Looking for the Best Electric Guitar for Kids? Find the best one according to your child’s age right here.
The electric guitars are the instrument of choice for some of the most popular rockstars in the world. If you are a fan of rock music, this is probably your favorite instrument as well. If you are looking for a musical instrument for your kids to get started with their musical journey, electric guitars are one of your best bets.
There are many reasons you should choose electric guitars as the first instrument to learn for your children.
- They are relatively easier to play in comparison to an acoustic guitar
- You can play almost all styles of music on electric guitars
- You can learn electric guitar from many resources available online, some of which are even free
- The electric guitar is objectively more fun because you can learn to make different tones with amps and pedals
- You can learn how to record your music and even create a career as a musician if you are adept at electric guitar
These are some of the reasons an electric guitar is a great first instrument for your child.
A kid is not big enough to play a full-size electric guitar, so there are smaller versions of electric guitars available for kids that they can use to learn to play the guitar first. The sizes of these guitars are created keeping in mind children and are made according to their age. So, let’s take a look at a guide for guitar sizes according to the age of your kids.
Guide For Electric Guitar Sizes According To Age Of Kids
Electric guitars are mainly available in three sizes that are easily available. They are ½ size electric guitars (you can read all about half-size guitars here on my previous blog), ¾ size electric guitars, and full-size electric guitars. These guitars are just a junior size electric guitar, and they feature the same tone and sound as a full-size guitar.
The size of the guitars corresponds directly to the age of the child. A half-size electric guitar can be called the children electric guitar as it is best for children between the ages of 5-8. If you go beyond that, you get the ¾ size electric guitars which you can call youth electric guitar, and it is best for children in the age group of 8-12.
Children beyond the age of 12 can play full-size electric guitars. If your child is over 12 and is still having problems shifting to a full-size guitar, you can get them a ¾ size electric guitar for kids to help them learn easily.
| Age Of Children | Guitar Size Fit For Them |
| 5-8 years | 1/2 Size |
| 9-12 years | 3/4 Size |
| 12+ years | Full-Size |
Now, as we are talking about kids and especially jr electric guitars, it’s essential to list out the accessories you would need to play the electric guitar, as an electric guitar needs certain accessories with the guitar to be played loudly in the expected fashion.
So, here is a quick beginner’s guide on all the accessories you would need for playing electric guitar.
Beginner’s Guide To Electric Guitar: Things You Need
- Electric Guitar
- Amplifier (necessary)
- Guitar Picks (necessary)
- Strap (not necessary)
The four items mentioned above are needed to play the electric guitar properly. Keep in mind that you will find most kids electric guitar with amp on almost all major e-commerce websites online. So, it’s in your best interest to buy such bundle deals if you don’t want to buy the amp separately.
Now that we are clear on all the background information, you will need to start playing electric guitar. Let’s look at some of the best electric guitar for kids available in the market today.
Best Electric Guitar For Kids (5-8-Year-Old Children)
WINZZ 30 Inches Real Kids Electric Guitar
Well, everyone starts somewhere. If your kid is around 5-8, there is not much you can do for them immediately. Most popular guitar brands do not cater to kids that young, so you are left with a void that is filled by smaller companies such as Winzz.
Do not get me wrong, this guitar is fine; I mean, it has six strings, and it plays. That’s just about it when it comes to this guitar. However, keeping my snarkiness and disappointments aside, this electric guitar is actually a good electric guitar for 5 year old child.
When you are just touching an instrument for the first time in your life, and it is something like a guitar that physically hurts to learn. I cannot give more props to parents that are supporting their kid’s wish to learn guitar from such a tender age. So, however basic this model might be, let’s do a full in-depth review of this guitar.
Body & Build
The body of this guitar is built out of maple wood both on the body and the neck. Maple wood is a great choice for guitars, and it is surprisingly one of the best features of this guitar. Apart from that, the fingerboard is also made out of maple, which also contributes to the tone of the guitar.
The build quality of this guitar is not the best, and I really hope you have some form of supervision over your child when they are playing this guitar as wacking this guitar hard would most probably lead to the guitar breaking.
Other than that, you can use this guitar to teach the basics of guitar to your child. In the process, they will soon learn to play a few tunes and songs on this guitar, and hopefully, their inclination towards guitar and music will begin to prosper.
Tone Sound & Playability
The tone of this guitar is at par with most of the other guitars you will find online. This model has a single, single-coil pickup to capture the sound of the guitar. There are no pickup switch modes as there is only one pickup on this guitar. It does come with a functional volume knob, and that’s it.
The tone of this guitar is good because of the maple neck and body. You can learn to play guitar on this model without any problems. This guitar is built specifically for beginners, which makes it very easy to play. This model is a steel-string guitar so please only use steel strings as a replacement in case of string breakage.
Bonus
This guitar comes as a bundle on Amazon with an amp, guitar, cable, tuner, strap, picks, and replacement guitar strings. This is the best kid’s electric guitar available for 5-8 year olds in the market.
Vangoa 30 Inch Kids Electric Guitar
Continuing on the theme of best electric guitars for 5-8 year old kids. This Vangoa model is also a bit of an improvement from the previous model. This guitar is also comfortable for beginners with an appropriate size that is perfect for kids.
