Best Acoustic Guitars 2021 — Top Options For Beginners & Professionals

Jamar Wilson
Music Panda
Published in
16 min readSep 30, 2020

Here you’ll be able to find the best acoustic guitars of 2021. It is true that when it comes to musicians they want the best or nothing at all. The same counts for the guitarists. If you want high-quality sound, perfect tuning, breathtaking durability look no further.

Even if you’re a beginner or have been around for a longer time, it is of paramount importance to find the best guitar that suits your needs and at a reasonable price.

It is true that acoustic guitars have been favored by the majority of musicians, singers, and also performers. That’s why we collected some of the best acoustic available.

Suggested by professionals these guitars are perfect even for beginners since they can get the guitar they need at an affordable price. Thus, you will be able to find the list below of the best acoustic guitars from efficient playability to luxurious and classic design. Each one of them was crafted in such a way to suit perfectly the needs of every guitarist.

best acoustic guitars

The best acoustic guitars available of 2021

1. Yamaha FG800 Solid Top Acoustic Guitar

Yamaha FG800 is a highly credible guitar and one can find it in most places for about $200. However, the moment you hear what sort of sound it makes you’ll know it’s all worth it. Even though this is mainly a guitar for beginners even professional players appreciate its quality. It is also portrayed as a perfect instrument to learn on.

Features:

  • Body Shape: Concert
  • Top: Solid Spruce
  • Back and Sides: Nato/Okume
  • Finish: Natural
  • Bridge: Rosewood
  • Neck: Nato
  • Neck Profile: Slim Tapered
  • Fingerboard: Rosewood
  • Fingerboard Radius: 400mm
  • Number of Frets: 20
  • Frets to Body: 14
  • Scale Length: 25’’
  • Nut Width: 43mm

2. Fender FA-100 Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar

As a beginner, it's really hard to choose the right guitar for you. However, we’ll show you the best choice Fender has already created for you. Look no more and take the guitar with a smooth and highly attractive design which is also paired with a protective glossy finish at a low price. Wait, the offer is not over yet, Fender has a lot more to offer. Thus, Fender FA-100 comes packed with extraordinary features such as a quarter Swan X-bracing, laminated spruce top, and a wonderful compensated saddle to top it all off.

It weighs only 10 pounds and its dimensions are 43x7. With luxurious laminated wood, a guitar like this will make you shine like a star. Its classic look and fine-edged design offers a comfortable holding position and ensures you have a great time as you play your favorite tunes. A guitar like this fits perfectly for everyone, especially for genre musicians.

Moreover, the exclusive strap provided by Fender keeps you relaxed in the right position and reduces stress while playing it. In addition to its natural glossy rosewood top, its time-tested quarter Swan X-bracing allows you to play distinct rhythms with complete stability. Another characteristic to the FA 100 is the guitar strap which comes with the special hex adjustable truss rod located close to the neck that helps you adjust string tensions from the 12–52 gauges of Fender Duratone strings.

The FA 100 acoustic guitar is a full-sized dreadnought guitar designed in detail for beginners. The strings placed close to the fret make it way easier to play. It is available for you with its own electric tuner, string, and extra picks. The offer is not over yet, the FA100 comes also with Fender’s limited lifetime warranty and Fender’s original black nylon gig bag.

Advantages:

  • Comes at a low price, which makes it the perfect choice for the beginners
  • Dreadnought(full size)
  • Accessories like gig bag pluck.

3. LX1E Little Martin Travel Guitar

Whether you are so focused on music or just a beginner in the field, you definitely need a guitar that you can easily take wherever you want and with a great sound too. Therefore, you should take into consideration this guitar since this is one of the best budget guitars and it has all the needed features. Even though small in size, the guitar should not be underestimated since it has a big tone, high-quality sound, and resonance.

The appearance of this guitar is quite good with a Sitka spruce top, mahogany high-pressure laminate back and sides. The appearance becomes even better with a satin finish, which also allows optimal sound and easy playability. The sound is produced in a much more natural way against the wood. The LX1E Little Martin Travel Guitar has sustainably certified wood parts which are an indicator of its durability and efficiency. The majority of people choose it because of its size due to the fact that you can absolutely take it everywhere with you. The gig bag that the guitar comes with protects it and it also fits in the overhead bins of airplanes. Moreover, this guitar has a unique sound and it’s one of the best budget acoustic guitars.

Advantages:

  • Easy to take wherever you wish
  • Rich tone guaranteed
  • Big gig bag protects it from being damaged

Why do we prefer it? — Despite the fact that the guitar is quite small it provides a breathtaking performance.

