Justin Guitar, it declares tracking of identifiers, and it is English only.

What we left out

• Ultimate Guitar: the largest tab and chord library, but Songsterr's free playback suits learners better, and Ultimate Guitar declares tracking of usage data.
• GuitarTuna: mainly a tuner with add-on song trainers; its privacy label declares tracking of four data types.
• Gibson: a lesson app similar to Yousician, with prices up to $199.99 and tracking of four data types declared.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free app to learn guitar?

No full course in this list is free on the App Store. Songsterr lets you view and play back all its tabs for free, and some course apps offer free trials or free beginner courses, such as TrueFire. Justin Sandercoe's lessons are also free on his website, justinguitar.com, if you can practice from a browser.

Can you really learn guitar with an app?

Yes, for the basics: chords, strumming, simple songs and reading tab. Apps with listening feedback, such as Simply Guitar, Yousician and Fender Play, help you catch wrong notes. A teacher is still better at spotting posture and hand-position problems that a microphone cannot hear.

Which is better, Fender Play or Yousician?

Fender Play is built on instructor videos and songs, declares no tracking, and costs less at the top of its price list ($149.99 versus $179.99). Yousician is more game-like, scores you in real time, and adds bass and singing. Choose Fender Play if you like watching a teacher, Yousician if scores keep you practicing.

Is the Justin Guitar app worth it?

If you want a fixed, step-by-step beginner path, it is the clearest one in this list, with prices from $8.99 a month in the price list. If you prefer free material, the same teacher's lessons are on his website. If you are already past Grade 3, look at TrueFire or Guitar Tricks instead.

Do these apps work with acoustic and electric guitars?

Simply Guitar says it works with any guitar, and Yousician says you can practice on acoustic or electric. Apps that listen use your device's microphone, so an electric guitar may need an amplifier or a quiet room for accurate feedback. Most of the course apps here also include a tuner.