Buying guide · updated 2026-08-24
The Best Guitars Under $1,000
Under $1,000 is where hardware stops being a compromise. Here is what that buys you, and what is in our catalogue at this level.
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Our picks
Best under $1,000JacksonX Series Dinky DK3XR HSSNeon Green
The strongest specification-to-price ratio in our catalogue, and it sits well inside this budget.
8.3/10 Fretline5.0 (6)
Best acoustic-electricFenderCD-60SCE Dreadnought, All-MahoganyNatural
A solid mahogany top, a cutaway and a Fishman preamp, with room in the budget for a case and a setup.
8.0/10 Fretline4.4 (888)
Same guitar, different finishJacksonX Series Dinky DK3XR HSSCobalt Blue
Identical specification to our top pick — worth knowing if the Neon Green is not to your taste.
8.3/10 Fretline5.0 (3)
Not sure between them?
Add any of these to the comparator and see every specification aligned, with the differences marked and the score profiles overlaid.
Open the comparatorWhat changes between $500 and $1,000
Three things, in roughly this order. Hardware stops being the weak link: locking tuners, better bridges and properly cut nuts become normal rather than exceptional. Fretwork improves, because more of the process is done by hand or by better machines. And the wood gets more consistent — not necessarily more exotic, but more reliably selected and better dried.
What generally does not change is the shape of the instrument or the fundamentals of how it plays. A $900 Stratocaster and a $250 Stratocaster have the same scale length, the same radius and the same pickup layout. The expensive one is better made; it is not a different instrument.
Where our catalogue currently sits
Our catalogue is young and this bracket is the thinnest part of it. The instruments listed above are the ones we have verified in full at this price level. As the catalogue grows this page will grow with it, and everything on it will have been checked against the manufacturer's own specification first.
Common questions
- Is it better to buy one $1,000 guitar or two $500 guitars?
- Two, if they are different instruments — a Stratocaster and a Les Paul style guitar cover far more ground than one guitar of either kind. One, if you already know the sound you want and intend to gig it.
Instruments in this guide
Jackson · Electric guitar
X Series Dinky DK3XR HSS
Neon Green
A double-locking Floyd Rose and a compound radius, in the loudest finish Jackson makes
Fender · Acoustic-electric guitar
CD-60SCE Dreadnought, All-Mahogany
Natural
A solid mahogany top and a Fishman system, well under the price that usually buys either
Jackson · Electric guitar
X Series Dinky DK3XR HSS
Cobalt Blue
The same double-locking Dinky, in the finish you can take to a function gig
Keep reading
The Best Guitars Under $500
Under $500 is where the guitar market is most competitive, and where the difference between a good specification and a marketing one matters most.
The Best Electric Guitars
The electric guitar is not one instrument but half a dozen, each solving a different problem. Here is what separates them, and which one to buy.
The Best Guitars of 2026
Six guitars, from a $200 first instrument to a signature seven-string built for the studio. Every specification here was checked against the manufacturer before it was published.