Left Handed Guitars For Beginners – 8 Great Electric Guitars to Get You Started

Last Updated on December 29, 2023 by Chris

Right! Let’s have a look at some great left handed electric guitars for beginners.

First off, I guess you don’t want to spend many hundreds or even thousands on your first electric guitar, but I’d say definitely buy something of decent quality and don’t aim to spend as little as possible by getting the cheapest piece of crap you can find. Sure, there are many dirt-cheap guitars out there, but you don’t want to get something so bad that you don’t even want to pick it up to play!

So to avoid all of that, I’ve put together a list of left handed guitars for beginners; great quality electric guitars that won’t break the bank.

Left Handed Guitars For Beginners

What should you look for when buying your first guitar?

I would say to avoid any non-branded guitars, just because quality can vary wildly and you never know what you’re gonna get unless you try a few of them out first. There probably will be some of those that play quite well, but you’d probably need to spend a heck of a long time trying them out to make sure, and if you don’t know what you’re looking for, you might end up with something terrible!

Some of these will need to be set up professionally before they can play well at all. If it doesn’t stay in tune, or it has some real uneven frets, you’ll probably hate playing it and just give up after a few months. At least with some of the more well-known brands, you can expect that a certain level of quality should be there.

With this list, I’ll give you a few different options, in a fairly wide price range for the main types of guitar a beginner might want to look at. I’ll also leave out some guitars, as they can be a little complicated for someone who’s never played before, definitely avoiding stuff like Floyd Rose bridges, as they can be very horrible to tune up for the uninitiated.

Once you have chosen one or more guitars that you are interested in, it’s a good idea to go to a guitar store and see it in person. Does it look as good in real life as it does in pictures? Is it ridiculously heavy to play when standing up? You don’t want to bust your back after a couple of hours of practice! Does it sit comfortably on your lap when you sit down and play? These are just some of the things you might want to consider before paying for the thing! For some other things to check out when choosing your first electric guitar, have a look at this post.

Anyway here are my choices, in ascending price order, for some fantastic left-handed guitars for beginners:

Yamaha Pacifica PAC112JL

Yamaha‘s Pacifica series of guitars are clearly influenced by the iconic Fender Stratocaster, and the PAC 112JL is a great entry-level guitar that gives you that classic feel. It may be influenced by the Strat, but it’s lighter than the Fender, and it also has just one volume control and one tone control, keeping things nice and simple. The neck and middle pickups, being single coils, provide a nice Strat-like sound, and then the humbucker at the bridge gives you the option for some meatier tones that a regular Strat just doesn’t have.

The build quality is fantastic for the price and it’s a guitar that’s able to play many different musical styles; a very versatile guitar, and great to play. I probably would’ve recommended the PAC112V instead, as it has better quality pickups, but surprise surprise, it’s not available to us lefties! Come on Yamaha! Sort it out!

• Less than $250US / £220GBP.
• One humbucker, two single coil pickups.
• Alder body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Rosewood or maple fingerboard.
• 22 medium frets.
• Available finishes: Black or natural satin.

Check price/availability at:

Jackson JS Series Dinky Arch Top JS22 DKA LH

Here is another guitar aimed at metalheads and fans of shred guitar. Jackson Guitars made a name for themselves throughout the ’80s when their high quality guitars became very popular, especially with metal guitarists.

The JS22 DKA has a Superstrat body shape, which has two high output humbuckers, a fast neck with 24 jumbo frets and the cutaways allow for easy access to the upper frets; just what you need for some heavy riffage and speedy solos. A fantastic beginner’s guitar, with great build quality; recommended for any budding shredder or metal fan.

• Less than $220US / £190GBP.
• Two humbucker pickups.
• Poplar body.
• Bolt-on maple neck with graphite reinforcement.
• Amaranth fingerboard.
• 24 jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Black.

Check price/availability at:

Squier Affinity Series Stratocaster

Squier is a brand by Fender; they produce lower-priced versions of the more expensive Fender branded guitars. The Affinity Strat is Squier’s second most inexpensive Stratocaster, after the Bullet Strat, which isn’t a bad beginner’s guitar at all, but if you bought that, I reckon it wouldn’t be too long before you’d wish you’d have bought something of better build quality and materials. That’s one reason I’d recommend the getting the Affinity over the Bullet, even though it is slightly more expensive to buy.

The Squier Affinity Strat is a good starting point and provides players with that classic Fender sound at a fraction of the cost. It has that iconic shape that so many guitarists have played over the years and is suitable for almost every style of music.

• Less than $230US / £200GBP.
• Three single coil pickups.
• Alder body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Indian laurel fingerboard.
• 21 medium jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Brown sunburst.

