The best Ukulele for a beginner are the ukuleles that are both affordable and well made. By well made, you want to consider the way the fretboard feels to your fingers. You want to consider the strings and what they are like to play. You also want to make sure the instrument sounds good and is fun to play. Fortunately, there are several ukuleles that fit that description. Brands including Kala, Lanikai, Mahalo, Luna, and Oscar Schmidt all make some of the best ukuleles for beginners.
The etching and attention to detail are exceptional.
The Mahogany build is solid and warm…sounds great.
Reasons not to buy
The free complimentary gig bag is pretty junky.
Our Verdict
The Luna Maluhia Peace Concert Ukulele is another special ukulele from the Luna Brand. Sparing no effort on design, this particular Ukulele has a peace symbol carved into the sound hold and is accentuated with artistic tattoos around the body. With the Maluhia Concert Ukulele, the use of Mahogany for the body with a Walnut Fretboard and Walnut Bridge, has really allowed this concert uke to stand out.
Some reports of string buzz. Could be from users not replacing their string often enough.
Our Verdict
The Luna Honu Soprano Ukulele is also known as the Tribal Turtle Ukulele. It is a beautifully crafted Soprano Ukulele that has traditional Hawaiian body tattoos carved into the frame in a Polynesian tattoo style. The dark Mahogany Uke with it’s artistic design stands out in both looks and sound.
As one of the better Ukuleles under $100, it is a great deal for any level player that wants an affordable, good looking ukulele to take with you on the go. This is especially solid as a ukulele for beginners as it’s better than many other ukuleles in its price range and has the bonus of looking super cool.
Good Ol’ Oscar Shmidty Shmidt delivered on their OU5 Concert Ukulele. With a select Hawaiian Koa Body that looks spectacular accentuated with Abalone binging and a rosette top, we had to include this Shmidty masterpiece in our best ukulele buyers guide.
While it may seem like a high price for a concert Ukulele, this ukulele is made with great wood, has Grover Chrome Tuners and a lifetime warranty. The fret ends are smooth which makes this great for beginners, as it’s easy on the fingers. This ukulele has a great value and is a nice instrument.
Tenor size Cordoba Ukulele based on the popular Cordoba 15CM design.
The Satin finish looks good with impressive looking silver tuners.
Reasons not to buy
It’s the mass production that makes it succestiple to some occasional flaws. If you get issues with buzzing or humming, have them send you a new one.
Our Verdict
The Cordoba 15TM Tenor Ukulele is a very popular and well reviewed tenor Ukulele. The Mahogany body is a lighter variety than some of the more expensive cuts of mahogany but it still has the sweet tone that mahogany is known for.
For Cordoba this is one of their best selling Ukuleles, which is modeled off their 15CM. This Tenor Ukulele is handmade and plays beautifully. The great price makes this a deal for any ukulele player but definitely a great option for beginner Ukulele players.
The mahogany uke is very well built, especially considering the cost.
Reasons not to buy
Open geared tuners are not reliable.
Our Verdict
The Kala KA-15S Soprano Ukulele is on the most popular Ukuleles for beginners and presents a great value for the hobbyist ukulele player that wants an affordable but well made Ukulele. While we have a separate buyers guide for ukuleles for beginners, this ukulele is so popular, we wanted to share it in our general buyers guide as well.
This is not a Ukulele that you will be performing on stages with, but it is a great practice ukulele and one that schools around the world use to teach music. They are so affordable that they are nearly disposable, but they are still made very well.
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IS IT EASY TO LEARN THE UKULELE?
It is easy to learn the ukulele. The ukulele is one of the easiest string instruments to learn because it is easy on your fingers due to the softness of the standard polyurethane strings. The small compact size of the ukulele is also easier on the hands and wrist so all of the notes are closer together and the neck is smaller than a guitar.
WHAT KIND OF UKULELE SHOULD I BUY?
The best type of ukuleles for any individual is a matter of preference. Most ukuleles are good for beginners because they are small, easy to play and affordable. If you need one of the smaller ukuleles for a child or just have small hands, concert ukuleles and soprano ukuleles are the smaller options. But depending on what sound you want you can get the bigger ones too like the baritone and bass ukuleles, which are ideal for bass players.
HOW MUCH IS A DECENT UKULELE?
Ukuleles can range in price from $50 to $700 with some exotic rare ones going for even more. If you need a decent ukulele but don’t need on of the best, we’d suggest looking in the $150 to $250. While there are cheaper ukuleles available, the cheapest ones are more toys than instruments. Since it is an affordable instrument to begin with, it is good to start with a decent one. Brands like Kala, Lanikai and Cordoba have well made, affordable ukuleles that will sound good and last a while.
THE SMALL SIZE the ukulele makes it an ideal instrument for the traveling musician. It also makes it an ideal instrument for people with small hands and for children as well. Beyond that, it’s also a fun, cool instrument that is fun to play and easy to always have nearby and ready to play.
UKULELE CHORDS
Learning ukulele chords is an important part of getting good at ukulele. To get started on learned chords, start by learning the major/minor ukulele chords. C Major (C Chord), A Minor, F Major (F Chord), G Major (G Chord), A Major (A Chord), E Minor (E Chord), D Major (D Chord) and D Minor (D Chord) or C Ukulele Chord, Am Ukelele Chord, F Ukulele Chord, G Ukulele Chord, A Ukulele Chord, Em Ukulele Chord, D Ukulele Chord, Dm Ukulele Chord.
UKULELE SONGS
There are a ton of great ukulele songs, none more famous than the Somewhere Over The Rainbow Ukulele version. Other popular Ukulele songs include Hakuna Matata, Riptide, I’m Yours, Someone Like You, Fly Me To The Moon Ukulele Version, You Are My Sunshine Ukulele Version, Can’t Help Falling In Love Ukulele Version, and Hey Soul Sister Ukulele Version.
These are all fairly easy ukulele songs. While there are some complexities to playing the songs perfectly, for the most part, they are super simple songs to play on a ukulele.
Chris Ryan
Chris Ryan is a musician and educator from Philadelphia, PA, an avid archivist of folk and country music, a disciple of Aphex Twin and a fervent supporter of Atlanta trap music. Chris can usually be found tracking keyboards, vocals and lap steel for the upcoming debut of his band The Cobwebs, or in FL Studio working on the next generation of trap sounds. He is conversant with, and writes about, hundreds of genres of music from all over the world.