4. 38’’ Black Acoustic Guitar Starter Package

Ideal for beginners and one of the best budget acoustic guitars. The package of this guitar comes with a guitar pick, pitch pipe, a shoulder strap, and an additional set of strings. The black finish of this right-handed guitar makes its appearance much more unique. This acoustic-electric guitar comes with a nylon case which makes it a perfect storage place and easy to carry.

The dimensions of this guitar are 38’’(L) x 14’’(W) x 3.25’’(H). The price of this acoustic guitar is one of the cheapest ones can find in the market. For beginners, it's a perfect choice since it helps in building up hand strength due to the fact that its comfortable and convenient string height reduces hand fatigue.

To sum up, this guitar fits perfectly for any genre of music, not just rock and folk.

Advantages:

  • The polished finish offers a great appearance
  • Convenient string height

5. Jasmine S35 Acoustic Guitar

The Jasmine S35 acoustic guitar comes at the most reasonable price. It’s a great choice either for beginners or experienced guitarists. Crafted in detail, the guitar comes with a limited lifetime guarantee.

This guitar doesn’t just look good, it also has a bold sound. In comparison to a lot of popular guitars, it has a lot more features. Firstly, it is a well-built guitar which makes it way easier to play. Secondly, it comes with a spruce top and agathis back and sides which make it even more appealing. Moreover, the guitar is a music tool that one can use for an extended period of time. Its satin neck finish makes it look even more appealing and it maximizes resonance for optimal sound quality. Lastly, this guitar comes with steel strings.

Advantages:

  • Affordable
  • The perfect tool for natural sound production and resonance
  • Stable, thus it lasts for a long time

6. Epiphone DR-100 Acoustic Guitar

A sturdier guitar with a mahogany body that increases the sound quality and resonance, Epiphone DR-100 acoustic guitar is known for producing a more natural resonance and optimum sound quality.

With a select spruce top and a 25.5 scale, it’s a great choice for beginners and professionals as well with a perfect look, sound, and build quality. Its dreadnought shape makes it perfect for bluegrass, folk, rock, country, and other music genres. The guitar’s bridge is made of rosewood and as many of you may know that rosewood is known to be a long-lasting material. The sound that the guitar produces is bold, full-bodied, and room-filling. In other words, it’s one of the best guitars for beginners and professionals that comes at a low price. The tone it produces gives you a feeling of never giving up.

7. Seagull S6 ‘’The Original’’ Acoustic Guitar

Seagull S6 “The Original” Acoustic Guitar is one of the best mid-range acoustic guitars ones can find. With a beautiful rich tone, it is a joy to play this guitar. This guitar is a Canadian product that is made out of a hardwood. In comparison to most of the other guitars, this one has a much better tone. It also looks more stylish and it’s way easier to play. Therefore, this type is the best acoustic guitar in Seagull’s product line. For the fact that it’s easy to use and its low price, it is preferred mostly by beginners. It also stays tuned for a long time, therefore you can take this acoustic guitar to your live performances.

Advantages:

  • A great choice for live performances
  • Easy to use

Why do we prefer it? — Because it is one of the products that no one has ever complained about.

8. Taylor 224ce Deluxe Koa Grand Auditorium

If you are looking for an affordable acoustic-electric guitar look no further than Taylor 224ce Deluxe Koa Grand Auditorium. Its beautiful structure and the sound of a koa body put this product on a whole other level. In other words, this guitar is a premium product. It is worth mentioning that this guitar’s back and side are made out of laminated rosewood. Whereas, its top is made of Sitka spruce. While it’s mahogany it is not that dark which makes it even more appealing. In comparison to the other Taylor model, this guitar has all of the major characteristics. It has an amazing and refined sound, it is appealing and it comes at a reasonable price. The sound it creates is warm and welcoming. If you plug it in, it plays great since it has three sections pick up which is behind the saddle. Thus, it provides high quality, clear, and accurate sound.

Advantage:

  • Versatile usability
  • Strong volume control for better performance
  • Produces a clear and accurate sound

9. Martin Road Series DRS1 Dreadnought Acoustic

A well-built guitar Martin Road Series DRS1 Dreadnought Acoustic weighs around 21.6 pounds. From all the acoustic-electric guitars, it has been ranked 19th.

With an amazing sound and tone quality, this guitar is one of the gems in the Martin collection, therefore it is preferred by so many people. Additionally, it is one of Martin’s most affordable guitars, made of solid wood which adds a true Martin tone to the guitar. Its strong neck and simple lamination add to its beauty. The more you use it, the more the sound will open up and will continue to improve.

It is crafted in such a way that it stays in tune for a long time without adjustment. It creates a rich sound. In other words, this guitar is a great choice at an affordable price.

