How to Tune a Guitar

The six string notes in standard tuning

From the thickest string to the thinnest, the open strings in standard tuning are E, A, D, G, B, E. A common way to remember the order is the phrase Eddie Ate Dynamite, Good Bye Eddie.

The low E and high E are the same note, just two octaves apart. Once you know these six notes, the rest of the fretboard notes follow naturally from there.

Using a tuner

A clip-on tuner or a free tuner app is the most reliable way to tune. Clip it to the headstock, pluck a string, and turn the tuning peg until the needle or indicator centers on the correct note. Most tuners show a green light or centered needle when the string is in tune.

Tune from below the target pitch rather than above it. If you overshoot and go sharp, bring the string below pitch and tune back up. Strings hold pitch better when you finish by tightening rather than loosening the peg.

Tuning by ear

Once you have a reference pitch, you can tune the rest of the guitar from it. The most common method uses the 5th fret of each string as a reference for the next string:

The B string is the exception. You use the 4th fret of G to match open B. Everything else uses the 5th fret. That asymmetry trips up a lot of beginners.

Drop D tuning

Drop D is the most common alternate tuning. You lower just the low E string down one whole step to D, giving you E A D G B E with the lowest string now D. This lets you play a root-fifth power chord on the bottom three strings with a single finger.

Drop D is used heavily in rock and metal. Bands like Soundgarden, Foo Fighters, and Rage Against the Machine use it constantly. The lower register gives rhythm parts more weight and makes certain chord shapes physically easier.

Half step down and full step down

Tuning every string down by one semitone gives you Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb, sometimes called Eb standard or half step down. Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Slash all used this tuning. Strings feel slightly looser, bending becomes easier, and the overall sound is a bit darker.

Full step down (D standard) tunes every string down a whole step to D G C F A D. This is common in heavier styles where a deeper, heavier tone is the goal.

Why tuning matters for scales and chords

The tuning you choose changes where every note falls on the fretboard. A scale shape you learned in standard tuning will produce different notes in Drop D or Eb standard, even if your fingers are in the same position. When you are learning how scales work or practicing solos, always know which tuning you are in.