Simply Guitar - Learn Guitar

Learning guitar can feel strangely difficult before you even play a full song. You have an instrument in front of you, several strings that seem too close together, and no clear idea whether your fingers or your rhythm are the real problem. I found Simply Guitar useful because it turns that first intimidating stage into a guided practice session rather than leaving me to search through unrelated videos. It is an education app from Simply Ltd, designed for guitar learners and available free to start, with optional in-app purchases ranging from $9.99 to $179.99 per item.

What to expect when you begin

The app is aimed at people who want a practical route into guitar, not a long explanation of music theory before touching the instrument. Its central promise is straightforward: you can use it with any guitar and follow lessons that help connect what you see on the screen with what your hands are doing. That makes it especially approachable if you are starting from zero or returning after years away.

I would describe the experience as a guided coach rather than a complete replacement for a guitar teacher. The app gives you a structured place to practise, demonstrates techniques in a way that is easier to follow than a static chord chart, and encourages you to play along. That combination matters because beginners often know what a chord diagram looks like but still do not know how quickly to change into it or how much pressure to use.

The first thing I noticed is that the learning process feels active. You are not simply reading instructions and moving on. You need to hold the guitar, position your fingers, and try the exercise. This is a strength for building a habit, although it also means the app cannot rescue you from an uncomfortable instrument, poorly tuned strings, or a sitting position that makes every chord harder than it needs to be.

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Its audience is broad. A complete beginner can use it as a first route into chords and rhythm, while someone who already knows a few shapes may appreciate having short, directed practice instead of repeatedly playing the same familiar pattern. It is less convincing for an experienced guitarist seeking detailed improvisation, advanced theory, or highly personalised correction. For those goals, a teacher or a more specialised course will usually offer more depth.

The app has attracted a large audience, with an average rating of 4.6 from around 333 thousand ratings and more than 10 million installs. Those figures do not guarantee that it will suit your learning style, but they do suggest that the basic guided approach works for many people. The content rating is Everyone, so it is also a reasonable option for families looking for an accessible music-learning tool.

Prepare the guitar before blaming the lesson

My strongest advice for a new user is to treat tuning and posture as part of the lesson, not as chores to rush through. If the guitar is noticeably out of tune, the app may recognise the wrong sound or make a correct fingering feel unsuccessful. Sit with the instrument stable against your body, keep the fretting thumb relaxed behind the neck, and avoid squeezing every string as if more force automatically means better sound.

A useful beginner habit is to place the guitar where you can reach it without unpacking a whole collection of accessories. Ten focused minutes is more valuable than promising yourself a long session and never starting. I also found it helpful to keep a pick and a spare way to support the guitar nearby, because interruptions during the first few attempts can make the process feel more complicated than it is.

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Simply Guitar works with acoustic and electric guitars, but the practical experience can vary. An electric guitar connected to an amplifier may produce a clearer signal for some exercises, while an acoustic guitar keeps the setup simple. If you use an electric instrument without amplification, listen carefully to your own strings and make sure the app can hear the playing environment. Background noise, a television, or another person practising nearby can make feedback less useful.

From installation to the first meaningful success

Start with the simplest honest assessment

When you open the app, resist the temptation to choose an advanced path just because you already know one or two chords. A beginner course can expose gaps that are easy to miss, especially in timing, clean fretting, and switching. I prefer starting at the level that feels almost too easy, then moving forward once the hand movements become automatic.

The current version is 9.7.3 and requires Android 6.0 or later. The app is free to download, but the wider learning experience can involve optional purchases. I recommend exploring the beginning of the course and deciding whether the teaching style suits you before committing to anything. The price range is wide, so it is worth reading each purchase screen carefully rather than assuming every lesson is covered in the same way.

During setup, use the instrument you genuinely plan to practise with. Switching between a steel-string acoustic, an electric guitar, and another instrument can change the feel of the strings enough to confuse a new player. The goal of the first session is not to prove that you can handle every guitar. It is to establish one comfortable setup in which you can hear improvement.

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If the app asks you to play something and the result seems wrong, pause before repeating the same movement harder. Check whether your fingertip is landing close enough to the fret, whether another finger is touching an adjacent string, and whether your strumming hand is moving through all the intended strings. Beginners often interpret a muted note as a problem with the lesson when it is actually a small hand-position issue.

