Online guitar lessons vs. one-on-one guitar lessons: Which is better

• June 2, 2016
• Guitar Lessons

Online guitar lessons vs. one-on-one guitar lessons: Which is better?

Are you a beginner guitar player looking for the best way to hone your skills? Or maybe you’re a more experienced musician who has let their talents wane a little. Either way, if you’re looking to become a better guitarist, you’re going to need lessons.

Twenty years ago you would have just found someone from your parents’ church that teaches guitar lessons. Today, you have a few more options. And two of the biggest choices available to you are:

• 1. You can have one-on-one guitar lessons
• 2. You can take guitar lessons online

However, with whichever method of guitar lessons you’re considering taking, you’re going to find that there are pros and cons to both online lessons as well as in person lessons.

This article is going to explore those pros and cons for each type of lessons to help you make a well-informed decision as you narrow down your choices.

Pros and cons of in-person guitar lessons.

One-on-one guitar lessons can be a very personal experience. If you find someone who is a great teacher and a great musician, it can be more than a little helpful. The personal touch of a private lesson can help correct improper technique as well as answer questions that may be harder to address on the Internet.

Of course, that’s all assuming you can find a great teacher that provides those things.  While one-on-one guitar lessons can provide a positive learning experience, there are so many different teachers with different skills and methods out there. If you do have a burning question that your instructor can’t answer or correct, you’re simply out of luck. With private lessons like these, you are at the mercy of your one teacher.

Private in-person lessons can also be very expensive and time-consuming. Even if you only take one lesson a week for $20 a session (a bargain if it’s a good teacher), that’s over $1,000 a year. Not to mention the time and gas spent getting to and from those lessons.

Are online guitar lessons better than one-on-one guitar lessons?

Just like with private lessons, there are pros and cons to online guitar lessons. One of the main things you lose when learning guitar online is the personal experience of having your own instructor. It also might take a little more work on your part to get questions answered, whether that means contacting the online instructor or shooting a question off into your search engine of choice. Good online guitar instructors, like those we have at Pro Lessons, will often address common concerns in their video lessons, but this hurdle is something to keep in mind.

If you trust YouTube or other similar video sites to teach your online guitar lessons, it’s important to keep in mind that there are a wide variety of instructors on the Internet. Just because a video has a million views doesn’t mean it’s a good resource for learning guitar. There are also thousands of cat videos and America’s Funniest Home Videos-like accidents that have that kind of traffic.

The many benefits of online guitar lessons

Unlike one-on-one lessons, online sessions can be replayed over and over as you work to nail down that one move that’s been bothering you. Consistent practice is important to any guitar player’s growth, and with the ability to re-watch lessons online, practice is that much easier.

Online guitar lessons also provide you the opportunity to choose your instructors. Like we’ve said before, there are a lot of different teachers out there. At Pro Lessons, for example, we have over 20 different instructors to choose from. That means you can decide which online guitar teacher is best for you. Depending on your skill set, and what kind of music you want to play, it can be a great resource.

Better than just finding the right teacher for you, having an assortment of talented instructors also lets you find your own style instead of just mimicking whatever an in-person teacher finds important.

The affordability of online guitar lessons also makes a strong case for going that route. As stated earlier, private lessons can be well over $1,000 each year. While you can use a free resource like YouTube to learn how to play the newest song on the radio, affordable online guitar lessons can also be found to teach everything from the basics to more advanced moves that are being used by professional musicians today.

Looking at the ups and downs of online guitar lessons vs. one-on-one guitar lessons, there are certainly good things about both.

Private guitar lessons provide a positive learning experience and can be a great way to learn the basics. Online guitar lessons, on the other hand, are affordable and offer a variety of skilled teachers like those that we have at Pro Lessons. Our instructors are musicians that play professionally on the road every week so they know a thing or two about what it takes to be a great guitar player.

If you would like to see a list of the professional musicians we have available as instructors, click here.

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