Guitar Parts and Names

5 min readJun 17, 2021

Are you planning to learn guitar or you have already started?

If your answer is ‘YES’ for any of the above questions, then it’s absolutely fantastic!

Hi, I’m Dheeraj, an aspiring blogger, and a guitar enthusiast. This blog is dedicated to people who are looking forward to learning guitar.

When I first purchased my guitar, YAMAHA F-280, obviously I was so thrilled because it was my first investment. The whole night I was just checking the sound repeatedly because it sounds extremely beautiful.
But, the point is, how do I start? And, where should I begin with?
Then after some time, I was looking at some of the guitar videos on YouTube and was trying to know each part of the guitar.

So for any person, before start working on any instrument or a device, we need to first understand, what exactly it is.

That’s why here, I will share with you what I have learned so far about the anatomy of a guitar.

So, why do we learn the parts of the guitar?

We learn because:

By knowing the parts of the guitar, it is easier to identify where to place your fingers and how each part is used.
This helps to improve your playing and sets you on your way to becoming a rock star!

What are the parts of the guitar?

So, here are the major parts that all guitars have:

Headstock
Tuners / Tuning pegs / Tuning Keys / Machine Heads
Nut
Neck
Fretboard / Fingerboard
Frets
Body
Soundhole
Bridge
Saddle
Bridge pins

Headstock

The first section of the guitar is called headstock. It is rectangular which is present at the top of the guitar (or end of the string), where the tuning pegs are located. The tuning pegs allow you to tune the guitar by tightening or loosening the wires.

Tuning Keys

Machine heads, tuning keys, tuning pegs, or tuning machine nuts whatever name you call it, it’s all same. This device is attached to the head-stock where you tune your guitar strings. Tuning is done simply by tightening or loosening the strings.

Hence enough care should be taken when you’re handling this part to detune it.

Nut

Going down from the headstock, there is a small piece of hard metal that is commonly made of plastic, bone, or brass. It is called nuts.

This is one of the key parts of the guitar that is mostly overlooked.

We need to check whether the nuts are well fitted or not. Otherwise, tuning and intonation can be a major problems.

If the strings are not well in place, then it can create a buzzing sound which we don’t like.

Neck

The neck is a long thin piece of wood that includes the frets, the fretboard, tuners, and the head.

The hand will be positioned at the back of the neck while pressing down the strings. You may be surprised to know that there are THREE Guitar Neck Types, which all vary in shape. These include the U shape, V shape, and C shape.

Fretboard

This is the front of the neck where the frets lie. A fretboard or fingerboard is a part of the guitar where you place or press your fingers to play different notes.

There are so many fretboard types available. All vary in wood grain, however, the most common fretboard is made from maple, rosewood, and mahogany.

Frets

The metal wires on the fretboard are called frets.

Generally, it allows the player to find the exact notes easier without having to memorize the exact position of fretless instruments such as a violin.

Body

The body can be tagged as the “main curvy” part of the guitar and this is where both acoustic & electric guitars are different.

For Acoustic Guitar

Scratchplate / Pickguard: It is a laminated piece of plastic that is placed on the body of the guitar.

As the name suggests, the pickguard is there to protect the guitar’s finish from scratch by the guitar pick.

Soundhole: This is the round hole on the acoustic guitar that helps to project the sound produced.

Bridge: It is the black part that is located at the far end of the guitar. It provides support to the strings and transmits the vibration to the soundboard.

Saddle: It functions the same way as the nuts. While the nuts secure the strings at the top of the guitar, the saddle does the same at the bottom.

For Electric Guitar

For those of you who would like to play an electric guitar, you will find most of these parts above on your guitars. But the body section of an electric guitar has some different parts from those on an acoustic guitar, such as:

Pickups
Volume Knob Controls
Tone Knob Controls

Pickups: Pickups are the magnetic devices that sit under the strings in electric guitars.

They convert the vibration of the strings into electrical signals, which are then routed out into an amplifier.

Volume or Tone Control Knobs: The volume knob controls the amount of volume that is being produced while the tone knob controls the tone of the sounds to get cleaner and clearer sounds.

Hence, these are the basics but also essentials for you to start your guitar journey.

To know about the best electric guitars for beginners, click here.

Final Conclusion!

Which Guitar is Best For You?

Acoustic and Electric guitars are the two options to start your learning but, an acoustic guitar is recommended for absolute beginners because it is more comfortable, easy to handle, doesn’t require any external power and amplifier, and last but not least, it is affordable.