All the more, it is a very affordable guitar, so you got nothing much to worry about even if your child has slippery hands.
This guitar is much easier to play in comparison to acoustic guitars and, in general, some classical guitars as well. The ease of playing this guitar can be contributed to the shorter scale length of this guitar. Overall, you can get a performance on this guitar as a beginner.
This model provides multiple pickups and pickup selection options, making it closer to a full-size guitar. In my opinion, this guitar can be a great choice for kids that are on the farther end of the 5-8 year old age range.
Body & Build
This Vangoa guitar is built out of Poplar for the body and Maple for the neck and the fingerboard. The poplar maple combination is really good and provides a good tone to guitars. This guitar is also quite lightweight, making it perfect for smaller kids.
The build quality of this guitar is a bit better compared to the previous model. You can expect good service from this guitar if maintained properly. It feels solid and steady when you play this guitar, and it can even be played by adults without any problems.
If you are looking for a stable electric guitar for 7 year old this model would be perfect because this guitar in its body and build adequately replicate the look, feel, and finish of a full-size electric guitar.
Tone Sound & Playability
With two pickups and a three-way pickup switching feature, you already get more than enough playing options you would need for your beginner kid.
The pickups actually sound decent if you are playing it with a good amplifier. The overall tone and sound of this guitar is really good and can even be used by adults for jamming and fun.
The playability of this guitar is also very nice and easy, making it a perfect fit for kids and beginners. With a little attention by elders on the tune of the guitar, as the tuners are not great, this guitar can be a great first guitar for your kids.
Bonus
This guitar is not available as a bundle, so it does not come with an amp included. You have to buy the amp separately or use any virtual guitar amp software. A tuner, gig bag, picks, strings, strap, capo, cable, and cleaning cloth are included for free with this guitar.
Best Electric Guitar For Kids (9-12-Year-Old Children)
Ibanez Mikro GRGM21WH
I have said it before and will absolutely say it again; the Ibanez Mikro series is the best electric guitar for young boy. Coming from the legendary Ibanez, they took their time to build a perfect guitar that is not just a toy. It is fully functional and equally good as full-size guitar models.
I chose to include this guitar for 9-12 year olds because I don’t think children below 9 can fully utilize this guitar to its true potential.
But, I should let you know that children beyond 12 can also happily play this guitar as it is truly one of the best short-scale guitar models available in the market.
One of the best features about the Ibanez Mikro guitar is that even though it is one of the best models in the market, the price is still kept at a considerably low point to ensure everyone can afford it.
Considering the price, you will really be stunned by the quality of performance you will get from this guitar.
Body & Build
The Ibanez GRGM21WH is made from Mahogany for the body. The guitar neck is made from maple, and the fingerboard is made from Rosewood.
These woods are some of the best and most commonly used woods that you will on guitars. They provide great quality to the tone and especially the sustain of the guitar.
The build quality and stability of this guitar is also amazing, and kids and adults alike can play this guitar for a long time without encountering any problems.
The hardtail bridge of this guitar is also really good, and you can even tune down on this guitar. Not a lot but maybe half-step down.
Tone Sound & Playability
In terms of tone and sound, this guitar is magnificent as it is loaded with two humbucker pickups that provide the quintessential tones you would need to play rock music.
However, the range of the tone is so well-defined that you can play jazz music with a lot of chords on this guitar as well.
The sound of this guitar is really good, and I would have to say the master build from Ibanez utilizes all the elements such as the wood choice and pickups to deliver the ultimate face-melting rock and metal guitar sounds.
The playability of this guitar is also on point, with it being one of the easiest guitars to play.
Ibanez guitars are known for their low action setup, and this guitar does not fail as well with a comfortably low action that can ease the playing experience for beginners and make it very easy to play for adults.
Bonus
This guitar does not come with any accessories as such. You only get the guitar when you purchase this model, so please be sure to buy the amplifier and accessories separately with this guitar.
Fender Squier Short Scale Stratocaster
Fender is arguably one of the most popular and historically important guitar brands out there. However, this guitar is not built directly by Fender; it’s built by Squier, a Fender-owned company that makes the affordable/budget version of Fender guitars.
You can find similar examples for other companies as well, such as Gibson owns Epiphone, and Epiphone produces budget versions of Gibson guitars.
The Stratocaster model from Fender is one of the most popular guitar models of all time. This instrument/guitar is one of the most versatile electric guitars that you can find in the world (not this very model, I mean the Stratocaster).
From Yngwie Malmsteen to David Gilmour, all these guitar legends played/play the Fender Stratocaster, so you can understand the quality of these instruments.
The short-scale Stratocaster tries to live up to its name, and it does quite a good job at it too. The functionality and features of these instruments are at par with industry standards in most departments.
Body & Build
The body of this guitar is made from poplar wood, and the neck is made out of maple. You can see most of the guitars on this list have these same woods.
These woods are available abundantly and cheap, which helps keep the guitar’s manufacturing and selling costs down.
