It’s hard to believe we’re less than two weeks away from Christmas. In all the craziness that has been 2021, if you’re feeling like the holidays have just crept up on you, you’re not alone. What’s probably harder, we guitarists can be notoriously difficult to shop for. A lot of us, myself included, just get the things we need as we need them over the course of a year. And the big and exciting things like instruments, cases, and amplifiers can get really expensive fast!

Whether you’re finding this post in the Christmas season or not, I sincerely hope this list will help you come up with great last-minute gift ideas for your musician, no matter their skill level or age!

Here’s a list of more than 25 options for you get the guitarist in your life, organized into neat categories for your convenience! Even if they’re not the exact right thing you need, I hope they’re enough to give you an idea of what will work for you.

As always with shopping-oriented posts here at The Lesson Foundry, the links to products on this blog are affiliate links. That means we get a tiny commission if you purchase using the links here. Purchasing from those links doesn’t affect your price at all, and it’s a great way to help say thank you and support us creating more content like this!

Supplies

A great last-minute gift is the kind that meets their needs. Gifts like these are not only practical, they’re also thoughtful. You’re both considering what they need to keep playing, and catering to something they love through playing music. Double win.

Just like their players, guitars come in many types. When you’re getting supplies, you’ll want to make sure you’re getting the right kind for what they need.

Strings

Here’s the good news: Guitar strings tend to be extremely inexpensive. If you’re wanting to spend more than just a couple bucks on your guitar player, you can always opt to buy in bulk for them!

Here’s the less than good news: You’ll need to do a little research if you don’t know much about guitars. Acoustic guitars take different strings than classical guitars, for example. And still again there are specific strings for electric guitars, too. So you’ll definitely want to know what kind of guitar you’re getting strings for.

Ideally you should try to figure out what gauge and brand of strings they like too. Guitarists will likely refer to what gauge string they like by the first number on the package. For example, on the Elixir string pack below, we’d call that string pack “10s” or “tens.” There are a number of types, but many players tend to stay loyal to one or two different kinds. Here are some pretty standard go-to options that will work for many guitarists out there:

Acoustic Strings

Electric Strings

Classical Strings

Picks

Another really inexpensive but effective guitar gift is picks. Especially in the case of acoustic and electric players, picks are always nice to have around. There are a number of different kinds of picks. Many guitar players have preferences, so you can always try to find that out. But, if they’re as unsure as you, a variety pack might be a great option too! That way you can get them something useful and help them figure out what they like at the same time. We’ve even got some TLF picks you can try right here!

Instrument Care

Helping your musician care for their instrument is a great last-minute gift. Here are a couple ways you can do that.

Cloth and Brush Cleaning Tools

The Nomad Tool set is a versatile, two-piece cloth and brush kit that works great for cleaning off strings, removing dust, and protecting the instrument. The two different sizes of tools are excellent for reaching tough spots like the pockets between pickups or the bridge of an electric guitar.

Cleaners and Polish

Polish and cleaner can help both protect and keep a guitar looking great for a long time. These are a great option for a player that really wants to extend the life of a favorite instrument.

Humidity Monitoring and Control

Since (most) guitars are made of wood, making sure our instruments stay in safe environments is very important. We want to make sure we can keep playing our guitars for as long as possible. Wood is sensitive to big changes in both humidity and temperature. These options are a great way to help take care of an acoustic guitar.

Maintenance Tools and Accessories

Tools for string changing, cleaning, and maintaining a guitar are also a great option for a gift!

Accessories

For guitarists, there are a number of awesome little tools and gadgets out there that might help make playing more fun or interesting. This is definitely a category where you might want to run a little recon with the player to see what they’d like or might already own. But you might surprise them with something they’ve never tried before!

There are so many great options out there, but hopefully this helps you narrow it down to something your guitarist will love! Happy shopping!

EBow

The EBow is a bit of a unique guitar accessory. It’s a battery-powered “bow” that delivers infinite sustain on the strings. While it’s definitely not something an electric guitar player would use all the time, it is absolutely a really fun addition to any player’s tool belt.

Capos

Capos are a handy accessory for a guitarist to quickly adapt to key changes on the fly. They’re extremely useful for allowing the player to use open chord voicings (the types of chords that get played close to the headstock) in any key. Like the EBow, it’s not something they’ll use all the time, but they will absolutely be glad they have one available. These are also far more commonly useful.

Clip-On Tuners

A clip-on tuner can help your guitar player stay tuned even if the room they’re in is a little noisy. They work by reading the vibrations in the headstock of the guitar, rather than by a simple microphone like some other kinds of tuners. The option we’re recommending can help tune both ways.

Straps, Stools, and Stands

Whether your player likes to stand or sit, there’s a great solution for each!