Advantages:

  • Clear sound
  • It stays tuned for a long time

10. Fender Sonoran SCE Dreadnought Cutaway

The Fender Sonoran SCE Dreadnought cutaway guitar is one of the best acoustic guitars you can find for less than 500 dollars. It is a perfect choice for beginners as well as professionals. It has a rich candy apple red color. This guitar has a dreadnought cutaway body shape.

As a beginner, it is quite difficult to find a good guitar, and if you don’t have lots of information you can easily end up picking the wrong body shape. Therefore, you have to know that this one fits perfectly to people with longer arms.

This guitar’s quality is from another level. We guarantee you’ll love it from the first time you play it. The lightweight body of this guitar makes the person playing it feel as if it is a part of their body. Lastly, the shape and its size allow one to take this guitar anywhere.

FAQ about acoustic guitars

How much does an acoustic guitar cost?

If you want to invest in a guitar we’re here to show you the prices in the market. Being able to play the solo of ‘Hotel California’ might have probably been your dream and you’re halfway to making it a reality. Acoustic guitars are known to be versatile. Thus, you can easily play anything from fast-paced classical music to sing along chords. Therefore, acoustic guitars get to be chosen every day by all kinds of ages.

However, the price of an acoustic guitar is based on your requirements, the age group, and the type of guitar you intend to purchase. There are numerous sorts of guitars such as a concert, auditorium, dreadnought, cutaways, travel, and mini-acoustics. Below you’ll be able to see the prices of these types of guitars.

  • Concert: the price of a concert guitar starts at about $100-$400, whereas for better quality models the price starts around $500-$3000.
  • Auditorium: the price of an auditorium guitar starts at about $100-$300, whereas for better quality models the price starts around $500-$1500.
  • Dreadnought: the price of a decent dreadnought model for beginners starts at about $80-$250, whereas for better quality models the price is around $250-$900.
  • Travel and mini-acoustics: the price of these types of guitars starts at about $50-$200 for a basic beginner model. However, be careful and don’t end up buying a toy online instead.
  • Cutaways: the price of this type of guitars starts at about $100-$500 for basic beginner models, whereas the high-quality acoustic ones cost around $2000-$3000.

The above-mentioned costs include only the main costs. For instance, a softshell guitar case is around $20-$80, hard-shell cases are $60-$300, guitar picks (differ between $2-$4) and a guitar strap (which costs around $15-$100) might be included as additional costs. Furthermore, Nylon strings may cost around $7-$10, whereas steel strings may cost around $9-$12.

What is the difference between an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar?

The main difference between an acoustic guitar and an electric one lies in their functionality. The style of the music created by the two is also different. For instance, an acoustic guitar is associated with a mellow form of music such as folk and country, whereas the electric guitar is mainly used for creating high decibel, modern-day rock, and also metal music. There are also some additional characteristics that differ between the two. We will show you the differences below.

Composition:

An acoustic guitar consists of a hollow body that has a sound hole right beneath the strings. The wooden side is known differently as the soundboard, and as you may guess from the name it is made out of wood such as spruce or red cedar. If the strings are strung, the vibrations will be transmitted to the soundboard. And the energy of the vibrations will be transferred within the guitar body by amplifying the sound that way.

On the contrary, an electric guitar has a thinner and stronger body without a soundhole. Instead of having a hollow body, the electric one uses transducers that convert string vibrations into an electric signal which is transferred to the speakers and amplifies the sound we hear.

Quality of the sound:

An acoustic guitar in general has electric pickups which are usually stuck in the inner side of the guitar body and are very faint. To put it shortly, they do not produce the best sound quality.

Whereas an electric one uses high output electromagnetic pickups which capture even the slightest of variations in the magnetic field. In other words, electric guitars are highly sensitive which means they produce better sound quality.

Additional setup

The acoustic guitar doesn’t need any added equipment like amplifiers or powers, since it produces sound solely with the help of its hollow design. Whereas, the electric guitar requires amplifiers in order to be able to produce sound effects. It also loses some of its sound quality by the transfer of energy. Furthermore, it has more buttons, knobs, and also switches which may be a bit too much to manage if you’re a beginner.

Cost:

In general, an acoustic guitar is more cost-effective than the electric one due to its composition and the lack of equipment required.

Easier to learn

The acoustic guitar is harder to play than the electric one due to its big body and heavier strings.

Even though the electric one is easier to learn for beginners its buttons and knobs do take time to learn. So, it’s all up to you as a beginner to decide which one you’d like to take.

