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Buying a Beginner Ukulele

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Buying a Beginner Ukulele

Shopping for a beginner ukulele can be a frustrating experience. You've got dozens of brands, four different sizes, and a huge range of prices--and to many people, they all look the same.

As the former manager of a small guitar store with a large ukulele selection, I've had the chance to help lots of people go home with the uke that was right for them. Keep reading to learn how you can too!

The Different Ukulele Sizes

Many people don't know that ukuleles actually come in four sizes: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone.

The first ukuleles were all soprano size, which is the smallest. However, soprano ukes are very tiny, a factor that has a couple distinct drawbacks. First, their miniscule size means they don't put out a whole lot of sound. Soprano ukes tend to have a tinnier, less full sound when compared to the larger ukulele sized. Second, they are so small that they can be tricky to play, especially for players with big hands.

Over time, uke makers started making bigger sizes like the concert and tenor. These are the ideal sizes for beginning uke players--they are easy to play and have a bigger, fuller sound than soprano ukes. There's not a dramatic difference between tenor and concert ukuleles, so don't dwell too much on picking one over the other. (Concerts are cheaper, if that helps.)

The biggest member of the uke family is the baritone. The baritone ukulele has a unique tuning (DGBE instead of GCEA) so it's not compatible with the majority of uke music, and therefore it's not really a good choice for people who are looking for a "traditional" ukulele experience.

Selecting a Brand

Beginner ukulele buyers tend to agonize over this is the stage of the process the most, and for good reason. There are so many different manufactures out there, and at the entry level their ukes can all look the same.

I've played quite a few entry level ukes over the years, and in my opinion Kala and Lanikai make the best beginner ukuleles. The fit and finish of their stuff is superior to most other ukes in the $100-and-under price range. They're very straight, playable ukes and they sound great. Kala and Lanikai ukuleles also come with Aquila strings, which sound a lot better than the cheap nylon strings you're going to find on most entry level ukes.

The LU-21C and Kala KA-C are the most basic concert size ukes produced by these companies, and each costs about $100. The sopranos are considerably cheaper, but as I mentioned earlier, sopranos are less than ideal for beginners.

Cheap Ukulele Options

While the ukes I mentioned above are good deals at around $100, not everybody is willing or able to spend that much for their first uke. Fortunately, you can still find a decent uke for around $50, but at this price point there are a lot of shoddy instruments on the market so you need to be careful.

At the low, low end are the Mahalo U-30 line. These ukuleles cost around $20, and for that kind of money they're not bad. Mahalos make great gifts for kids, and they're also ideal for travel. However, they can be a little rough, and quality is never consistent with any very inexpensive instrument.

The Mahalo U-30's best feature may be that you can get them in a practically any color:

Mahalo U-30 colors

This might be a good uke for those who aren't sure they're really going to commit to the instrument, but the issues inherent in such a cheap ukulele might be enough to discourage some beginning players. If at all possible, I'd suggest trying trying to shell out the extra cash for a Makala, which is the budget line of Kala ukuleles. A concert size Makala MK-C runs about $55 and is probably the best uke around for that kind of money.

Accessories for Your Uke

You don't need a bunch of fancy accessories to get started, but there are a couple extras I recommend.

A tuner is, in my opinion, essential for beginning players. Uke strings are very stretchy and are constantly falling out of tune. While it's good to learn how to tune by ear, an electronic clip-on tuner will save you tons of time. Everybody has their own preferences; I prefer the Snark SN-2, which is fast, accurate, and cheap.

While not strictly necessary, you should consider a case, especially if you paid more than $100 for your uke. You don't need to spend $50 on a fancy hard case, a gig bag (padded canvas case) should be fine. These run around $20.