The first success is a clean, repeatable change

The first meaningful win is not finishing a lesson. It is changing between two simple shapes while keeping a steady pulse. That is the moment when guitar starts to feel like a skill you can build rather than a collection of awkward poses. I suggest repeating the same transition several times at a slow pace, even if the app is ready to introduce something new.

One practical workflow is to play along with the app once, then repeat the exercise while looking mostly at your fretting hand. On the next attempt, shift your attention toward the rhythm and listen for gaps. This separates two problems that are easy to mix together: placing the fingers and keeping time. If you only practise while staring at the screen, you may follow instructions accurately but remain dependent on visual prompts.

Another useful trick is to lift the fingers only as far as necessary when changing chords. Large, dramatic movements feel natural at first, but they create extra distance and make the next shape late. Keep the hand loose and allow the fingers to travel a short path. The app is most valuable here as a consistent prompt: it gives you a reason to repeat the transition instead of abandoning it after one messy attempt.

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Do not judge progress by whether every note sounds perfect immediately. A buzzing string, a missed stroke, or a late chord is normal during the first sessions. I look for smaller signs of progress: fewer pauses, less hand tension, and the ability to recover without stopping the whole exercise. Those are better indicators that the lesson is becoming useful.

Make practice fit an ordinary day

A realistic scenario is practising after dinner while the rest of the household is doing something else. I would set the phone or tablet where the screen is visible, complete one guided exercise, and then spend a few minutes repeating the hardest transition without the app speaking over every attempt. This creates a clear beginning and ending, which is easier to maintain than an undefined promise to “learn guitar tonight.”

For a commuter or student, the app can also work as a short evening routine. Guitar learning does not require every session to be ambitious. A brief practice focused on one chord change may build more control than rushing through several lessons while tired. If you share a home, headphones can help with the device’s audio, but they do not remove the sound of the guitar itself, so quiet practice still depends on the instrument and your surroundings.

Parents may find the Everyone rating reassuring, but younger learners still need help with instrument size, posture, and realistic expectations. A child can follow a guided lesson and enjoy quick feedback, yet an adult may need to check that the guitar is comfortable and that frustration is not being mistaken for failure. The app can guide practice; it cannot replace encouragement or adjust the instrument physically.

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Where first-time users commonly get confused

The most common confusion is assuming that the app will automatically understand every playing problem. Audio recognition can help connect your playing to the lesson, but it is not the same as a human watching your wrist, shoulder, thumb, and fingertip angles. If the app does not respond as expected, first reduce background noise, play closer to the device, and make each stroke clear rather than louder.

Another point of confusion is the difference between knowing a chord and being able to use it. A diagram may look familiar, but the real challenge is arriving at the shape in time and producing a clean sound. If you keep failing a passage, isolate the movement between the two shapes. Practise placing the fingers silently, then strum once, instead of repeatedly playing the entire sequence from the beginning.

Some learners may also expect a fully open-ended song library or a teacher who adapts every exercise to their personal taste. This app is more structured than that. The structure is helpful when you need direction, but it can feel restrictive if you already have a specific repertoire and want immediate help with unusual chords or a particular playing style.

There is also a financial decision to make. The app itself is free, while optional purchases can be substantial at the upper end of the listed range. I would not treat the free entry point as proof that the complete course costs nothing. Read the wording on each purchase screen, consider whether you prefer a one-time lesson, a book, or personal instruction, and choose based on how consistently you expect to practise.

This is where comparison with alternatives becomes important. Free video lessons can offer more variety and may show several teachers explaining the same technique, but they often leave you to choose the next step and diagnose mistakes alone. Printed chord books are cheap and offline-friendly, yet they provide no guided rhythm or immediate response. A private teacher can correct posture and tailor the pace, but costs more and requires scheduling. Simply Guitar sits between these choices: more directed than a book or random video, less personal than an instructor.

Use the app as a practice framework, not the whole musical education

One of the less obvious strengths is that a guided app can reduce decision fatigue. Beginners regularly waste practice time deciding which video to watch, which chord to learn, or whether they should start scales before songs. A defined path removes those choices. I would use that structure for the first stage, then deliberately add activities the app cannot fully provide, such as listening closely to favourite guitarists, learning a song by ear, and playing with another person.

