A guitalele is what you’d get if a guitar and a ukulele had a baby. It gives you the ease of playability and transportation of a ukulele with the greater tonal and expressive range of a guitar. It’s generally tuned to mimic a classical guitar with a capo on the 5th fret.
The guitalele is becoming more and more popular over recent years. The instrument bears a resemblance to the requinto guitar, which is a smaller version of a classical guitar. The requinto guitar (which just means small) is fairly popular in Latin America after it was brought over by the Spanish and Portugese. The guitalele’s six strings are often tuned a 4th higher than a standard guitar at A D G C E A.
The guitalele is aimed primarily at ukulele players, guitarists who want a smaller travel instrument, or kids who want to start learning the guitar. Let’s look at some of the top guitaleles available on the market today.
 | 1. Best Guitalele Overall – Yamaha GL1 Impressive sound quality, lightweight and attractive price from a reputative brand | Buy on Amazon |
| 2. Best Affordable Guitalele – The Flight Gut 350 SP/SAP Beautiful natural look, smooth tone and comes with a sturdy travel case | ||
 | 3. Best Guitalele For Beginners – Donner Guitalele DGL-1 28 Comes with everything you need to get started. Rich and full tone. Steel tuning pegs keep you in tune for longer | Buy on Amazon |
 | 4. Best Professional Guitalele – Gretsch G9126 ACE Guitar-Ukulele High-quality construction with a solid mahogany body from a reputable luthier. Warm and soothing tone | Buy on Amazon |
 | 5. Best Electric Guitalele – Fender Fullerton Ukulele Choice of 3 iconic Fender models in the size of a concert ukulele | Buy on Amazon |
 | 6. Best Guitalele for Ukulele Players – Ortega RGL5EB Guitarlele A stunning model the same size as a baritone Uke, made out of high-quality timber with gold plated tuning pegs | Buy on Amazon |
6 Best Guitalele Reviewed
Best Guitalele Overall – Yamaha GL1
The Yamaha GL1 is hard to beat, all things considered. It delivers on just about every front and stands alone as a quality instrument in its own right. The quality of its build, the smooth tone it delivers and the attractive price tag all stand together to make this our top pick.
The Yamaha GL1 has a laminate spruce top, laminate meranti back and sides, and a rosewood fretboard. Whilst meranti isn’t considered a tonewood, it helps with durability. Spruce gives a bright sound that highlights midrange frequencies particularly well. The construction gives this model a wide dynamic range that is quite unexpected in an instrument of this size, price, and weight.
The lack of solid wood construction isn’t surprising considering the instrument’s price. The ratio of tonal quality to price, is unbeatable. It somehow retains the desirable characteristics of hardwoods whilst actually being laminates. This allows a much lighter and portable model with excellent sound projection. Win-win!
The lack of hardwood has the added benefit of making the instrument light. This makes it more appealing to take on the road with you and bring it out whenever inspiration strikes. The laminate spruce and meranti protect the instrument from the elements. This can give you peace of mind for you out-in-nature musical adventures. And the tone still retains that brightness so characteristic of spruce top instruments.
One downside (that is by no means a dealbreaker at least for me) is the high saddle, which means higher action. This might give you a bit more trouble moving through chords, for example. But, it could help with sound projection so it’s not a complete con and remains down to the preference of each player. Should you decide to lower the action it’s a relatively simple procedure. It can provide you with a pretty outstanding feel, and greater attack and speed, if that’s your thing.
Pros
- Great sound out of laminate spruce top and meranti back and sides.
- Lightweight.
- Comes in a variety of colors to choose from; natural matte finish, tobacco sunburst, persimmon brown, and black.
- Comes with a handy fitted soft travel bag.
Cons
- The saddle and nut are high compared to other models, giving it quite a high action.
- Some complain that the fret faces are a bit rough, but these you can file down.
- Doesn’t have a solid wood construction.
Best Affordable Guitalele – FLIGHT GUT 350 SP/SAP
The Flight Gut 350 SP/SAP catches your eye with its appealingly natural front. Made with a laminate spruce top and Sapele back and sides, it delivers a solid, smooth, and punchy tone. A lightweight and portable body and an affordable price make this an enticing option.
The Flight Gut 350 SP/SAP is the same size as a baritone ukulele, which makes it perfect for ukulele players wanting to cross over into the tantalizing world of 6 strings.
