How to tune a guitar with the online tuner
Tuning takes a minute once you know the routine:
- Sit somewhere quiet and hold the guitar 20–50 cm from the microphone. Electric guitars can be played through an amp, or unplugged right next to a laptop or phone.
- Start with the 6th string (low E). Pluck it once, firmly, and let it ring.
- Watch the needle: left of the centre means flat, so tighten the string; right means sharp, so loosen it. Turn the tuning peg a little at a time, plucking again after each turn.
- When the needle stays in the green band for a moment the string gets a tick. Move on to the 5th string, and so on up to the 1st.
- Go round once more: changing one string’s tension can pull the others slightly, especially on guitars with a floating tremolo.
If you are not sure which way a peg turns, pluck the string while you turn it slowly and watch the needle move.
Guitar string notes and frequencies
In standard tuning the six strings are tuned to these notes, at A4 = 440 Hz:
- 6th string: E2, 82.41 Hz (low E)
- 5th string: A2, 110.00 Hz
- 4th string: D3, 146.83 Hz
- 3rd string: G3, 196.00 Hz
- 2nd string: B3, 246.94 Hz
- 1st string: E4, 329.63 Hz (high E)
Guitar music is written an octave higher than it sounds. Each string is a perfect fourth above the one below it, except G to B, which is a major third; that is why chord shapes shift on the B string.
Popular alternate tunings for guitar
Alternate tunings change the open strings to make certain chords or riffs easier, or to get a lower, heavier sound. Pick one from the Tuning menu and the tuner follows it; each popular tuning also has its own page with the notes and how far to turn each string from standard.
- Drop D (D A D G B E): only the low E drops a whole step. One-finger power chords and a heavier low end.
- Half step down (E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭ E♭): every string a semitone lower; same shapes, easier bends.
- Drop C and C standard: tuned well down for metal and heavy rock; use heavier strings.
- Open G, open D, open E and open C: the open strings form a major chord, ideal for slide guitar.
- DADGAD: an open, droning sound used in Celtic and folk music.
Tuning by ear and with harmonics
Tap any string button to hear its note, then match your string to it: when the two are close you hear a slow “wah-wah” beating that stops when they are in tune. This is also handy when your microphone is blocked, or to train your ear.
Without any tuner, tune the low E to a reference, then use the 5th-fret method: the 5th fret of each string matches the next open string, except the G string, where the 4th fret matches the open B. Harmonics at the 5th and 7th frets give a clearer, longer note for fine-tuning.
Why a guitar won’t stay in tune
- New strings stretch for the first few days. Tune, gently pull each string up from the fretboard, and tune again.
- Temperature and humidity change the wood and strings: let a guitar warm up to the room before tuning.
- Strings can stick in the nut slots and jump in tune after a bend. A little graphite (pencil lead) in the slots helps.
- Old strings lose their tone and intonation. If the open strings are in tune but chords up the neck sound wrong, it is time for new strings or a setup.