How to Tune Your Guitar - An Easy and Simple-to-Use Guide

One of the most important things that people look for while someone is playing a guitar is if the guitar itself is in tune, or if at least the strings are in tune with each other. The purpose of this article is to provide a variety of easy to use methods that will allow even a beginner guitar player to tune his or her guitar.

Section 01: String names and notes.
Section 02: Tuning the guitar.

Section 01

Take hold of your guitar and look down at the strings. The first one you see (thickest in gauge) is usually referred to as the "low E string" and its note name is E. To play an "E" on the low E string simply pluck/pick the string without touching the neck or frets; that is called "playing an open E". The string right below the low E string is called the "A" string and following this pattern, the remaining 4 strings are as follows: D, G, B, E. You will notice that the thinnest and thickest guitar strings have the same note name, E. This is why one must refer to those strings as either the low E string or the high E string.

Section 02

Tuning a guitar is never easy, especially when you do not have any reference notes to tune from. This is why it is empirical to memorize the sound of at least one of the strings when they are played open. The most typical string to be memorized is the low E string because you can tune the rest of the guitar with relative ease from that one reference note. Note: Only memorize one of the strings if you are 99% sure that they are perfectly in tune. It will not benefit you to memorize an out of tune string. Once that is done you can proceed to follow any of the following methods:

Method 01 (The 5th Fret Technique):

This is by far the most commonly used method to tune a guitar but it has its limitations. Unless you have perfect pitch or extremely good relative pitch you will not be able to tune the last few strings exactly to their desired pitches. This, however, is still a very useful technique because it allows you to take a completely detuned guitar and tune it to an acceptable level; which from where you can finely tune the strings to perfection.

Steps to Follow:
1) Locate the low E string and try to raise or lower its pitch to the low E note that you memorized. Some hear the note in their head and can tune it by comparing the two notes (memorized and played) at the same time in their head while others hum the notes out loud and tune the string by comparing the two notes their hear. This is a personal choice where neither way is better than the other so you should do whichever you find easier.
2) Find the 5th fret on the low E string and pluck/pick the string. This is an A note and if you remember correctly, the second string's note is the A note. This note is the exact same as the note produced when you play the second string open. So use the note produced on the 5th fret of the low E string to tune the second string.
3) Find the 5th fret on the A string (second string) and this will be the same note as the string below it (D).
4) Find the 5th fret on the D string (third string) and this will be the same note as the string below it (G).
5) Find the 4th fret on the G string (fourth) and this will be the same note as on the string below it (B).
6) Find the 5th fret on the B string (fifth) and this will be the same note as on the string below it (high E)

If you followed the steps correctly, your guitar should be in tune. If this is your first time tuning a guitar do not except to be perfectly in tune. It takes a while to develop a good relative pitch and the more you practice tuning a guitar the better you'll get at it.

Method 02 (12th String Harmonics):

This method only works if the guitar is slightly detuned. I use it mainly to fine tune my guitar once I've completed Method 01. To be able to use this method you must know how to play a harmonic. To do so, place your finger on top of the 12th fret (right over the metal bar) and just touch the string, do not press it down. Just faintly touch it with your fingertip and then gently pluck/pick the string. If done correctly you should hear a very high note or at least a note that doesn't sound like it should. That is a harmonic and it should continue to resonate and make a sound even once you've taken your finger off of the fret!

Steps to Follow:

1) Locate the low E string and try to raise or lower its pitch to the low E note that you memorized. Some hear the note in their head and can tune it by comparing the two notes (memorized and played) at the same time in their head while others hum the notes out loud and tune the string by comparing the two notes their hear. This is a personal choice where neither way is better than the other so you should do whichever you find easier.
2) Play the 12th fret harmonic on the low E string. Lift your finger off of the string and play the 7th fret of the A string (string right below the low E string). If the guitar is in tune the two notes should sound the same. If they don't sound the same, tune the A string to the harmonic of the low E string.
3) Play the 12th fret harmonic on the A string. Lift your finger off of the string and play the 7th fret of the D string (string right below the A string). If the guitar is in tune the two notes should sound the same; if they don't sound the same tune the D string to the harmonic of the A string.
4) Play the 12th fret harmonic on the D string. Lift your finger off of the string and play the 7th fret of the G string (string right below the D string). If the guitar is in tune the two notes should sound the same. If they don't sound the same, tune the G string to the harmonic of the D string.
5) Play the 12th fret harmonic on the G string. Lift your finger off of the string and play the 6th fret of the B string (string right below the G string). If the guitar is in tune the two notes should sound the same. If they don't sound the same, tune the B string to the harmonic of the G string.
6) Play the 12th fret harmonic on the B string. Lift your finger off of the string and play the 7th fret of the high E string (string right below the B string). If the guitar is in tune the two notes should sound the same. If they don't sound the same, tune the E string to the harmonic of the B string.

As said above, if this is your first time tuning a guitar, you probably won't tune it perfectly but don't let it discourage you. Just keep trying and you'll eventually get the hang of it.

Method 03 (Tuning with Harmonics):

This is also a very commonly used method that is the general alternative to the first method. This requires that you are capable of playing harmonics on almost every string. This method allows you to very finely tune your guitar. The only downfall is that you cannot tune the last two strings, but if you have good relative pitch you can easily use any of the other methods to tune the last two.

Steps to Follow:

1) Locate the low E string and try to raise or lower its pitch to the low E note that you memorized. Some hear the note in their head and can tune it by comparing the two notes (memorized and played) at the same time in their head while others hum the notes out loud and tune the string by comparing the two notes their hear. This is a personal choice where neither way is better than the other so you should do whichever you find easier.
2) Play the harmonic on the 5th fret of the low E string and then play the harmonic on the 7th fret of the A string. If they're in tune they should be the same note.
3) Play the harmonic on the 5th fret of the A string and then play the harmonic on the 7th fret of the D string. If they're in tune they should be the same note.
4) Play the harmonic on the 5th fret of the D string and then play the harmonic on the 7th fret of the G string. If they're in tune they should be the same note.
5) Play the harmonic on the 5th fret of the B string and then play the harmonic on the 7th fret of the high E string. If they're in tune they should be the same note.

To properly apply this method the room must be fairly quiet or else you won't hear the harmonics unless you're plugged into an amp.

And that concludes this tutorial. Remember, perfection can only be achieved through practice and even if you can't do some of the methods described above just keep on trying and you'll eventually get the hang of it.