Many people try to find the exact answer to the question “How long does it take to learn guitar?” or “How long does it take to get good at guitar?” It depends on several things, but the most important one is the amount of time you are willing to spend practising. There are other factors of course which can help, for example, a good ear, or a having a talent for music.
Let’s get back to the main question of how long it will take to learn the guitar. If you practice regularly, which means that you spend at least 1-hour learning guitar every day, you can reach the following levels. According to TheGuitarLesson.com [1]https://www.theguitarlesson.com/guitar-lesson-blog/guitar-lessons/how-long-does-it-take-to-learn-guitar/ the guitarist that practices diligently and in the correct way will win over the lazier, yet more “talented” musician in the long run. This is because playing the guitar will mean learning totally new type of movements with your hands you have almost never done before. The only way to learn these and really progress at playing the guitar is to practice regularly. Given that you practice regularly; you can reach these stages within the given amount of time:
How long does it take to learn guitar on different levels:
| TIME* | GUITAR EXPERIENCE LEVEL | DETAILED GUITAR LEVEL GUIDE |
| 1-2 months | NOVICE | Play easy guitar songs (changing between and strumming of basic chords, single-string plucking songs with not much string jumping, chord arpeggios) |
| 3-6 months | BEGINNER | Play a bit more difficult songs, which require more technical elements. For example, songs requiring easier hammer-ons, pull-offs, and other easier lead guitar techniques. |
| 1 year | INTERMEDIATE | Play intermediate level songs, including many very popular guitar songs, riffs, blues, and so on. You will probably start getting a more definitive feel for barre chords at around this time as well. |
| 2 yearsmastered most technical elements already. | UPPER INTERMEDIATE | If you practice enough, you could be playing most songs in 2 years. Of course, you’ll need to practice them before you can actually play them, but learning a song at this stage is very quick, as you’ll have mastered most technical elements already. |
| 2-3 years | PROFICIENT | If you learned guitar theory during your guitar journey, you’ll be able to improvise on the guitar as well. |
| 5-6 years | ADVANCED | You can call yourself an advanced guitarist, you’ll be able to play anything you want. |
| 10 years | SENIOR | You’ll realize how much you don’t know yet, and want to learn even more. Your guitar collection will reach a yearly average of 7-12 guitars. |
| 20+ years: You’ll be playing and entertaining others all the time. Out of your 20 guitars, you only play 3, your favorite ones. | EXPERT | You’ll be playing and entertaining others all the time. Out of your 20 guitars, you only play 3, your favorite ones. |
How to speed up learning guitar?
According to Dan Thorpe’s Acoustic Guitar Domination there are many scientifically proven ways to learn the guitar faster, here are the most important ones.[2] https://guitardomination.net/14-scientifically-proven-ways-to-learn-and-master-the-guitar-faster-and-quicker-than-ever/
- Practice in the ideal guitar learning environment. Plenty of daylight, the temperature is between 20°C (68°F) and 23°C (74°F), having plants in the room, the room is also tidy.
- Workout and train regularly. Exercise helps in large amounts.
- Know your chronotype and practice accordingly. According to a study[3]https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1761650/ people learn better at their own particular chronotype (a person’s propensity to sleep at a particular time during a 24-hour period).
- Mediate. It helps increase brain efficiency in an attention task i.e. attention span so it makes you a better guitarist from a technical point of view.
- Chewing gum. According to Baylor College of Medicine [4]https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/mnt/releases/147274#1 chewing gum can lead to better academic performance.
- Sleep. Sleep good is always a must when learning something new.
- Keep on achieving. Achieve something every day and use SMART goals for that. [5]https://www.projectsmart.co.uk/brief-history-of-smart-goals.php
- Enjoy the pleasure. Music can help you release dopamine which is a chemical that gives us huge amounts of pleasure.
- Listen to Music While Taking a Nap. By listening to the music you are learning when napping you will remember that piece better.
- Get tested. Testing is a very powerful tool because it gives the guitar student something to work for and some direct motivation.
So how long does it take to play the guitar depends on what level you want to achieve. In generally speaking you should practice at least one hour for a year to play intermediate level songs.