The spruce and Sapele body delivers a sharp and direct tone, with a superb balance of attack and sonority. It performs as well on the higher register as with gentle strumming. The neck and fingerboard, built from African Okoume and Walnut, offer softness and stability. It can help ensure ease of transitions through musical ideas.
The headstock comes with designed geared tuners that promise to stay in tune for a longer time, which is great news for beginners.
Pros
- Affordable.
- Spruce and Sapele laminate construction give a pleasing tone.
- Well-designed headstock keeps you in tune for longer.
- Comes with Flight’s fitted travel gig bag.
- Nut and saddle made from bone, not plastic.
Cons
- Lack of pure hardwood.
- The dimension resembles a small guitar.
Best Guitalele For Beginners – Donner Guitalele DGL-1 28”
The Donner Guitalele DGL-1 28 is a brilliant choice for beginners. It features a spruce top and mahogany back and sides. The pegs are made of steel to keep the instrument in tune for longer. This along with its attractive price tag makes it perfect for beginners.
The spruce top and mahogany back and sides provide a rich and captivating tone right out the box. 17 Brass Frets with fret position markers at 5th, 7th, 9th, and 12th frets make this ideal for beginners.
This guitar/ukulele hybrid is light, portable, and easy to play. The custom-made steel tuning pegs mean when you’re in tune, you’ll stay there for longer, which is great for beginners still learning the ropes.
I think it’s important that a beginner’s instrument have a good construction and tone, and not a cheap, plastic/tinny timbre. This is to allow players to get a feel for what a real instrument sounds like right from the get-go, and the Donner Guitalele DGL-1 28” does just that. It also comes with all you need to get started, including a gig bag, strap, guitalele strings, a digital clip-on tuner, and a polishing cloth.
Pros
- A bundle of features has everything a beginner needs to get going.
- Spruce and Mahogany construction gives a rich and full tone.
- Steel tuning pegs keep you in tune for longer.
- Brass fret-markers on frets 5,7,9 and 12, excellent for beginner minds and fingers.
Cons
- May need some adjusting of sharp frets, and lowering of the action.
- There have been some reports of the bridge coming off early on.
Best Professional Guitalele – Gretsch G9126 A.C.E. Guitar-Ukulele
Gretsch is a high-end guitar maker, comparable in stature to Martin and Taylor. It has been making high-quality unique, custom electric guitars since they first burst onto the scene. So it should come as no surprise that the Gretsch guitalele is top-notch.
Made from one solid piece of mahogany with a honey satin finish, it is a true feast for the eyes and the ears. The Ovangkol fretboard provides a beautiful contrast to the deep tones of the mahogany. The balance of these two tonewoods leans towards a tonal warmth, as opposed to the brighter tones offered by some of the previous spruce top models.
A bone nut and saddle offer superior tone and sound projection. The 19 frets contain tasteful snowflake markers on the 17-scale length. Gretsch’s special Sta-tite tuning pegs, and solid headstock keep this beauty in tune with impeccable intonation. All this combined offers you an unparalleled playing experience in the wondrous world of the guitalele.
Pros
- Solid Mahogany body.
- Ovangkol fretboard.
- Reputable instrument maker.
- Genuine bone nut and saddle.
- High-quality tuning machine pegs.
- Comforting warm tone.
Cons
- Definitely on the expensive side.
Best Electric Guitalele – Fender Fullerton Ukulele
Fenders Fullerton Ukulele departs from the traditional aesthetic and injects a whole lot of rock and roll into the ukulele. Utilizing the iconic body shapes of the Telecaster, Stratocaster, and Jazzmaster, Fender has created a unique series of electric concert-size ukuleles.
Fender’s Fullerton ukulele series come with the signature colors, pickguard, and 4 in-line headstocks characteristic of Fender. All models come with a spruce top and mahogany body.
Fenders preamp system comes in all configurations, allowing you separate tone and volume control. A no-tie bridge makes changing strings no trouble whatsoever. The only possible downside is no gig-bag, but all models fit into a Fender FU610 Concert Ukulele Gig Bag
Pros
- Choice of 3 iconic Fender bodies; Stratocaster, Telecaster, or Jazzmaster.
- Fender’s preamp system onboard.
- Spruce top and mahogany body.
- No-tie bridge makes string changes easy.
Cons
- No Gig-bag included.
Best Guitalele For Ukulele Players – Ortega RGL5EB
The small scale of the Ortega RGL5EB makes it a perfect choice for ukulele players looking to transition to 6-strings. It has a 13” scale length. The quality tonewoods and exceptional craftsmanship mean enviable attention to detail. This is a guitar/ ukulele hybrid in the truest sense, offering a 6 string nylon instrument in the body of a tenor ukulele.