Maintenance:

Their similarity lies in the fact that both acoustic and electric guitars require identical maintenance such as keeping them away from extreme conditions (both hot and cold), protecting them from sharp objects, and also cleaning solutions, etc. in order to protect them you can keep the guitar in a protective case. It is also a necessity to replace old guitar strings and clean the fretboard regularly to make sure that your guitar continues to sound as the day you bought it.

However, their maintenance is not quite the same. The electric guitar required additional maintenance like the adjustments of the pickups with the help of a screwdriver, adjusting the amplifier, etc. On the contrary acoustic guitars require less maintenance due to the fact that they come with humidifiers that are present between the strings and prevent the wood from drying up.

What is a Semi-acoustic guitar?

In comparison to all of the instruments, guitars still remain amongst the most popular. Luckily nowadays there are a lot of guitar types available to buy. One of them is the semi-acoustic guitar. This category is part of the electric guitar category, which is highly preferred in jazz and pop too.

The semi-acoustic guitar is also known as the hollow-body electric guitar. Some parts of the body are electric whereas the others are hollow as a traditional acoustic guitar. This guitar has a soundbox and one to several electric pick-ups which are used to convert the picked mechanical sound into an electric sound which then gets amplified by using the instrument amplifier.

Semi-acoustic guitars remain popular. They are viewed as a hybrid of electric and acoustic. They can be played plugged and unplugged.

They are manufactured by well-known brands such as Gibson, Rickenbacker, and Gretsch. The designs they release continuously improve with each new release.

Which is the best guitar brand?

No matter if your a beginner or professional, the brand of guitar you buy plays a significant role. When you buy from a popular brand it means that you’re getting a high-quality instrument which you’ll enjoy for many years.

There are lots of high-quality brands, however, Martin & Co has earned the trust as one of the best guitar manufacturing brands in the entire world. This is a U.S. company that has been making some of the finest instruments for more than 183 years.

Martin & Co are highly valued for their acoustic and electric guitars. Lots of popular series have become the best sellers of their time. Amongst the most all-time loved guitars is the Martin D-28.

Each product is crafted in detail. In other words, Martin & Co is the perfect choice of artists and musicians around the world. It's interesting to mention that even celebrity musicians swear by Martin’s name.

Best value

The Fender FA-100 dreadnought acoustic guitar is especially perfect for beginners. The good thing about this guitar is that it comes with a protective nylon gig bag to keep your guitar in, which makes it a great value. This way you do not have to waste money on buying an extra guitar case or a separate gig bag. Additionally, this guitar’s appearance is so good with its natural color and style.

Its time-tested quarter swan X bracing and the laminated spruce top put this guitar above the other acoustic guitars. This guitar’s body and neck are made out of laminated wood, whereas the back is made out of agathis.

Whether you’re right or left-handed, this guitar is a perfect choice since it is ambidextrous. With all the mentioned features, this guitar is the best guitar you can get for under 300 dollars.

The Yamaha FG800 Solid top acoustic guitar shows that you do not need to spend lots of money to be able to make great music. No wonder it is part of the best acoustic guitars list. It does have a fantastic music tone, and outstanding build with a lightweight body and its balance makes it a perfect choice.

It is a classical one, and you can find it in many colors such as mahogany, autumn burst, natural, black, brown sunburst, sunset blue, turquoise, ruby red, flamed maple, tobacco sunburst, and dusk sun red. Yamaha FG800 Solid top guitar has the best quality at an exceptional price. It is the best Yamaha Acoustic guitar.

One of the best designs of this guitar is the natural one which is quite simple and it has a rosewood fingerboard and a rosewood bridge. It differs from other guitars since it doesn’t have a normal bracing to maintain its durability and structure, it has a new advanced scalloped bracing.

Top-quality

Based on our opinion (and other guitarists from the entire world that think alike) the best guitar is the LX1E Little Martin Travel Guitar. For instance, if you want to travel often, you can easily take this one with you anywhere. No matter the location, this guitar works perfectly in all situations. It is a great choice for live performances since it gives a unique sound in comparison to other traveling guitars. You can always count on the quality of this guitar. You won’t get disappointed.

Disclaimer: Affiliate links
Planning to buy one of the acoustic guitars listed? Please consider doing it via my buying links. These are affiliate links from Amazon, from which I’ll gain a little percentage of the price. I only put links on products I truly recommend. Buying a product via such a link won’t cost you extra, yet it will support me a bit in my research on affordable audio. ❤

I’d also love to hear from you about what you’ve chosen. Please share in the comments!

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Jamar Wilson
Music Panda

Music Enthusiast, runner and writer based in San Francisco. Spreading love through music. Bohemian|| African American||