Another trade-off is visual dependence. On-screen guidance is excellent for showing when to act, but you eventually need to feel the rhythm without watching a display. After learning an exercise, repeat it with the phone farther away or with your eyes occasionally leaving the screen. This turns a lesson into a transferable guitar skill rather than a performance that only works while the prompts are visible.

A third useful insight is to record a short private note after practice, even if the app does not ask you to. Write down the chord change that felt hardest and the one that improved. At the next session, begin with the difficult transition for a few slow repetitions. This prevents the comfortable exercises from taking over your practice and gives you a simple way to notice progress between sessions.

Who should choose it, and who should look elsewhere?

I would recommend it to a first-time guitarist who wants a friendly route from holding the instrument to playing recognisable patterns. It is also a good fit for someone who has started several times through scattered tutorials and needs a sequence that tells them what to do next. The guided format can make practice feel less lonely, particularly when motivation disappears after the novelty of buying a guitar wears off.

I would be more cautious if you already play confidently, need detailed feedback on technique, or want a curriculum centred on jazz harmony, fingerstyle arrangement, classical notation, or advanced improvisation. A specialist teacher, a focused method book, or a course built around your chosen style may be better. Likewise, if you dislike learning through a phone or need completely offline practice, the screen-based format may become an annoyance rather than a benefit.

The developer is Simply Ltd, and the app has been available since May 30, 2021. Its established presence and large user base make it easy to see why it appears in conversations about beginner guitar apps, but popularity should not override the practical question: will you actually pick up your guitar when the lesson is ready? The best app is the one that makes that action easier for you.

My next-step recommendation

After your first successful chord change, do not immediately chase speed. Spend the next few sessions making the movement smaller, relaxing the fretting hand, and keeping a steady pulse. Then try the same pattern at a slightly different tempo or with a different strumming emphasis. This tests whether you learned a movement or only memorised one screen prompt.

I would also set a simple checkpoint after a week: can you pick up the guitar, tune it, choose the lesson, and play for a few minutes without needing to restart constantly? If yes, the app is doing its most important job by helping you build a repeatable routine. If not, change one variable at a time—shorter sessions, a quieter room, slower transitions, or a more comfortable sitting position.

My overall opinion is positive, with a clear boundary. Simply Guitar is a reassuring starting point because it gives a new guitarist direction, active exercises, and a practical way to experience early progress. Its limitations appear when you need individual correction, a very specific musical style, or complete clarity about the cost of a longer learning path before exploring it. For someone holding a guitar for the first time, however, that guided first step can be genuinely valuable. If you want a clear path to your first playable rhythm rather than another pile of disconnected tutorials, this is a strong place to begin.

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FAQ

What is Simply Guitar and how does it work?

Simply Guitar is an educational app designed to help users learn the guitar at their own pace. It provides step-by-step lessons, real-time feedback, and interactive tutorials. Users can choose from a variety of songs and styles to practice with, and the app uses the device's microphone to listen and offer instant feedback on the user's playing. It's suitable for beginners and those looking to improve their guitar skills.

Is Simply Guitar suitable for complete beginners?

Yes, Simply Guitar is tailored for complete beginners as well as intermediate players. The app starts with the fundamentals, teaching users about guitar basics, chords, and simple melodies. It gradually progresses to more advanced techniques, ensuring a comprehensive learning journey. The user-friendly interface and clear instructions make it accessible for anyone eager to start playing the guitar.

Does Simply Guitar require any additional equipment?

To use Simply Guitar, you will need a guitar, as the app is designed to provide real-time feedback on your playing. No additional equipment is necessary beyond your smartphone or tablet. The app utilizes the device's microphone to hear your playing and give feedback, so ensure your device is capable of detecting sound accurately for optimal use.

Can Simply Guitar be used offline?

Simply Guitar requires an internet connection to access its full range of features, including downloading lessons and songs. However, some of the content may be available offline once downloaded. It's recommended to have a stable internet connection for the best experience, especially when accessing new lessons and updates.

Is there a cost associated with using Simply Guitar?

Simply Guitar offers a free trial for new users to explore the app's features. After the trial period, the app operates on a subscription model, with options for monthly or annual payments. Subscribers gain access to all lessons, songs, and features. Pricing details may vary, so it's advisable to check the app store listing for the most current information.