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Ok…

As much as I’d love to get a new guitar as a gift (and will never turn one away), I would caution anyone to purchase a guitar as a christmas present.

Unless you’re buying a guitar for a beginner, do NOT buy a guitar as a gift.

Here’s why….

Why you should NOT buy a guitar as a gift.

Guitar players are finicky.

And guitars are personal.

There are so many different styles, makes, models, and variations.

For example, let’s say you want to purchase an electric guitar for your spouse.

Well, what kind of electric guitar?

Are we talking solid body, hollow body, semi-hollow body?

What kind of pickups? Single coil? Humbuckers?

What brand? Fender? Gibson? PRS?

Already my head is spinning.

There are so many choices.

Not only that – there are choices within choices.

For example, let’s say you want to get a Fender Stratocaster.

The price range will vary by hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars.

When you SHOULD buy a guitar as a gift.

There are two circumstances when you should buy a guitar as a gift:

If your guitar-player-gift-recipient has told you precisely what they want… go for it!

If YOU are a guitar player (or if you are extremely knowledgable)…. go for it!

In these cases there is little room for error.

You probably have a budget set and (hopefully) know what you’re looking for.

If you’re buying a guitar for a beginner or a guitar for a child then it’s probably ok to surprise them with a gift.

Do you’re research before getting a guitar for a kid… make sure that you buy the correct size.

Regardless of age, make sure you buy the appropriate type of guitar. Do they want electric, acoustic, or classical?

Don’t be dismayed! There are still plenty of gifts you can buy for the guitar player in your life.

The easiest (but most boring) would be a gift card to Guitar Center or Amazon.

If you want some guitar-related stocking stuffers you can check out this list of guitar accessories.

If you know what kind of guitar they have, you may want to get them a nice guitar case or guitar stand.

Or, if you may want to consider getting them a subscription to a service like this (full detailed writeup here).

Any of these things would be great alternatives to a guitar (that may or may not fit the needs of the guitar player).

There you go! Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions (or suggestions for other guitar-related gifts).