Check price/availability at:

Squier Affinity Series Telecaster

The Telecaster is another Fender classic that has gained many fans over the years, and it’s available in the Squier Affinity series. The Telecaster’s famous twangy sound is why so many guitarists choose this for country, blues, and jazz. Of course, it’s versatile enough to play other styles too, so don’t be afraid to get one of these if you like to rock out. This Squier version does plenty enough to recreate the smooth, clear tones of the Fender original and feels solidly built to boot.

• Less than $230US / £200GBP.
• Two single coil pickups.
• Alder body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Maple fingerboard.
• 21 medium jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Butterscotch blonde.

Check price/availability at:

Ibanez GRG170DXL

Ibanez is well known for building high-quality guitars, and each of their guitars are set up to a very high standard, and that includes their entry-level guitars too! The GRG170DXL is part of Ibanez Guitars’ entry-level GIO range and is a more affordable version of the company’s RG series of guitars.

Another Superstrat; this one has two humbuckers and one single coil in the middle. How this guitar’s pickups are set up gives you many options; by using the 5-way pickup selector switch, you can choose to play through the humbuckers as they are, or split them into single coils.

The GRG170DXL has great build quality for its price, and is very easy to play, with its comfortable fast neck. It’s aimed more at rock/metal players looking to shred, but it’s still quite a versatile guitar and can produce tones suitable for a variety of styles.

• Less than $250US / £220GBP.
• Two humbuckers, one single coil pickups.
• Poplar body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Bound purpleheart fingerboard.
• 24 jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Black.

Check price/availability at:

Squier Standard Stratocaster

Squier‘s Standard Strat is one up from the Affinity series Strat. And you can tell! It’s got much better build quality and uses higher quality hardware. The body and neck of the Affinity Strat are thinner compared to those on the Fender USA Stratocaster that this Squier version is based on, so it’s closer to it’s Fender counterpart, providing you with a very stable and comfortable feeling guitar. It has that classic Strat sound and is suitable for many musical styles, including blues, rock, pop, funk, jazz and many more. A very versatile guitar, well worth the money.

• Less than $300US / £250GBP.
• Three single coil pickups.
• Agathis body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Indian laurel fingerboard.
• 22 medium jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Antique burst.

Check price/availability at:

Squier Classic Vibe ’70s HSS Stratocaster

Squier‘s Classic Vibe series offers great build quality and incredible value, with playability to match! Because of this, it costs that little bit more than the Standard Strat. The Classic Vibe series offer you setups of Fender guitars from previous eras, including Stratocasters from the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s.

The Classic Vibe ’70s provides amazing bang for buck and seems to be priced ever so slightly cheaper than its ’50s and ’60s siblings, which is one reason to buy this over those. It also comes with a beefier humbucking pickup at the bridge in place of the usual single coil, giving you a few extra sonic options.

• Less than $500US / £400GBP.
• One humbucker, two single coil pickups.
• Poplar body.
• Bolt-on maple neck.
• Maple fingerboard.
• 21 narrow tall frets.
• Available finishes: Black.

Check price/availability at:

Epiphone G400 PRO LH Cherry

Epiphone is a very well-known brand of guitars that are perhaps better known for producing lower cost versions of Gibson guitars. The company is owned by Gibson, so are built to the same specifications as the more expensive Gibsons, which are all handmade in the United States, and use all American parts. Epiphones, however, are mass-produced in the Far East, which helps to cut the costs for those of us with a slightly more modest bank balance! They’re not the cheapest option when looking for a beginner guitar, but they are relatively very good quality guitars.

The G400 Pro is Epiphone’s version of the classic Gibson SG. The famous “Devil Horns” are an iconic feature of the SG, and sets this guitar apart from the rest of the crowd!

This mean-looking guitar has two humbuckers, both of which feature coil tap switching, which splits each of the humbuckers into single coils as required. This gives you a more versatile guitar, with a few more tonal options than regular humbuckers can give you. It’s great for creating rock, blues and metal tones, and many more!

• Less than $450US / £350GBP.
• Two humbucker pickups.
• Mahogany body.
• Mahogany set neck.
• Pau Ferro fingerboard.
• 22 medium jumbo frets.
• Available finishes: Cherry red.

Check price/availability at:

Conclusion

So there you have it; my choices for left handed guitars for beginners.

Of course, other budget-friendly guitars are available, with affordable axes from the likes of Schecter and Harley Benton, among many others, but I hope this list here will be a good starting point for any beginner lefty guitarists out there! All are available in left-handed configuration, and also in righty mode if you want.

Do any experienced guitarists out there recommend any other left-handed guitars for beginners? Please let us know in the comments below!