The build quality is pretty standard on this guitar, and you will not be able to feel any difference with this guitar because of its shorter scale length. It is a great choice for adults as well as those who want to try out a shorter-scale guitar for fun.
Tone Sound & Playability
The tone of this guitar is the classic Stratocaster tone featuring three single-coil pickups that give you a lot of versatility. You can play all types of music on this guitar, starting from pop to rock music. This guitar can handle it all.
Playability on this guitar is top-notch, and the C-shaped neck definitely helps make playing easier for everyone.
This guitar is beginner and kid-friendly, and you can very well use this guitar as your first guitar and the guitar that you can take on stage.
Bonus
This guitar comes in a bundle deal, and you get all the essentials needed for playing electric guitar with this model. The included items are an amp, cable, strap, picks, strap, and instructional video content from Austin Baazar and Fender Play.
Best Electric Guitar For Children Above 12
Yamaha PAC012
Yamaha is a company that does it all, and they do it well. The Pacifica is a very popular guitar model from Yamaha because of its quality and being beginner-friendly. This is a full-size electric guitar with a 25.5” scale length. A teenager would easily be able to play this guitar.
This is the only guitar on the list that has a tremolo system built into the guitar. A tremolo system is a tool that you can use to make your guitar playing more expressive.
Apart from that, the pickup configuration gives this guitar a unique sound that helps this guitar stand out from the crowd.
Body & Build
The Pacifica PAC012 is built from Agathis wood which is a rather uncommon wood for guitars. The neck of this Yamaha guitar is made of maple, and the fretboard is made of rosewood.
This guitar is skillfully built, and the body is designed so that it sits really well in your body. Other than that, the neck is also smooth and fast.
The build quality is really good on this guitar, and it is probably one of the best features of this model. As a full-size guitar, you can do whatever your heart desires with it, from different tunings to drop tunings. Your guitar will be able to handle all your experiments.
Tone Sound & Playability
The tone of this guitar is led by the beautiful HSS pickup configuration, which means this guitar has one humbucker and two single-coil pickups.
This configuration, along with the pickup selection options, gives you a wide range of tonal options fit for playing all styles of music.
The Yamaha Pacifica PAC012 is very versatile in tone, thanks to the specific pickup configuration. This versatility and easy playability make this the perfect guitar for beginners and teenagers. The neck is really smooth, and with the contoured guitar body, you can really get very nice playability on this guitar.
Bonus
This guitar does not come bundled with an amp or other accessories; please be sure to buy them separately.
Squier by Fender Mini Jazzmaster
Back again with another Fender model. Even though this guitar is a short-scale guitar, children above 12 can also play this guitar perfectly. In fact, they will find it easier to play compared to other full-scale guitars. The Jazzmaster is not a guitar meant specifically for jazz music; by the way, it’s just the name.
I don’t know if you have discovered Nirvana yet or not, but the Fender Jazzmaster was the guitar of choice of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. This guitar is included in the list for the sheer number of teenage Nirvana fans that exist and also because this is a really cool guitar.
The unconventional shape and the ability to craft perfect Nirvana tones on this guitar alone make it a worthwhile purchase. It’s not only Nirvana; you can craft all types of rock, punk, and grunge tones on this guitar.
Body & Build
As a Fender guitar, you are guaranteed a certain quality which you come to expect from the brand. This guitar does live up to that standard. I especially want to appreciate the color options available for this guitar. The body of this guitar is made from poplar with a maple neck and fretboard.
The maple neck and fretboard give this guitar a brighter and more vibrant tone. The build quality of this Mini Jazzmaster guitar is top-notch, and the smaller size does not hinder your experience of playing this guitar. Teenagers and adults alike can enjoy playing this guitar without any problems.
Tone Sound & Playability
There are many possibilities in terms of tone as the guitar is loaded with two humbucker pickups that can create a fat and saturated tone fit for grunge, rock, and punk music. You can use this guitar in a variety of musical styles as it is quite versatile.
The three-way pickup selection gives players a range of tones that can be used to play almost any style of music. In terms of playability, this guitar is very beginner-friendly and kid-friendly. In general, it is just a great guitar that you will have lots of fun playing, and it will help you become a better guitar player as well.
Bonus
This guitar does not come bundled with accessories or an amp. Please be sure to purchase them separately.
Wrap Up
Learning music is one of the best experiences that you will encounter in your life. The ability to create something new that you can use to express emotions that words can’t describe is a powerful feeling, and I wish all the best to all the parents and kids preparing and willing to take part in that journey.
I hope this list helps you pick out the first electric guitar for your child. Getting your first instrument is always a memorable experience that people tend to remember. I remember many years back when I got my first guitar, and I knew how much it meant to me.
With all my expertise and love for the instrument, I tried to compile this list of affordable guitars that are easily available and ones that can put a smile on your child’s face.
An electric guitar can be the gateway to a career in music for your child. So, I wish with this new electric guitar be the start of a new journey in your child’s life. Share your experiences and thoughts about the article in the comments down below.
Anindya is a Self-taught Musician and a Home Studio Owner who likes sharing his two cents on Guitars, Gears, and Music. You can find his Music on Spotify, YouTube and Facebook.