Gear & Maintenance
The Guitar Accessories Beginners Actually Need
A practical guide to guitar accessories for beginners — what to buy first, what to skip, and why each item matters.
You just got a guitar. Maybe it came in a starter pack, maybe you bought it on its own. Either way, you're standing in front of a wall of guitar accessories (online or in a shop) and wondering what you actually need versus what's clever marketing. This guide cuts through that noise.
The short answer: a handful of items genuinely make learning easier. Most of the rest can wait months, or indefinitely.
The Essentials You Need Right Away
These are the accessories that affect your ability to practice effectively from day one. Don't skip them to save money — most cost only a few dollars.
A Clip-On Tuner
If your guitar is out of tune, every chord you learn will sound wrong, and your ear will learn the wrong thing. A clip-on chromatic tuner fixes this. You clip it to the headstock, pluck a string, and the display tells you whether to tune up or down. It reads vibrations through the wood, so it works in noisy rooms.
You can also tune with a phone app, and that works fine. The clip-on is just more convenient and slightly more accurate in loud environments. Learning to tune your guitar properly takes about ten minutes and will save you a lot of frustration.
Picks
Picks (or plectrums) come in different thicknesses, and that thickness changes how the guitar feels and sounds. Thin picks (around 0.46mm to 0.6mm) are floppy and forgiving on strumming, which is good for beginners playing rhythm. Thicker picks (0.8mm and up) give you more control for single-note playing and fingerpicking-adjacent styles.
Buy a small variety pack and try them all for a week. You'll find a preference naturally. Picks get lost constantly, so buy ten at a time.
A Spare Set of Strings
Strings break, especially when you're new and your technique is still rough. Having a spare set means you can get back to playing in twenty minutes instead of making a trip to the shop. Beyond breakage, old strings go dull and feel rough on your fingers. Most beginners should change strings every two to three months if they're playing daily.
Changing your own strings is a skill worth learning early. It takes about twenty minutes the first time, ten once you've done it a few times.
A Guitar Strap
If you ever want to play standing up, you need a strap. But even sitting down, a strap stabilizes the guitar so your left hand isn't also holding it in position. This frees up your fretting hand to actually fret. Strap locks (small attachments that prevent the strap from slipping off) are worth adding if you're playing standing and moving around.
Most guitars need two strap buttons. Acoustic guitars sometimes only have one at the bottom, and you'll either need to tie the strap to the headstock or buy a strap button to add to the heel of the neck.
Nice to Have, But Not Urgent
Once you've been playing for a few weeks, a few more items start making sense.
A Guitar Stand or Wall Hanger
A guitar that's hard to get to gets played less. If yours lives in its case in a closet, you'll pick it up less. A simple A-frame stand keeps it visible and accessible. Wall hangers are great if floor space is tight, and they double as light decoration.
One note: some rubber stands can damage certain guitar finishes over time if they're in contact with the body for months. Felt-covered or foam stands avoid this.
A Capo
A capo clamps across all the strings at a chosen fret, raising the pitch of the guitar without retuning. This lets you use open chord shapes to play songs in keys that would otherwise require hard barre chords. Capos are essential for a lot of folk, singer-songwriter, and pop guitar playing.
You don't need one on day one, but once you start learning songs from specific artists, you'll probably want one within the first couple of months.
A Case or Gig Bag
If you're traveling with your guitar, or if you store it somewhere it might get bumped, some protection is worthwhile. Gig bags are soft-sided and light, and most beginner starter packs include a basic one. Hardshell cases are bulkier and heavier but protect against more serious impact.
If your guitar lives on a stand at home and you're not gigging or commuting with it, this is lower priority.
Accessories That Can Wait (or Skip Entirely)
| Accessory | What it does | When you actually need it |
|---|---|---|
| Humidifier | Keeps wood from cracking in dry climates | If you have an acoustic and live somewhere with very dry winters |
| String winder | Speeds up string changes | Useful but hands work fine |
| Slide | Used for slide guitar technique | Only if you're specifically pursuing that style |
| Effects pedals | Changes your tone | After you've been playing electric for several months |
| String cleaner | Extends string life | A fine habit, but not urgent |
| Headstock tuner (clip-on upgrade) | Slightly more accurate | Your basic clip-on is already good enough |
The main thing to avoid is buying gear to feel productive about guitar rather than practicing. A $40 capo doesn't improve your playing. Another thirty minutes with your chord transitions does.
String Gauges and Why They Matter
This isn't strictly an "accessory" but it comes up constantly for beginners: the strings that came with your guitar may not be ideal for you, and changing them is cheap.
Lighter gauge strings (like .010 sets on electric, or .011 on acoustic) are easier on your fingertips and require less pressure to fret. Heavier gauges sound fuller and project better but demand more hand strength. Understanding string gauges helps you make a choice that suits both your guitar and your stage of learning.
Most beginners do well starting on lighter gauges until calluses build up, then experimenting from there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to buy everything at once?
No. The tuner and picks matter immediately. Strings you should have on hand within the first week (they're cheap). Everything else can wait until you have a specific reason for it. Buying too much gear upfront is a common mistake that doesn't accelerate learning.
Can I use my phone as a tuner?
Yes, phone tuner apps work well. GuitarTuna and similar apps are accurate enough for everyday practice. A clip-on tuner is slightly more reliable in loud rooms, but you don't need to buy one right away if you already have a phone.
What should a beginner acoustic guitar setup cost in accessories?
Budget around $15 to $25 for initial accessories: a clip-on tuner ($8 to $12), a pick variety pack ($3 to $5), and a set of spare strings ($5 to $10). That's it for the first few weeks. A strap runs another $10 to $20 when you want one.
Is a gig bag necessary if I bought a starter pack?
Most starter packs include a basic gig bag. If yours did, you're covered for now. It won't survive being sat on in an overhead bin, but it handles transport to a friend's house or a lesson just fine.
Do I need special accessories for an electric guitar versus acoustic?
A few differences: electric players eventually want a cable (to connect to an amp) and an amplifier, which are significant purchases. But the basics, tuner, picks, spare strings, strap, are the same across both. The capo is more common on acoustic, less so on electric, but works on either.