Its rich, dark and emotive ebony body offers both tonal and visual appeal. It veers towards an aesthetic oozing with expressive capacity. It comes with Ortega gold-plated machine head tuning pegs, a mahogany neck, and a walnut bridge and fingerboard.
This stunning instrument is suitable for a whole range of playing and musical styles. Its high-quality construction and superb sounding tonewoods provide exceptional visual appeal. It also adds extra expressive capacities.
Pros
- Quality timber construction.
- Eye-catching.
- Gold-plated tuning pegs.
- Lightweight.
- Good value for money.
Cons
- No left-hand model is available.
What You Should Know Before Buying a Guitalele?
Guitalele or Guitarlele?
A guitalele, sometimes referred to as a guitarlele is a mix between a classical guitar and a ukulele. It is about a quarter of the size of a classical guitar, which is the same size as a baritone ukulele.
A guitalele, tuned A to A, with the bottom 4 strings tuned the same as a G ukulele. This gives you A D G C E A, which is the same as a guitar with a capo on the 5th fret. The guitalele resembles the requinto guitar and is sometimes considered its modern incarnation.
Who is a Guitalele Suited For?
A guitalele offers the brightness and portability of a ukulele with the addition of two extra strings. Thus giving you a greater musical range to play with. Because of this, it can appeal to different range of prospective musicians, ranging from;
- Children,
- People with smaller hands,
- Ukulele players looking to transition to the wonderful world of 6 strings,
- Guitar players looking for a portable instrument,
- Anyone who wants to play!
Should You Buy A Guitalele?
A guitalele provides a nice middle-ground for many musicians transitioning from one world into another. It’s worth mentioning that some people believe the nomenclature guitalele is a marketing ploy to entice guitar players. They claim these types of instruments have long existed in folk traditions around the world, from Spain to South America.
But, don’t let that put you off, what matters is how the instrument feels for you and whether you have a calling to play it. A guitalele will often sound best in the hands of competent guitar players above their ukulele counterparts. This is because, whilst the body resembles a ukulele, the guitalele has six strings, like a guitar.
The six strings offer familiarity to the guitarists, with all the same chord shapes and scales still being available. Yet it also offers familiarity to the ukulele player. The standard guitalele tuning is closer to a uke than a guitar, with the bottom four strings being gCEA, like the standard ukulele.
The addition of two bass strings adds a level of depth to the folky, bright sound characteristic of a ukulele. It shouldn’t present too many problems for the player transitioning from 4 strings to 6, as was the case with me.
What Tonewoods Are Common For a Guitalele?
Guitars, ukuleles, and guitaleles are simple instruments. By this I mean there aren’t any complicated mechanisms involved in their construction like you find in, say, a saxophone or a piano. As such the quality of the sound and tone, timbre, volume, and feel of the instrument is dependent on the quality of the materials used. The most important materials in these types of string instruments are the tonewoods used.
Spruce
Spruce topped string instruments, famed for their brightness and clarity of sound. They offer greater possibilities for dynamic variance than other tonewoods, favoring the upper-midrange frequency.
Rosewood
Rosewood is a popular choice for guitalele bodies. It offers a pleasing rounded, mellow and sweet tone, particularly accenting low and high-end frequencies.
Mahogany
Mahogany is a medium to heavy tonewood. It lends a low, steady, rich, and warm tonal balance to the guitalele. It supports midrange frequencies well.
Cedar
Cedar-bodied guitaleles are powerful, with a tendency to favor darker tones yet still maintain tonal balance. Cedar is somewhat less crisp than other woods such as spruce but is still valued by certain players.
Koa
Koa is a common wood used for constructing ukuleles as it’s the second most common tree in Hawaii. Used in guitalele construction, it imparts a warm and sweet tone. Yet, it’s not the loudest or most powerful tonewood out there.
To Sum Up
The Yamaha GL1 is the clear winner in my books. The balance of playability, tone, dynamic range, price, and portability gives it the edge over other guitaleles. The choice of colors means it has something to offer any aesthetically sensible strummers out there.
The Yamaha GL1 is lightweight and if you consider its dynamic range, is impressive. This means that you can take a portable instrument that is actually expressive with you wherever you roam. Portability in this instance does not affect expressive potential. All this at a price that is far from astronomical, when you think about what you get and the musical options on offer.
Last update on 2023-04-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
